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Short and long u sounds

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Alphabet letters that we call vowels:

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a	e	i	o	u

We use these vowel letters to write lots of sounds in words.

They can be pronounced in a long or a short way.

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Goals

identify the short and long u sounds and discriminate between them
write the short and long sounds with the letter u
know that the long and short ‘u’ sounds can be written in other ways as well as with the letter u
The long u can sound like either ‘you’ or ‘oo’
spell some words that have the short and long u sounds from memory.

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Words that are written with ‘u’ but can be long or short sounds:

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	umbrella
	unicorn

Identify which are long and which are short. Get children to identify more u words. It is better to start with beginning sounds at this stage as they are more likely to be single letter spelling and not a letter cluster. If children volunteer words that have long u in the middle or end and it is not a ‘u’ accept them and if you are writing them up on the board as a long u or short u list, just underline the u sound but don’t go any further at this stage. Eg, boot or screw. It will come later. (Different ways of writing the u sound) . NB. Some short ‘u’ sounds start with the letter ‘a’ eg around, about, when the word starts with a syllable by itself. Put these in the short u list but point out the difference between writing it with a ‘u’ and an ‘a’. NB The short ‘u’ can be written in three ways: a ‘u’ (cup), an ‘o’ (love) or an ‘a’ (about).

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Words that start with a short ‘u’ or a long ‘u’

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Short u	Long u
under	usually
unusual	unicorn
ugly	use

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Words that start with a long or short ‘u’ sound

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unicorn	use	utensil
uncle	universe	ugly
umpire	ulcer	up
useful	until	ukulele

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Divide the group in half. One half puts hands up if long u sound and the other if short u sound.

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under	unite	used
unusual	useful	umbrella
underwear	underneath	universe
until	university	unique

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Now try these words - the ‘u’ sound may not be at the beginning of the word.

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jug	blue	mug
fun	undone	bug
fruit	unify	croup
juice	unite	pug

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Extra for experts...Which letters make the ‘u’ sound in these words?

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June	puppy	you or oo? long or short?

blue	hunch

bruise	double

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Are you ready to find short and long ‘u’ sounds? Check out these ‘u’ sound vowel videos first.

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Now try these...

Take the Quiz

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Long u sounds #1
Long and short u sounds #2
Long and short u sounds #3