# Lesson 44: Reading short words quickly

📖 READING (40 Lessons) • 🟢 A. Sounds and Words

← Back to Level 1

## Objective

Read short words and simple sentences more quickly and smoothly, without sounding like a robot.

## Materials

- Paper or a notebook and a pencil ✏️
- A finger or small counter to slide under words
- Optional: a 30–60 second timer
- The Sound Pad (bottom right corner) to hear letter and digraph sounds

## Letter & Sound Pad

Tap any button to hear its sound.

### Short vowels

### Long vowels

### Consonant sounds

### Digraphs

## Mini-lesson — Reading can sound smooth

When you first learn to read, words can sound slow and choppy. You might stop a lot or read one letter at a time. That is okay — it means you are learning!

As you get better, reading starts to sound smooth, almost like talking. This is called fluency.

Here is something cool: your voice changes when reading becomes smooth.

- Choppy reading sounds like: “We… run.”
- Smooth reading sounds like: “We run.”

Short words like sun, map, pin, and cup help you practice sounding smooth. When your brain knows the word, you don’t have to stop on every sound.

And here is the best part: when reading gets smoother, your brain has more space to think about what the sentence means. That’s how you become a strong reader!

Picture: The same sentence read first choppy, then smooth.

## Guided Practice — Fluency mini-book

How to use this mini-book:

1. On each page, find the bold words.
2. Read the sentence slowly one time.
3. Read the same sentence again, a little faster and smoother.
4. Have your child “scoop” 2–3 words with their finger (for example: the cat, can run).

After reading, pick 2 sentences from the mini-book to read a second time. Notice how much smoother it sounds.

Short words to read quickly
sat sun map net pin hop run nap cup red

Tip: Time a 1-minute “quick read” and see how many words you can read accurately.

### Mini-Book: Quick words in the park

1

We go to the park.

We sit in the sun and read a red map.

2

The cat can nap.

The cat naps on the mat. We can not nap. We run!

3

We run and hop.

We run up the path and hop off a rock.

4

We stop for a cup.

We sit on a log with a cup. We read the map one more time.

## Reading Practice — Drag the word to finish the smooth sentence

Drag the correct short word into the empty box. Read the whole sentence smoothly once it is complete.

We sit in the .

sun cup nap

I read the again.

map mat man

We to the log.

run red ram

We off the big rock.

hop hip hope

I sip from my .

cup cap cop

The cat can .

nap nip napk

We on the mat.

sit sat set

I have a map.

red rod rid

We read it again.

can con cane

I the sun.

see sea saw

## Quick Check (5 questions)

#### What does smooth reading sound like?

A robot voice with big pauses A normal talking voice Shouting every word

#### Which word is a short CVC word?

table lamp sun

#### Why do readers try to read short sentences smoothly?

So the sentence makes more sense So they can skip words So they can read very loudly

#### Which one sounds smooth?

“We… run.” “We run.” “W—r—u—n.”

#### What should you do if a sentence sounds choppy?

Read it again a little smoother Skip the sentence Close the book

## Assessment (parent/teacher)

Reads short CVC words more quickly and accurately Reads simple sentences with smoother phrasing Uses a finger or counter to track words Can group 2–3 words into small phrases

## Exit ticket (student)

😀 I can read short words smoothly 🙂 I need a bit more practice 😅 It still feels tricky

#### I will practice…

Reading short words again Sliding my finger under the words Rereading one sentence smoothly
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