Free printable short e phonics worksheets. Five practice activities: decodable passage, word sort, phrasing cards, rapid naming chart, and word search.
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Hear each word and tap the letters that spell it, one sound at a time. Len's page practises short e.
A free illustrated mini-book for Short E, plus the same story as a passage sheet for highlighting.
A full-color picture book your student reads on their own. Skill: Short E. Print, cut and staple.
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Gus was Ned's pet dog. Gus ran in the mud and got very wet. He ran to the red bed.
"Stop!" said Ned. "You are a wet pet! Do not get on the bed."
Ned put Gus in a tub. He had to rub the mud off.
"Now I can let you out," said Ned.
Ned fed his pet. Then Gus led Ned back to the red bed. Gus and Ned got to rest.
When e sits between two consonants, it usually says its short sound, /ĕ/, as in egg.
Print it full size for the wall, or smaller for a phonics notebook.
The words this story set practices, in the two groups used by the word sort.
bed, red, fed, led, wed, hen, pen, ten, men, den, pet
ped, hep, kem, teg, zeb, nen, bem, jev, wep, ked
Short E words to read, match and write, with pictures. Each PDF has its answer key on page 2.
Find the Word, Circle the Picture, Cut and Glue and more: all 77 CVC worksheets, with answer keys.
Get the pack for $7 See all 9 kinds of sheet All 6 levels (700+ sheets) for $25
Roll a die, read a word, color it. Two-player games for these words, 4 free.
See the games4 ready-to-print PDFs for this story's short e words. Each one opens as its own file.
Cut-apart word cards to sort: Real Words or Nonsense Words. Answer key on page 2.
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More picture worksheets: beginning sounds, ending sounds, rhyming and syllables — new pictures every time you print.
A new decodable story with the same short e sounds — each comes with its own set of worksheets.
Learning short 'e' CVC words like "bed," "red," and "hen" is a crucial step in early phonics, typically following short 'a' and preceding other short vowels. For many kindergarteners, the short 'e' sound can be particularly tricky because it’s often confused with short 'i' (e.g., "pen" sounding like "pin") or even short 'a' (e.g., "men" sounding like "man"). The mouth position for short 'e' is relaxed, with the tongue slightly lower and further back than for short 'i', which requires a tighter, higher tongue position. Emphasizing the clear, relaxed "eh" sound in words like "jet," "wet," and "leg" helps children distinguish it from similar-sounding vowels, preventing common mispronunciations and strengthening their decoding accuracy. Mastering this distinction is fundamental for building a solid reading foundation. Our short 'e' CVC worksheets provide targeted practice to solidify this sound. Begin with the decodable passage, "Red the Hen," encouraging your child to sound out each word, focusing on the clear "eh" in words like "Red," "hen," "fed," and "men." After reading, use the word sort activity to categorize words by their short 'e' sound, perhaps contrasting them with previously learned short 'a' words if that’s a point of confusion. The phrasing cards are excellent for building fluency; have your child read phrases like "a red hen" or "wet jet" with expression. Finally, the Rapid Automatic Naming (RAN) chart helps build speed and recognition for these high-frequency short 'e' words, ensuring they become instantly recognizable for emergent readers.
For more early literacy resources, explore our sight word flashcards, tracing worksheets, handwriting worksheets, and coloring pages.
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