Sorting /oo/ Sounds

At Smart Boarding School we’ve created a free phonics worksheet that lets early readers explore five common spellings for this vowel team—like in moon, chew, blue, fruit, and flute.

Meet the “Sorting /oo/ Words” worksheet—perfect for Grade 1 and Grade 2 literacy centres, small‑group lessons, or at‑home practice.

What’s inside?

A list of 20 long /oo/ words ready to read, sort, and discuss.
A five‑column sorting chart where learners organise words by spelling pattern:
- oo as in moon or spoon
- ew as in chew or stew
- ue as in blue or glue
- ui as in fruit or suit
- u_e (split digraph) as in flute or tune

Why teach the /oo/ spellings?

Understanding that one sound can be written in several ways helps students:

Recognise reliable spelling patterns for their own writing.
Read with fluency by quickly decoding familiar vowel teams.
Strengthen phonemic awareness, which is essential for tackling new and multisyllabic words.

How to use the worksheet

Print & Prep – Hand out the worksheet with pencils, markers, or highlighters.
Read Aloud – Say each word together, emphasising the long /oo/ sound, and highlight the letters that spell it.
Sort – Students write or cut‑and‑paste each word into the correct column on the sheet.
Review – Check answers as a class and discuss why the same sound can be spelled five different ways.

Extension ideas

Sentence Builder – Challenge students to write a sentence using one word from each spelling group.
/Oo/ Word Hunt – Have learners search books or classroom signs for additional /oo/ words and add them to the chart.
Illustrate & Label – Let students draw a picture of a favourite /oo/ word and label it clearly.

Why you’ll love this resource

No prep—simply download, print, and teach.
Appeals to visual, auditory, and kinaesthetic learners.
Works for whole‑class instruction, guided reading, literacy stations, or homework.