Short Vowel Sounds for Kids: A, E, I, O, U in Little Words (Kindergarten English)

Hi, I'm Luna from DoodleBeez. Today we are learning the short vowel sounds. The five vowels are a, e, i, o and u. In little words, each vowel makes a short, quick sound.

Our first vowel is a. The short a sound is the sound at the start of apple. Listen for it in the middle of cat, hat and map. Open your mouth wide, like a little yawn.

The short e sound is the sound at the start of egg. You hear it in bed and hen. The short i sound is the sound at the start of insect. You hear it in pig and sit.

The short o sound is the sound at the start of octopus. You hear it in dog and pot. The short u sound is the sound at the start of umbrella. You hear it in bug and sun.

Here is a fun trick. Change only the middle vowel and you make a brand new word. Bag, beg, big, bog, bug. The first and last sounds stay the same. Only the middle sound changes.

To read a short vowel word, tap one finger for each sound. For sun, tap sss, then the short u sound, then nnn. Now slide the sounds together, slowly and then fast. Sun!

Now it's your turn. Here are a fox, a web and a pin. Which short vowel sound is in the middle of each word? Pause and try. Fox has short o, web has short e, and pin has short i.

Great job! Remember, the five vowels each have a short sound, you can tap and blend the sounds to read a word, and changing the vowel makes a new word. Practice short vowels in the English Lab at doodlebeez.com. See you next time!