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Consonant Digraphs 'sh' & 'ch'

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Meet the Letter Teams: SH and CH!

Hello, Super Reader! Did you know that letters can be best friends? Sometimes, two letters hold hands to make one, brand-new sound. We call these special letter friends "digraphs." It’s like when you mix yellow paint and blue paint to make a totally new color: green! Today, we're going to meet two amazing letter teams: sh and ch.

The Quiet Team: sh 🤫

When the letters 's' and 'h' get together, they love to be quiet! They put a finger to their lips and say, "Shhhhhh!" Can you make that sound? It's the sound you hear at the beginning of ship and shoe. You can also hear it at the end of fish and brush. They are the quiet team!

The Train Team: ch 🚂

Our next team, 'c' and 'h', is a little louder! When they hold hands, they make a sound like a train starting up: "Ch-ch-ch!" It’s the sound a train makes: "Choo-choo!" You can hear this sound at the beginning of cheese and chin. You can also hear it at the end of lunch and catch. They are the noisy train team!

⭐ Key Takeaway! ⭐

  • 🤫
    The letter team sh makes the quiet "Shhhh!" sound.
  • 🚂
    The letter team ch makes the train "Choo-choo!" sound.

Let's Be Sound Detectives!

Now, let's sort some words! Imagine two houses: the 'sh' house and the 'ch' house. If you hear the quiet sound in a word, it goes in the 'sh' house. If you hear the train sound, it goes in the 'ch' house!

Listen to the word "shark." Do you hear "shhh" or "ch-ch"? You hear "shhh," so it goes to the quiet sh house!
Now listen to "chick." Do you hear "shhh" or "ch-ch"? You hear "ch-ch," so it belongs in the noisy ch house!

You are a digraph superstar! Keep listening for our new letter teams in all the words you hear. Great job today!

Sample questions

1. Which word has the 'sh' sound?
A. ship
B. chair
C. sun
D. tree
Answer: A. ship — Listen carefully for the /sh/ sound.
2. Listen carefully. Which word has the 'sh' sound?
A. chop
B. fish
C. cat
D. watch
Answer: B. fish — Listen carefully for the /sh/ sound.
3. Can you hear the 'sh' sound in one of these words?
A. lunch
B. dog
C. shoe
D. cheese
Answer: C. shoe — Listen carefully for the /sh/ sound.

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