Year 1R-controlled vowels
ear words
The letters 'ear' can also spell the sound /er/ as in 'earth' and 'learn'. This is the same sound as 'er', 'ir' and 'ur'.
The letters e, a and r work together to make the /ear/ sound.
The three letters 'ear' can also spell /air/, as in 'bear', 'pear' and 'wear'.
ear/er/ as in earth
Words with ear
Tap a word to see its sounds and hear it.
ear at the start
ear in the middle
ear at the end
Read ear in a sentence.
Every sentence is checked against the sound.
- 1We learn to search.
- 2My ears can hear.
- 3I heard the earthworm.
- 4The spear is near.
How to teach ear
- Introduce the r-controlled digraph. Explain that the letter r changes the way the vowel sounds.
- Model saying the target phoneme three times.
- Students repeat.
- Check articulation and correct mouth placement.
- Identify the phoneme in the example words.
- Optional alternative sounds: The vowel trigraph ear has three common pronunciations. The most common pronunciation is /ear/ (e.g. hear, fear, year). A less common pronunciation is /er/ (e.g. early, earn, earth). The least common pronunciation is /air/ (e.g. bear, pear, wear).
- Introduce the trigraph. Explain that a trigraph is three letters that work together to make one sound.
- Model saying the target phoneme three times.
- Students repeat.
- Check articulation and correct mouth placement. Prompt students to move smoothly from the long /ee/ sound into the /r/ sound.
- Identify the phoneme in the example words.
Decodable stories with ear.
From the Phonicspal library. Sign up free to read them.
Make a whole ear lesson.
Slides, words and sentences, matched to the sounds your class has learned.