# Diphthongs, Blends & Digraphs I had no idea what these were when I first began teaching phonics. Not that I needed to know what these terms meant in order to teach phonics well, but it did help when it came to sorting out the different combinations in my head as I was teaching them. **Here are the basic differences between Diphthongs, Blends, and Digraphs:** * Blends - Consonant Blends include letter combinations like st, pr, and nk. You can hear the individual sounds even as you are blending them. * Digraphs - Digraphs include letter combinations like oo and ew. They only make one single sound when blended together. * Diphthongs - Diphthongs include letter combinations like ai and oa. They make one sound that morphs into a second sound when blended together. (For example, "ai" sounds like "aaaeeee" if you say it really slowly, like a long a morphing into a long e sound 😁 .)

# Diphthongs, Blends & Digraphs I had no idea what these were when I first began teaching phonics. Not that I needed to know what these terms meant in order to teach phonics well, but it did help when it came to sorting out the different combinations in my head as I was teaching them. **Here are the basic differences between Diphthongs, Blends, and Digraphs:** * Blends - Consonant Blends include letter combinations like st, pr, and nk. You can hear the individual sounds even as you are blending them. * Digraphs - Digraphs include letter combinations like oo and ew. They only make one single sound when blended together. * Diphthongs - Diphthongs include letter combinations like ai and oa. They make one sound that morphs into a second sound when blended together. (For example, "ai" sounds like "aaaeeee" if you say it really slowly, like a long a morphing into a long e sound 😁 .)

Here is a picture of one of the phonics practice pages from Beginners 3. ![Kid-Inspired ELL Beginners book 3 (full color)35.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/VJjCVlXBck/resources/RhCsjSmhWs/Kid-Inspired%20ELL%20Beginners%20book%203%20%28full%20color%2935.png) The lists on these pages are quite short. I learned this the hard way, through experimenting with lots of students over a lot of years. **Longer lists of words are fine for stronger students, but weaker students feel overwhelmed when looking at them.** Also, stronger students who can read all the words on a simple list are probably ready for simple texts instead of lists. Use the short lists to help students master a new sound. Once they have mastered that new sound, you can have them try longer lists of words, but they are probably going to be more motivated to reaad simple texts instead.

Here is a picture of one of the phonics practice pages from Beginners 3. ![Kid-Inspired ELL Beginners book 3 (full color)35.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/VJjCVlXBck/resources/RhCsjSmhWs/Kid-Inspired%20ELL%20Beginners%20book%203%20%28full%20color%2935.png) The lists on these pages are quite short. I learned this the hard way, through experimenting with lots of students over a lot of years. **Longer lists of words are fine for stronger students, but weaker students feel overwhelmed when looking at them.** Also, stronger students who can read all the words on a simple list are probably ready for simple texts instead of lists. Use the short lists to help students master a new sound. Once they have mastered that new sound, you can have them try longer lists of words, but they are probably going to be more motivated to reaad simple texts instead.

Phonics

What's the difference between Diphthongs, Blends, and Digraphs?

These aren't terms your students need to know, but it is helpful to know the differences.

Beginners Decoding Phonics

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Why do phonics lists in the beginners levels have so few words?

Phonics practice pages only have a handful of words on them. Here's why.

Beginners Decoding Phonics

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What's the difference between Diphthongs, Blends, and Digraphs?

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