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Lesson 112

air, are, ear /air/

The graphemes AIR, ARE, and EAR spell /air/

The pronunciation of 'air' varies based on dialect. In some regions, it is pronounced as long /ā/ followed by /r/, and in others it is an r-controlled vowel sound. The /air/ sound produces several homophones which can be confusing for students, especially in spelling. Examples of /air/ homophones include fair/fare, bear/bare, pear/pair, stair/stare, and hair/hare.

Today's plan

about 15 min
  1. Step 1Warm up our ears (blend & segment)2 min
  2. Steps 2 & 3Look & Say / Listen & Spell4 min
  3. Step 4Blending drill3 min
  4. Step 5New concept + read/spell6 min
Step 1

Warm Up Our Ears

Say the sounds; students blend them into a word. Then say a word; students break it apart.

Blend it (teacher says sounds → you say word)

/w/ · /air/wear
/sh/ · /air/share
/s/ · /t/ · /air/stare

Break it (I say word → you say sounds)

Steps 2 & 3

Flashcard Drills

Full-screen cards for the class. Tap a card to check the answer, or press Hear the words to hear the example words read aloud.

Step 4

Blending Drill

Change one part at a time and read the new word.

Step 5

New Concept

Today we are going to learn another new sound, /air/, and three ways to spell it: AIR, ARE, and EAR.

Highlighted words are the ones to show and practice reading — tap one to hear it.

Today we are going to learn another new sound /air/. There are three different ways we can spell the /air/ sound: /air/ can be spelled A I R like in chair and stair. /air/ can be spelled A R E like in care and square. /air/ can be spelled E A R like in bear and wear.

air /air/

AIR spells /air/ like in chair and stair.

are /air/

ARE spells /air/ like in care and square.

ear /air/

EAR spells /air/ like in bear and wear.

How our mouth moves

This sound can be pronounced by starting with the /ĕ/ or /ā/ sound and moving to the /r/ sound (model /ā-r/). Be sure your voice is on. Like all vowels, /air/ is a continuous sound that can be stretched out (use continuous hand motion). Watch me /air/. You try /air/.

Sound wall

Not included on the sound wall.

Open the digital sound wall →