Phonics Word Wheels for Reading Groups or Word Work

Phonics Word Wheels are a fun, engaging activity for your small group reading instruction or your word work center. Easy to assemble, these word wheels allow students to create words by word family or make a variety of real and nonsense words.

The phonics word wheels come in two levels and in two formats at each level.

Level 1: Short Vowels, Final Blends, and Digraphs

The first set of word wheels is short vowels.  In this set, students use the word wheels to create a variety of short vowel words, including words with digraphs and blends.

Short Vowel & Final Blends & Digraphs Word Family Word Wheels

The Word Family Word Wheels contain words by word family.  Each wheel is a separate word family. The onset is on the outside, which is the turning part of the wheel and the rime is on the inside, which is static.

The Short Vowel words, which does include some blends and digraphs in the onset, are on one set of wheels. This includes words with -ad, -am, -an, -ap, -at, -ell, -en, -ill, -in, -ip, -it, -og, -op, -ot, -ug, and -un.

The Digraphs and Final Blends in the rime are on a separate set of wheels.  This includes words with -ack, -ash, -ank, -all, -ent, -est, -ick, -ink, -ing, -ock, -ump, -uck, and -unk.

Making Words Word Wheels

The second set of word wheels is a bit more open-ended. Students can create nonsense words with this set, or you can guide them to find and create real words.  The middle part of this word wheel rotates to create new words and each part of the octagon is a new word. The orange photo above is an example of the Making Words Wheels.

Level 2: VCE & Other Vowel Patterns

The second level of the word wheels is filled with VCE words and words with other vowel patterns, including r-controlled vowels.  Like the Short Vowels above, this set is divided into two types of word wheels: Word Families and Making Words.

VCE & Other Vowel Patterns Word Families

The word wheels in this set are divided into VCE Words, Other Vowel Patterns, and r-controlled vowels.

VCE words include: -ake, -age, -ate, -ale, -ame, -ice, -ide, -ile, -ine, -oke, -one.

Other Vowel Patterns include: -ail, -ain, -aw, -ay, -eat, -eel, -eep, -eet, -ight, -oat, -oil, -oo, -ook, -oom, -ool, and -oon.

Other Vowel and R-controlled include: -oop, -ought, -out, -ow, -ow, -own, -are, and -orn.

Making Words Word Wheels

The Making Words Word Wheels are again more open-ended and allow students to create a variety of words, real and nonsense. The light green photo above is a sample of the Making Words Wheel.

Assembling the Word Wheels

The wheels are easy to assemble.  Simply print on cardstock, cut out, and push a brad through the star located in the center of both pages.  You can print them on colored cardstock to delineate different levels or just print them on white paper.

How to purchase the Word Wheels

You can purchase the Phonics Word Wheels on my website or on Teachers Pay Teachers.  The Word Wheels are available separately in a Short Vowel Set and a Long Vowel Set as well as a BUNDLE of both sets.