LumiraWhat is an r-controlled vowel?
When a vowel is followed by r, the r changes the vowel sound entirely — it is neither long nor short. These are sometimes called bossy-r vowels, and they need to be taught as their own category rather than as vowel-plus-r.
ear words (r-controlled vowel) — word list
Every word below appears in the decodable book on this page, so a reader who practises the list will meet the same words again in context.
- early
- earn
- earth
- heard
- learn
- pearl
- search
Free decodable book: Decodable R-Controlled EAR (Earn)
This is an original Lumira decodable reader, written so that a child can sound out nearly every word using patterns they have already been taught. The full text is below — read it here, or open it in the app to read it together with the words highlighting as you speak.
Mia did learn. Leo did learn too. Mia and Leo learn and learn.
Leo can earn it. Mia can earn it too. They like it.
Mia and Leo did a search. They heard a sound.
Leo had a pearl. Mia had a pearl too. They like it.
Mia and Leo got up early. They like the earth.
Earn learn search heard earth pearl early. Mia and Leo like them all.
How to teach it
- Say the sound on its own first, several times, before showing any letters.
- Show the spelling and name it explicitly — tell the reader what it says rather than asking them to work it out.
- Blend two or three words from the list together, out loud, slowly.
- Read the decodable book above, where the pattern repeats in real sentences.
- Come back to it two or three days later. Cumulative review is what makes it stick.
Lessons that practise this pattern
ear (er sound: earn, learn)
Read ear as /er/ in a small set of words
Word sort: ear's 3 sounds
Sort ear words by which of its three sounds they use