Teaching Consonant Digraphs: Simple Ways to Practice sh, ch and th
Your child points to ship and tries to say a separate sound for every letter. This is a useful moment to introduce a digraph: two letters representing one sound. In ship, the letters sh work together.
Show the difference
Write ship. Underline sh, then say its three sounds: /sh/ /i/ /p/. Compare it with stop, where the s and t each represent a sound. That pair is a consonant blend.
Try these eight practice ideas
- Teach one spelling: begin with a digraph in your reading program, such as sh, and a few familiar words.
- Listen first: say ship, sun and fish. Ask which words contain /sh/.
- Link a picture: draw a ship beside sh. Use the picture to introduce the sound, then read words by looking at their letters.
- Build words: put sh on one card and add i and p.
- Change a sound: move from ship to shop, then chop when ch is familiar.
- Sort and read: sort a few words by sh or ch, reading each aloud.
- Write from speech: say fish. Help your child hear three sounds and spell them, with sh together.
- Read a sentence: try “A fish is in a dish,” providing help with any word or spelling not yet taught.
A small word bank
- sh: ship, shop, fish, dish
- ch: chip, chin, much, rich
- th: thin, thick, bath, this
- ck: back, sock, duck, neck
Th has two common sounds: compare thin and this. In many accents, wh in when sounds like /w/. Use your family’s natural pronunciation.
Continue with printables
Learn to Read 3: Digraphs offers related practice. Choose a few words that fit your child’s current phonics knowledge.