CVC Word Magic · Start here
Put the board and tiles on the table with one card. Sit together and try the same four steps each time.
Try this together
Stand a card in the top slot, word side up. Your child finds the three matching tiles and puts them in the slots from left to right. The red vowel goes in the middle.
Say: "Let's build sun. Match the tiles to the card."
Tap each tile and say its sound. Join in the first few times. Use the sounds, not the letter names.
Say: "Tap each one and say its sound."
Push the slider from left to right and run the sounds together. If your child gets stuck, blend the word with them once, then hand the slider back.
Say: "Now slide it and run the sounds together. What word?"
Lift a tile out and turn it over. Trace the letter in its groove with the stylus while saying its sound. Put it back and read the word again.
Say: "Flip a tile. Trace it and say its sound."
Aim for ten minutes, or stop earlier if your child has had enough. Tomorrow, start with a familiar card and then try a new one.
Keep the play going
Keep the 16-page instruction book beside your board, with each step and what to say. We will also send the 10-page Start Here guide, including the printable sound chart and word games.
If it has not arrived, check spam or email support@owl-village.com. You can use the first steps on this page while you wait.
Start with First Sounds: printable sound cards to try together before building words.
Use the First Words mat and activities for a little more practice building and reading simple words.
Swap It is a separate game. Change one tile and read the new word.
The reading check suggests where to begin with sounds and words.
Try the sounds on a few tiles together. For reading, say /mmm/ for m rather than its letter name. The Start Here guide included with your instruction book has a sound chart you can keep beside the board.
Use a card your child already knows. Say the sounds together, then slide and blend with them once. Stop earlier if they have had enough. Try the reading check for an earlier starting activity.
Swap It is a separate game for changing one tile and reading the new word. The everyday routine is Build it, Tap it, Slide it, Write it.
In box, fox and mix, x represents /k/ /s/. These words have four sounds on three tiles. Say both sounds before you slide.
