Parent guide · Grade 1 Phonics & Reading: Long Vowels and Many Words · Unit 6
Lesson 6.3 er, ir and ur
Written for the parent. Read the Say this lines aloud as they are, or in your own words. Answers for you are marked Listen for.
At a glance
- Time
- 5 sessions of 15–20 minutes
- Goal
- I can say /er/ when I see er (as in her ), and write it. I can say /er/ when I see ir (as in bird ), and write it. I can say /er/ when I see ur (as in fur ), and write it. I can tap and blend words such as her , fern , perk . I can read the heart words learn and say which part is learned by heart. I can read “Martha and Mary” and tell it back.
- You need
- Counters (dried beans, buttons or pebbles)
- A few cups
- Sound cards (printables pack)
- Heart-word cards (printables pack)
- Primary-ruled paper and a pencil
- A King James Bible
- the lesson page (it also has a short video (4:09) and an explainer to read aloud (about 12 minutes))
Steps
Do this: Three ways to spell /er/: her, bird, fur. Say: fern, first, turn, girl, burn.
Do this: New sound: er. Show the card and say: “This says /er/, as in her.” Your child says it three times, then writes it in the air, on the table with a finger, and on paper. Then play a quick ears game: you say words and your child gives a thumbs up whenever /er/ is in the word.
Do this: New sound: ir. Show the card and say: “This says /er/, as in bird.” Your child says it three times, then writes it in the air, on the table with a finger, and on paper. Then play a quick ears game: you say words and your child gives a thumbs up whenever /er/ is in the word.
Do this: New sound: ur. Show the card and say: “This says /er/, as in fur.” Your child says it three times, then writes it in the air, on the table with a finger, and on paper. Then play a quick ears game: you say words and your child gives a thumbs up whenever /er/ is in the word.
Do this: Tap and blend. For each word your child touches each letter (or letter team) and says its sound, then sweeps a finger under the whole word and says it smoothly. Never guess from the first letter or a picture. If a word is misread, point to the part that was missed and blend again from the start.
Do this: Spell it. Say a word. Your child says it back, taps the sounds on his or her fingers, then writes one letter (or letter team) for each sound. Check together, sound by sound.
Do this: Heart words. A heart word is mostly regular. We tap it like any other word, and draw a heart over the one part that does not follow the rules we know yet. Practise the heart words on cards every day this week (see the table below).
Do this: The week at a glance. Day 1: warm-up, new sound, handwriting. Day 2: card review, word lists, spelling. Day 3: second new sound or more words, heart words. Day 4: read the story, talk about it. Day 5: reread the story for fluency, play the game, quick check (10 words, 1 sentence, 5 spelling words). Read the read-aloud at another time of day.
New cards:
- er says /er/, as in her. Make a sound card: write er on the front and draw a her on the back.
- ir says /er/, as in bird. Make a sound card: write ir on the front and draw a bird on the back.
- ur says /er/, as in fur. Make a sound card: write ur on the front and draw a fur on the back.
Show: Blend her.
Say this: “Touch and say: /h/ /er/.”
Say this: “Sweep your finger under the word and say the sounds again, faster, without stopping between them.”
Say this: “Say the word: her . Use it in a sentence.”
Answer: her
Show: Blend fern.
Say this: “Touch and say: /f/ /er/ /n/.”
Say this: “Sweep your finger under the word and say the sounds again, faster, without stopping between them.”
Say this: “Say the word: fern . Use it in a sentence.”
Answer: fern
Do this: Your child does these with you. Let them try first; help only after a real try.
Ask: Read: her · fern · perk · first
Listen for: her = h | er; fern = f | er | n; perk = p | er | k; first = f | ir | s | t
Ask: Read: bird · girl · stir · turn
Listen for: bird = b | ir | d; girl = g | ir | l; stir = s | t | ir; turn = t | ur | n
Ask: Read: burn · hurt · church · surf
Listen for: burn = b | ur | n; hurt = h | ur | t; church = ch | ur | ch; surf = s | ur | f
4 more practice items on the lesson page.
- Reading r-controlled vowels as short vowels (cat for cart). The r changes the vowel; underline the vowel and r together.
- Guessing from the first letter or the picture. Cover the picture and ask the child to tap every sound.
- Copy: Mary sat at His feet.
- Use the ball-and-stick lines: tall letters touch the top line, short letters touch the middle line, tails go below the base line.
Copywork: Write each word once, saying the sounds as you write: her, fern, perk, first, bird, girl.
Word Sounds Heart part learn /l/ /er/ /n/ ♥ ear says /er/ Martha and Mary
Jesus came to the home of Martha and her sister Mary.
Martha served and stirred and turned the meat. She was in a hurry. She was so busy!
Mary sat at the feet of Jesus to learn from Him. Martha got cross. "Lord, tell her to help me!"
Jesus said, "Martha, Martha, you fret and hurry. But one thing is needed. Mary picked the better part, and it will not be taken from her."
Retold from Luke 10:38–42. Before reading, show your child these story words and read them together: Jesus, Martha, Mary, sister, better, needed, thing.
Every word in this story uses only the sounds and heart words taught so far (checked by the School Launch decodability checker). Read a page a day on Days 3 and 4, and the whole story on Day 5.
- What was Martha doing?
Answer
Serving, cooking, hurrying.
- What was Mary doing?
Answer
Sitting at Jesus’ feet, listening.
- What did Martha ask Jesus?
Answer
To tell Mary to help her.
- What did Jesus say Mary chose?
Answer
The better part: listening to Him.
Then ask your child to tell the whole story back in his or her own words (narration).
- What was Martha doing?
Luke 10:38–42. Read aloud.
The read-aloud is for listening, not decoding. Read it to your child at another time of day.
Three cups: er, ir, ur. Your parent says a word; you drop a bean in the cup you think spells it, then check on the card.
Say this: “Tell me the new sounds you learned this week, and read me one word.”
Listen for: I can say /er/ when I see er (as in her ), and write it.; I can say /er/ when I see ir (as in bird ), and write it.; I can say /er/ when I see ur (as in fur ), and write it.; I can tap and blend words such as her , fern , perk .; I can read the heart words learn and say which part is learned by heart.; I can read “Martha and Mary” and tell it back.
I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth.
This week: Pause at the marks. Stop briefly at every comma and a little longer at every period. Pauses help listeners think.
- Day 1: The teacher says it twice; the child echoes it one line at a time.
- Days 2–4: Say it together each morning; drop one line of help each day.
- Day 5: Say the reference, then the verse, then the reference again. Stand up and say it alone for the family.
But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.
Listening to Jesus is the most important thing.
Spread over the week
5 sessions of 15–20 minutes. Stop while it is still going well.
- Session 1. Warm-up, then teach the new idea (steps 1 and 2).
- Session 2. Warm-up again, then show how with the examples.
- Session 3. Practice together, then play the game.
- Session 4. More practice, handwriting and reading, and the daily habit.
- Session 5. Quick check: narration and a few practice items. Move on when it is mostly right.
For you
For families. Keep each session short and cheerful: 15 to 20 minutes, then stop. If your child is tired or frustrated, stop and finish tomorrow. A lesson can take more than a week; move on when the quick check on Day 5 is mostly “Got it.”