Phase 8: vowel digraphs

The sounds this phase adds, the words that have to be learned by sight, and every everyday word a child who has been taught them can sound out.

The sounds this phase adds

By the end of this phase a child has met 50 sounds altogether.

Words to learn by sight

These cannot be sounded out with the letters taught so far, so they are simply learned. Every phonics programme has a handful of them and this is ours.

what
oh
their
people
looked
called

What this phase buys

68 everyday words a child could not read before this phase and can read after it. This is the list worth practising, because the rest they already have.

or air far for how now oil see been down feel food form good grow hard hear keep look near need over part rain seem show took tree turn very week word work year after again earth every large learn light might never night order other paper point right river start story three under water world answer differ father follow letter mother school america another several together important

Everything they can read by the end of it

Every word in the first five hundred of English that a child who has been taught these sounds can work out for themselves. There are 265 of them, shortest first. This list is not written by hand: it is produced by running the words through the same check that decides whether a page of one of our books may use a word at all.

an as at by if in is it of on or up air and any ask bad bag bat bed big bin bit bog box bug bun bus but can cap cot cup cut dad dam den did dig din dog dot end fan far fig fin fit fix fog for fox fun gap get got had ham has hat hen him his hit hog hop hot how hug hut its jam jet jog jug kit lad lap led leg let lit log lot mad man map mat men met mix mop mug nap net not now nut off oil old pan pat peg pen pet pig pin pit pop pot pup put rag ram ran rat red rug run sad sat see set sit six sun tag tan tap ten tin top try tug two van wag wax wet wig win yet also back been buzz call city down even feel find fizz food form from good grow hand hard hear help hiss just keep kind kiss land last left list long look many mess mind miss much must near need next only open over part rain seem show stop such talk tell than that them then this took tree turn very want week well went will with word work year after again began earth every large learn light might money month never night often order other paper plant point quick right river small spell start still story study thing think three under until water world animal answer change differ family father follow letter mother school second america another example several sentence together important

The sight words above are not in this list, because they are not sounded out. Print this page and the two lists come out separately, which is how they should be practised.

How a book uses this

Nothing before its time

A book written for a child at phase 8 is checked word by word against this list. A draft that reaches for a sound from a later phase is sent back and written again, rather than shipped with a word the child will stall on.

Names are the exception

A story about a dragon called Ferdinand should not spend its whole allowance of tricky words on the name. Character names are exempt from the check and are the only thing that is.