Develop early reading and spelling skills in this fun word building game with two levels of play.

Components

• 12 double-sided 3-letter word boards
• 8 double-sided 4-letter word boards
• 68 letter cards

Setup

Each player chooses a word board.

Use boards with words face up for Game 1.

Use boards with words face down for 1 Game 2.

Spread the letter cards face up on the table.

Game 1: Matching, Sounding Out And Reading

1. Match a letter from the table to the first letter on the word board. If you cannot find the matching letter, other players are encouraged to help.

   Make the sound of the letter as you place it on your board. Play passes to the next player.

2. Collect letters in the order the word is spelt.

   When all the letters have been found, read the word aloud and choose another board to complete.

   
   
   

Game 2: Sounding out and spelling phonetically

1. Sound out the word to identify the letters needed to spell the word. Then find a letter from the table.

   If you cannot sound out the letters, other players are encouraged to help.

   Make the sound of the letter as you place it on your board. Play passes to the next player.

2. When all the letters have been found, read the word aloud and choose another board to complete.

   When using the blank side of the word board, be particularly careful to put letter cards in the correct order to spell the word.

   
   
   

In both games play continues until all of the word boards are complete.

Game Variations

For a first introduction to reading and spelling, the games can be played with just the 3-letter word boards. The 4- letter word boards can be introduced as players grow in confidence.

To play with mixed ages and abilities, word boards can be used either way up depending on the players' ability.

To make the games more challenging, the letter cards can be placed face down on the table for a matching and memory game.

These games can also be played as a single player activity.

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