Some sounds are written with two letters that work together, like sh in ship, ch in chair and th in thumb. These letter pairs are called digraphs, and spotting them is a big step in reading and spelling longer words.
What your child will learn
- Read and write the digraphs sh, ch, th, ck, ng and wh
- Hear the long vowel sounds ee, oo, ai, oa and ar in words
- Know that two letters can make one sound
- Choose the right letter pair to finish a word
Two letters, one sound
When children sound out “ship”, they say three sounds — sh-i-p — even though it has four letters. Learning that sh, ch and th each make a single sound stops children sounding out s-h-i-p.
Vowel pairs like ee, oo and ai work the same way. The two letters join forces to make one long sound, as in tree, moon and rain.
Example questions
Here are a few questions like the ones in the first quest. Can you solve them?
1. Which two letters make the first sound in “chair”?
🪑- ch
- sh
- c
- th
Show answer
Answer: ch. Chair starts with “ch”, written with c and h together.
2. Which two letters make the first sound in “thumb”?
👍- sh
- ch
- t
- th
Show answer
Answer: th. Thumb starts with “th”. Put your tongue between your teeth to say it!
3. Which word ends with “ng”?
- rain
- rush
- rock
- ring
Show answer
Answer: ring. Ring ends with “ng”.
Tips for grown-ups
- Go on a “sh” hunt around the house: shoe, shelf, shower, shampoo.
- Say a word and ask how many sounds it has, not how many letters.
- Write digraphs on sticky notes and swap them to make new words: ship, chip, chop, shop.