Free VCe Lessons for Kindergarten (+ 10 Centre Ideas!)

Hi there! I have an old blog post about how I teach CVCe or VCe words in Kindergarten (you can see that post if you are interested here: https://apinchofkinder.com/2016/04/super-e-activities-for-cvce-words.html) but I thought I’d write an updated post since I recently updated my VCe Centres resource and added a ton of new activities!

First, I always start by introducing the VCe pattern (or I like to call it Super E!) by watching this Super E video by Mark D. Pencil:

Click on the image or here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCnIaD-1kVE to watch it!

I love this video and so do the kids!

And then we do two lessons:

First we practice our new super e knowledge with these slides:

We read the slides together and move the yellow square to reveal the answer.

For the second lesson, we practice reading more VCe words and then reveal the answer by moving the yellow squares.

You can make a copy of these FREE no prep lesson slides by clicking here: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/15Y4EreePqug-e7cURBGP2IZMlbB1J-CZtfM4Q0hb4JU/copy or on the image below!

And here are some of the centres we follow up with!

1. All About Super E! Mini Book

We set this out at a centre after teaching Super E! to reinforce the lesson! There are 4 different versions:

1. the e at the end is the super e clip art

2. the e at the end is a regular e

3. the e at the end is traceable

4. there is a blank spot instead of the e at the end so students need to write the e in themselves

I usually set out the one where they have to fill in the e by themselves but please use the one that works best for your class! Or you can print the one that best fits the needs of your group(s) if you are working on them in small groups!

All of the centres shown in this post are in my CVCe/VCe Centers & Printables pack on TPT! I’ll link it at the bottom of the post but here it is as well: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/CVCe_VCe-Centers-Printables-2469761

2. VCe Read, Make & Circle

Here’s a centre to practice decoding VCe words! Students will read the word, make it with magnetic letters and circle the matching picture! There is also a version that says “Cover It!” so students can cover their answer with a marker instead too!

3. VCe Decode & Clip

This is a simple activity where students read a word, find the matching picture and link them together with linking chains! My students love linking chains so any activity with linking chains is always a hit!

3. VCe Read & Clip

Do you have kiddos who look at the first letter and guess? These are perfect for students who need practice slowing down and looking very carefully at words! The pictures all start with the same letter so students are forced to decode the whole word! Then they can clip the matching picture. I love using clothes pins for this activity because it provides extra fine motor practice/development but you can also have them mark their answer with a small loose part like a bingo chip, mini eraser etc!

4. What’s Missing?

This is the perfect activity to use when you are first encoding VCe words as you only have to listen for the vowel! Simple, but an easy and effective way to get students identifying the vowel sound in VCe words!

5. Real Photo VCe Cards

These cards have the Super E! already filled in, so students just need to focus on encoding the first 3 sounds 🙂

6. VCe Encoding Cards

Now that they have had some practice encoding parts of VCe words, students can be challenged to encode and spell the whole word with these cards! I like to use magnetic letters with these but dry erase markers work well too!

For students who are not quite ready to encode on their own, you can provide the cards with the letters on them for them to match!

7. Cotton Swab + Paint Spelling Practice

My students always love cotton swab painting activities so I made these for VCe words! A simple, hands on way to work on reading and spelling VCe words 🙂

8. VCe Play Dough Mats

Here students are encouraged to make the VCe words with play dough or small loose parts! I used play dough (top) and pony beads (bottom) in this photo! Both materials are great for further developing their finger muscles 🙂

9. My VCe Mini Book

Mini books have always been super popular in my classes, so I made some new ones for VCe words! There is a mini book for a_e words, i_e words, o_e words and u_e words. My students love taking these home to share with their families!

All of the centres above can be found in my VCe Centres & Printables pack on TPT! You can find it here: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/CVCe_VCe-Centers-Printables-2469761 or by clicking on the image below:

10. VCe Mini Reader (FREE!)

And here’s a freebie for you! This is an updated version of my VCe mini reader! I used them with letter stamps but you can also just have students write the letters in with a pencil. The words are on the cover so students can self check or use it as a reference if they are not sure!

You can grab this mini book here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1N9SUDUs4i8-ZI8I4PSGli6eNDxuA_Zt7/view?usp=sharing

or by clicking on the image below: