Vowel Team Anchor Chart Phonics Helper Chart
Vowel Team Voyage
Two vowels go walking, the first one does the talking! They say their long name together.
Rainy Days
ai
Makes the long "A" sound!
🌧️
rain
🚂
train
⛵
sail
✉️
mail
Sailing Boats
oa
Makes the long "O" sound!
⛵
boat
🐐
goat
🧼
soap
🧥
coat
Busy Bees
ee
Makes the long "E" sound!
🐝
bee
🌳
tree
🌱
seed
🦶
feet
Sweet Pies
ie
Makes the long "I" sound!
🥧
pie
👔
tie
🍟
fries
🪰
flies
The Sailor's Secret Rule
When two vowel partners are right next to each other, the first vowel makes its long sound, and the second vowel stays totally silent! Listen to how they sail smoothly in each word.
Vowel Team Student Packet Student Adventure Log
Vowel Team Voyage
Name:
Date:
1 Activity 1: Circle the Sound (AI)
Say each picture out loud. Circle ONLY the pictures that have the long "ai" sound (like in rai n). Put an X on the ones that do not!
🚂
Picture 1
🐱
Picture 2
🌧️
Picture 3
🍎
Picture 4
⛵
Picture 5
✏️
Write & Trace
Trace and write the target word with AI.
train
Student Adventure Log
Vowel Team Voyage
Name:
Date:
2 Activity 2: Help the Pirate Reach the Treasure (OA)
The pirate needs to reach the gold! Trace the pathway by coloring or circling ONLY the stepping stones with the long "oa" sound.
🏴☠️
Start Here! (Pirate Pete)
⛵ Boat
🐱 Cat
🐟 Fish
🥤 Cup
🐐 Goat
🧼 Soap
☀️ Sun
🐷 Pig
🛏️ Bed
🧥 Coat
🛣️ Road
🐕 Dog
🎩 Hat
🍎 Apple
🐸 Toad
⛵ Float
🪙
Treasure Chest!
✏️
Write & Trace
Trace and write the target word with OA.
boat
Student Adventure Log
Vowel Team Voyage
Name:
Date:
3 Activity 3: Sam the Detective (EE)
Sam the Detective needs your help! Spot the hidden words in the magnifying bubbles below. Circle ONLY the words that have the double "ee" letters.
🕵️♂️
"I'm looking for clues! Only circle words with the EE sound like in bee!"
Clue 1 BEE 🐝
Clue 2 BED 🛏️
Clue 3 TREE 🌳
Clue 4 TEN 🔟
Clue 5 SEED 🌱
Clue 6 RED 🔴
Clue 7 JEEP 🚙
Clue 8 HEN 🐔
Clue 9 FEET 🦶
✏️
Write & Trace
Trace and write the target word with EE.
tree
Student Adventure Log
Vowel Team Voyage
Name:
Date:
4 Activity 4: Pop the Balloons (IE)
Color in or make a checkmark on ONLY the balloons that fly with the "ie" sound (like in pie ). Do not pop the short "i" sound balloons!
Pop Me! PIE 🥧
Keep Safe PIG 🐷
Pop Me! TIE 👔
Keep Safe SIT 🪑
Pop Me! FRIES 🍟
Keep Safe PIN 📍
Pop Me! FLIES 🪰
Keep Safe DIG ⛏️
✏️
Write & Trace
Trace and write the target word with IE.
pie
Vowel Team Sorting Center Hands-On Learning Center
Activity 5: Park the Car!
Cut out the car cards from Page 3. Sort each car into the correct vowel team garage below!
Mat A
ai
The Long "A" Garage
Park cards like: Train, Rain, Nail
Space 1
Space 2
Space 3
Mat B
oa
The Long "O" Garage
Park cards like: Boat, Goat, Soap
Space 1
Space 2
Space 3
Vowel Team Voyage Phonics Mats • Print on Cardstock for Durability
Hands-On Learning Center
Activity 5: Park the Car!
Cut out the car cards from Page 3. Sort each car into the correct vowel team garage below!
Mat C
ee
The Long "E" Garage
Park cards like: Bee, Tree, Feet
Space 1
Space 2
Space 3
Mat D
ie
The Long "I" Garage
Park cards like: Pie, Tie, Fries
Space 1
Space 2
Space 3
Vowel Team Voyage Phonics Mats • Print on Cardstock for Durability
Teacher Cutout Sheet
Car Parking Game Pieces
Cut along the dashed lines to create the sorting car cards. (12 Cars Total)
ai 🚂
Train
Car 1
ai 🌧️
Rain
Car 2
ai 💅
Nail
Car 3
oa ⛵
Boat
Car 4
oa 🐐
Goat
Car 5
oa 🧼
Soap
Car 6
ee 🐝
Bee
Car 7
ee 🌳
Tree
Car 8
ee 🦶
Feet
Car 9
ie 🥧
Pie
Car 10
ie 👔
Tie
Car 11
ie 🍟
Fries
Car 12
Pro Tip: Laminate the garages and the car cards to use them over and over at your phonics literacy station!
