Skip to content
PlayOwl

English · Grade 2

Vowel Teams and Common Irregular Words

Step 13 of the PlayOwl sequence adds the rest of the common vowel teams: igh, ie, ue, ew and oe; teams with two sounds (oo in moon and book, ow in snow and cow) and ou; and the vowel sounds in coin, boy, haul and saw. Children also learn a set of common irregular words with the heart-word routine, and read the decodable story Joy and the Owl.

  • 4 lessons
  • About 90 minutes
  • Vowel teams check: 7 questions
  • Ways to answer: fill in the blanks, choose an answer, highlight a text, label a picture, sort into groups and arrange tiles
Try it now (no account) One of the five free starter courses Open in PlayOwl

What learners will discover

  • Read and spell long-vowel teams igh, ie, ue, ew, oe and ow (light, pie, blue, new, toe, snow).
  • Read teams that can make two sounds (oo in moon and book, ow in snow and cow) and ou (out), checking which sound makes a real word.
  • Read and spell oi and oy (coin, boy) and au and aw (haul, saw), knowing which spelling usually comes in the middle and which at the end.
  • Read and spell common irregular words (said, again, friend, people, laugh, busy, enough, because) by marking their tricky parts.

Lessons

  1. More long-vowel teams 5 steps2 practiceabout 22 min
  2. Teams with two sounds 4 steps2 practiceabout 22 min
  3. oi, oy, au, aw 4 steps2 practiceabout 20 min
  4. Irregular words and a story 6 steps2 practiceabout 26 min
  5. Vowel teams check 7 questions at the end

Keep exploring

Games to practice with

  • Memory LanternsFlip glowing lanterns to find pairs that belong together.
  • Word WorkshopBuild the word for each picture, one sound at a time.
  • Sentence TheatreYour words direct the show: change a word and the stage changes too.

More 2nd grade reading

Guides for grown-ups