Meet the SH Digraph
Meet the SH Digraph
Open the lesson by saying the sound clearly: /sh/. Remind pupils that a digraph is two letters working together to make one sound.
Our Learning Goal
I can read and spell words with the digraph sh.
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What words can you think of with sh?
Use this to surface prior knowledge. Accept any sensible example pupils suggest, then briefly notice whether sh is at the start or end of the word.
What Is a Digraph?
A digraph is two letters
The two letters make one sound
In this lesson, s and h work together
They make the sound /sh/
Keep the focus on sound, not letter names. Model: s-h says /sh/.
Hear the SH Sound
sh can be heard in ship
sh can be heard in shop
sh can be heard in shoe
The sound is soft and quiet: /sh/
Model the sound several times. Encourage pupils to notice that the mouth shape stays the same across the example words.
SH Is One Sound
When we read sh, we do not say /s/ and /h/ separately.
We blend them as one sound: /sh/.
Examples: sh-ip, sh-ed, sh-ut
A common mistake is to sound out the letters separately. Contrast '/s/ /h/' with the correct single sound '/sh/'.
What is a digraph?
two letters, one sound
one letter, two sounds
two words together
one sound, two words
Checks the key idea from slides 2 to 4. Distractors mirror likely mix-ups between letters, sounds and words.
Complete the sh facts
A digraph has two letters that make one sound. In this lesson, s and h work together and say /sh/.
All answers come directly from the first teaching block. Reinforce that pupils should think about sounds, not letter names.
SH at the Start
sh can come at the beginning of a word
shop
ship
shark
shell
Point out that many early sh words begin with the digraph, which makes it easy to spot.
SH at the End
sh can come at the end of a word
fish
dish
wish
brush
Say each word aloud and stretch the ending slightly so pupils can hear the final /sh/ sound.
Read SH Words
We read sh as one sound, then blend the rest of the word.
sh-eep → sheep
sh-op → shop
f-i-sh → fish
d-i-sh → dish
Model blending slowly first, then at normal speed. Keep the examples simple and decodable.
Which word has sh at the end?
ship
shop
shell
fish
Checks whether pupils can spot sh in different positions in words from slides 5 to 7.
Fill in the missing sh words
We read sh as one sound, then blend the rest of the word. sheep begins with sh. fish ends with sh, and dish does too.
This anchors the taught examples and the idea that sh can be at the start or end.
Where do you hear /sh/ in the word brush?
at the start
in the middle
at the end
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Spell SH Words
Listen for the /sh/ sound
Think: do I hear it at the start or end?
Write both letters: s and h
Check that they stay together
Stress that if they hear /sh/, they need both letters. The key idea is that the two letters stay together to represent one sound.
SH in a Sentence
The ship is in the sea.
I can wish on a star.
Put the dish on the table.
My shoes are by the door.
Read each sentence aloud naturally so pupils hear sh words in real reading, not only in isolated word lists.
If you hear /sh/, what should you write?
just s
just h
s and h
s, h, e
Checks the spelling rule from slide 8: both letters stay together to show one sound.
Complete the sentences
The ship is in the sea. I can wish on a star. Put the dish on the table. My shoes are by the door.
Uses the exact sentence contexts pupils have just read so they can apply recognition of sh words in meaningful text.
What is one thing you learned about sh?
Look for one clear thing the pupil learned, such as 'sh is two letters', 'sh makes one sound', or 'sh can be at the start or end of a word'.
What part of sh felt easiest for you?
This is metacognitive reflection. Encourage answers about hearing the sound, spotting it in words, reading, spelling or writing both letters together.
How do you feel about reading and spelling sh words now?
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Glossary
digraph - two letters that make one sound
sound - the noise we hear in a word
blend - to push sounds together to read a word
read - to look at words and say them
spell - to write the letters in a word
beginning - the start of a word
end - the final part of a word
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