Vowel Team Teacher Guide Teacher Instruction Manual
Vowel Team Voyage
Spelling Focus: AI, OA, EE, IE Digraphs
Grade Focus K - Grade 2
Duration
45 - 60 Minutes
Grouping
Whole Group & Centers
Core Skills
Phonics, Blending, Sorting
Learning Objectives
• Students will identify the spelling patterns ai, oa, ee, ie and state their corresponding long vowel sounds.
• Students will discriminate between target long vowel sounds and short vowel distractor sounds in picture-based tasks.
• Students will physically categorize vocabulary words into corresponding vowel team categories during hands-on center play.
Recommended Pacing
1. Introduce & Warm-Up 10 mins
Teach the "Sailor's Secret Rule": When two vowels walk, the first does the talking. Introduce the Anchor Chart.
2. Interactive Slides Instruction 15 mins
Deliver whole-group direct instruction using the whiteboard slides. Model sounding out each vowel team.
3. Guided Practice (Student Packet) 15 mins
Students work on Activities 1 to 4 in their packets. Assist with pronunciation and phonetic modeling.
4. Independent Centers Rotation (Park the Car!) 15 mins
Set up the sorting mats at literacy stations. Students cut and sort car cards into the corresponding garages.
Vowel Team Voyage Lesson Guide • Page 1
Instructional Script & Prompts
Explicit Phonics Teacher Script
"Ahoy, word detectives! Today we are setting sail on a Vowel Team Voyage! Vowels love to travel in teams of two. When two vowels go walking next to each other, do they both talk? No! Only the FIRST vowel speaks, and it says its own long name out loud! The second vowel is super quiet. Let's look at AI: when A and I are together, A yells its name, 'A!', and I stays silent. Let's say it together: /ā/ /ā/ /ā/!"
Guided Practice Prompts (Packet Activities)
"Now let's open our Adventure Logs to Activity 1. Let's look at the first picture: a train! Do you hear the long 'A' sound in tr-ai-n? Yes! Let's circle the train. Now look at the cat: c-a-t. Does it have the 'ai' team? No, that is a short /ă/ sound! Give it a big red X!"
Facilitating the Center (Park the Car!)
"At our next stop, you are a garage parking attendant! Pick up a car card. Read the word and look at the picture. E.g., 'G-O-A-T'. What vowel team is inside? Yes, OA! Drive that goat car straight into the OA Sunset Garage and park it in space 1! Be sure to make a revving engine sound as you park!"
Common Misconceptions & Fixes
Vowel Team Presentation Slides Phonics Voyage
Interactive Lesson
🚢
Vowel Team Voyage
Let's explore the magic spelling rule: When two vowels walk, the first one does the talking!
🏴☠️
Sailor's Secret Rule:
The first vowel says its long name (like A, O, E, or I), and the second vowel stays silent!
ai The Long "A" Sound
Activity 1: Spot the AI!
The Rainy Sails
When a and i stand together, they say:
/ā/ as in R-AI-N
Say the names of these two pictures. Which one has the /ā/ sound?
🚂
TRAIN Tr-ai-n
🐱
CAT C-a-t (Short A)
Ask children: "Do you hear the long A in Train, or the short A in Cat?"
oa The Long "O" Sound
Activity 2: Help the Pirate!
The Sunset Boat
When o and a stand together, they say:
/ō/ as in B-OA-T
Help the pirate sail! Point to the words that make the /ō/ sound.
⛵
BOAT B-oa-t
🛏️
BED B-e-d
🐐
GOAT G-oa-t
🐷
PIG P-i-g
Sailor's Challenge: "Does Boat make the long O sound? Yes! What about Bed? No!"
ee The Long "E" Sound
Activity 3: Detective Sam!
The Buzzing Bees
When e and e sit together, they say:
/ē/ as in B-EE
Let's zoom in! Click or point to find all the EE words hidden in the forest.
Word 1 BEE 🐝
Word 2 BED 🛏️
Word 3 TREE 🌳
Word 4 HEN 🐔
Word 5 FEET 🦶
Word 6 RED 🔴
Detective Task: "Point to the items with double-E. Can you hear the long /ē/ sound?"
ie The Long "I" Sound
Activity 4: Balloon Pop!
The High-Flying Pies
When i and e fly together, they say:
/ī/ as in P-IE
Pop ONLY the balloons with the long IE sound! Be careful of distractors!
Pop! PIE 🥧
Safe PIG 🐷
Pop! TIE 👔
Safe SIT 🪑
Balloon Pop Routine: "Let's make a POP sound when we touch the IE balloons!"