Time to Build CVC Words!

Back in August I saw a great post by The Printable Princess about using Target Dollar Spot blocks for sight word building.

I bought 3 bags with the intention of making them...and then came 'back to school' and all its craziness!

Those bags just sat and collected dust sat...until today!

My kindergarteners are really struggling with CVC words this year so I have been trying to come up with some new ways to help them.

A few weeks ago I saw A Pinch Of Kinder post on IG about making some CVC blocks for her kids...

LIGHT BULB!

My kids this year L-O-V-E blocks...I had brought in some old Mega Blocks that belonged to my boys and you would think they were gold!

Thanks to Mother Nature, I had a 4-Day weekend (I won't be thanking her in May when I need to make these days up!) so this is how I spent my 2nd snow day:

These blocks are a bit smaller than 'Mega Blocks' so I had to play with the size of labels to get them just right!

I typed up 40 CVC words (8 for each short vowel) and inserted the pictures into a table in PowerPoint.

When I printed them they were WAY bigger than the blocks...so I kept reducing...the perfect size was when I had the printer print 6 pages to one page!  

Not only did they fit...I was able to get all the letters and pictures on 1 sheet of labels!  

EVEN BETTER!!!

I used these full sheet labels:

so it was like a giant sticker!

I cut the pictures and words first:

And then assembled them:

It was easier to peel the whole word and then cut it into letters to stick on the blocks.

I also made a recording sheet so that the kids can also practice writing the words they build.

The blocks fit perfectly to build the CVC word:

And there are plenty of words to practice!

Best yet...they fit back into the bags they came in for easy storage!

Of course I was short a few blocks, so I improvised by putting a picture sticker on both sides of the long block.  This way they can flip it to make the other picture and 'borrow' a letter from another word to complete it!

(I will probably keep these out of the mix until they master building the words!)

I have put the pictures and letters into a FREE downloadable file for anyone else that wants to make these!  I also included the 'how to' on printing so that they fit the blocks best and the recording sheet!

(If you happen to have the larger 'Mega Blocks' and want the pictures/letters to be larger, you can modify it by selecting a lower number for pages per page.)

I am thinking of putting the small blocks with the letters into our sensory bin and having them find the letters they need to build the words.

I will also keep a few at my guided reading table for word work- either as a warm-up before reading or extra practice for after reading.

My hope is that after a few weeks of using them in centers and small group instruction, we will have a better handle on building, blending and reading CVC words so that I can put them in our early finishers basket for added practice!

I'd love to hear how you plan on using them too!

Enjoy!

Until next post,