oo - zoom to the moon

Phase Three: j, v, w, x, y, z, zz, qu, ch, sh, th, ng, ai, ee, igh, oa, oo

The oo digraph can be pronounced in two different ways.

Short oo Words: look, foot, cook, good, book

Long oo Words: zoo, boot, food, zoom, moon

Race to the Moon is a great way to practise tricky words that your child has been taught. Cut out the ladders, moon and rockets counters from the printable template below.

Download your copy below:

Choose 8 tricky word flashcards and write one word in each space on the ladders. Place the tricky word flashcards face down.

Take turns to choose one card and read it. If it is the first word on your ladder, keep it and move your rocket up the ladder. If it's not the word you need next put it back face down.

Keep taking turns to pick cards and move your rocket up the ladder when you can. Who will be the first person to reach the moon?

You could also play this game using sound cards.

Introduce the oo sound and explain that you are going to zoom (z-oo-m) some words down to Earth from the moon (m-oo-n).

You will need:

Write some oo words on the post-it notes. I used a mixture of real words and nonsense words e.g. voot and zood. Schools often use nonsense words because it provides an opportunity to practice phonic skills with unfamiliar words.

Tie one end of the string to something high like a stair bannister and the other end to something lower like a chair.

Attach one of the post-it notes to the coat hanger. Stand on the stairs and slide the coat hanger down to your child. Ask them to take the word off the hanger, sound it out and then blend the sounds to read it e.g. r-oo-t, root.

Ask your child to decide whether it is a real word or an alien word (a nonsense word) and then put the word in the correct pile.

Alternatively, you could use words containing the different oo sounds and sort the post-it notes into words containing the long oo and words containing the short oo sound.

Short oo Words: look, foot, cook, good, book

Long oo Words: zoo, boot, food, zoom, moon

Write a word on the post-it note and use a balloon rocket to zoom it back up. Thread the string through a straw. Blow a balloon up but don't tie it. Tape the balloon to the straw. Stick the post-it note to the balloon then let go. Watch it zoom up the string.

Invite your child to write some words to zoom back to you. They might need help to blow the balloon up. If you pass it to them carefully they should be able to let go so that it zooms off.

Here are some words you could use:

Short oo Words: look, foot, cook, good, book

Long oo Words: zoo, boot, food, zoom, moon