Roll, Read & Cover: Short A is a hands-on, interactive phonics game designed to help early readers build confidence and fluency with short a CVC words. Students roll two dice – one for the onset (beginning sound) and one for the rime (word ending) – and blend the two parts together to form a word. If the word matches a picture on their game board, they cover it. This fast-paced and engaging activity helps reinforce blending, segmenting, decoding and word recognition skills.

Perfect for literacy rotations, small groups, partner games or early finishers, this game promotes phonemic awareness and decoding through fun, repeatable play. It also supports vocabulary development and spelling confidence by giving students repeated exposure to key short a words like cat, map, hat and more.

This game not only strengthens foundational phonics skills, but also creates an opportunity for students to collaborate and support one another in their reading journey. With simple prep and flexible use, it’s a must-have tool for early years classrooms focusing on short vowel sounds.

Key Learning Outcomes:

• ✅ Blend onset and rime to form and read short a CVC words
• ✅ Develop decoding and word recognition skills
• ✅ Strengthen phonemic awareness and sound blending
• ✅ Practise reading fluency and vocabulary development
• ✅ Support turn-taking, collaboration and oral language in partner settings

What’s Included:

• Printable onset and rime dice templates
• Game boards featuring picture prompts for short a CVC words
• Clear instructions for printing, cutting and gameplay

Materials Needed:

• Printed game boards (preferably on thick card)
• Onset and rime dice (cut and assembled)
• Counters or tokens for covering game board images

How to Use:

1. Print and prepare the game materials, using different coloured card for the onset and rime dice if desired.
2. Assemble the dice and distribute game boards and counters.
3. Students take turns rolling both dice, blending the sounds to create a CVC word.
4. If the word matches a picture on their board, they cover it. First to cover all images wins!

Ideas for Classroom Use:

• 💡 Include in literacy centres to reinforce short vowel sounds
• 💡 Use as a phonics warm-up activity at the beginning of reading lessons
• 💡 Pair students for cooperative play to support peer learning
• 💡 Create a class challenge to see how many different short a words can be made

Top Teacher Tips:

• 💛 Review the onset and rime options before play to support beginning readers
• 💛 Laminate game boards and dice for durability and reuse
• 💛 Use mini whiteboards for students to write each word before covering the matching image
• 💛 Introduce rhyming word extensions for fast finishers or to deepen understanding

Roll, Read & Cover: Short A turns phonics practise into a playful and engaging adventure. With each roll, students build confidence in their reading skills and deepen their understanding of short a CVC words through fun and meaningful repetition.

Available in our basic fun font and all Australian state fonts.