Get your students started on their phonics journey with our engaging and hands-on Initial Sound Sort Activity: Letter J worksheet. This resource is designed to build phonemic awareness by helping students identify and sort words based on their beginning sound. By focusing on the initial /j/ sound, students practise listening, identifying, and categorising sounds in words through a visual and tactile cut-and-paste format.

As students explore words that begin with the letter J, they’ll begin to form stronger connections between letters and the sounds they represent. This foundational activity supports early reading development and helps reinforce both vocabulary and letter recognition. Students will enjoy the interactive nature of this resource while teachers can feel confident knowing it builds essential phonics skills.

Ideal for small group work, literacy centres, or independent practise, this worksheet encourages students to listen carefully, speak clearly, and categorise confidently. It’s also flexible for use with different learning styles and levels. Whether you're introducing the letter J for the first time or reviewing initial sounds with extra support, this resource offers a clear and accessible way to support your students’ literacy growth through repetition and routine.

Key Learning Outcomes:

• ✅ Identify the initial /j/ sound in spoken words
• ✅ Develop phonemic awareness through auditory discrimination
• ✅ Strengthen early letter recognition and sound-symbol relationships
• ✅ Expand vocabulary through image-word association
• ✅ Practise fine motor skills with cutting and pasting activities

What’s Included:

• Initial Sound Sort Activity worksheet for Letter J
• Cut-and-paste image sheet featuring a mix of words that do and do not start with /j/
• Two sorting columns: “Starts with J” and “Does Not Start with J”
• Clear, student-friendly visuals for easy identification

Materials Needed:

• Printed worksheet and image sheet
• Scissors and glue sticks
• Pencils or crayons (optional for colouring or tracing)
• Optional: Laminator and Velcro dots for reusable sorting practice

How to Use:

1. Begin by reviewing each picture with the class and saying the word aloud.
2. Students carefully cut out all images from the image sheet.
3. They sort the images based on whether the word begins with the /j/ sound.
4. Students paste each image into the correct column of the main worksheet.
5. Review answers together or allow students to share their sorting decisions with a partner.

Ideas for Classroom Use:

• 💡 Introduce as part of a weekly letter study with books, songs, and letter formation activities
• 💡 Use in literacy rotations with a small group of students and a teacher aide
• 💡 Pair with real objects for a hands-on phonics station
• 💡 Turn it into a team challenge - who can find the most J words in the classroom?
• 💡 Display completed sort sheets on a letter wall to reinforce learning

Top Teacher Tips:

• 💛 Enlarge to A3 for younger students or group work
• 💛 Review each image before starting to avoid confusion with tricky sounds
• 💛 Encourage students to verbalise each word before sorting to reinforce auditory learning
• 💛 Store sorted images in zip-lock bags for future review or repeated use

Initial Sound Sort Activity: Letter J is the perfect resource for introducing phonemic awareness in an engaging, student-friendly way. Use it across a variety of literacy settings to support early sound recognition and set your students up for phonics success. With regular use, students will become more confident in identifying beginning sounds and transferring this skill to their reading and writing.