So you have assessed your students or maybe your own child and now you know they need phonics instruction…you start your instruction with short and long vowels and continue until you see the words vowel digraphs and diphthongs on the scope and sequence that you are using. (Remember there really isn’t an “official” scope and sequence to teaching phonics skills. For those of us who have been teaching phonics for a long time, we have our path that we like to take-more on that later!).

Have you ever wondered why sometimes two vowels are together in a word and produce a unique sound that is different from the individual sounds of each vowel? Some of those sounds are classified as a vowel team and some are classified as a diphthong. But how do you know what letter combinations are vowel digraphs or that crazy and confusing word-“diphthong”? Let’s dive deeper into this topic to find out!

What is a Vowel Team?

You may be very familiar with digraphs as they are one of the first sounds taught when learning to read. Digraphs are two letters that together make one sound. There are two kinds of digraphs-consonant digraphs and vowel digraphs. Examples of consonant digraphs are sh, ch, th, ck and wh. Examples of vowel digraphs also known as vowel teams are ai, ay, ee, ea, etc. Often this skill is taught using that terrible mnemonic “When 2 vowels go a-walking, the first one does the talking.” (I have a very strong opinion about this method but will save it for another blog.) So a vowel team refers to two or more vowels that work together to produce a single sound. When vowel teams join forces, they merge their sounds to create a unique pronunciation.

Vowel teams can be found in various positions in words, such as at the beginning, middle or end. They are often used to represent long vowel sounds. For instance, the vowel team “ea” in the word “bean” represents the long “ee” sound, while the vowel team “ie” in the word pie represents the long I sound. Some examples of vowel teams are:

What is a Diphthong?

A diphthong is another fascinating linguistic concept related to vowels. Diphthongs add a melodic quality to words and are often used to represent complex sounds that are not easily matched to a single vowel. Unlike vowel teams, diphthongs consist of two vowels pronounced within one syllable. Diphthongs are formed by starting with one vowel sound and gliding into the second vowel sound. They often contain a vowel but (and this is where it gets confusing) diphthongs are also two letters that make two sounds without breaking the syllable. So for example au and aw are considered to be diphthongs. I know what you are thinking….au is a vowel team lady! True, but because the letter U is making a sound with the letter A, it is classified as a diphthong. In a vowel team, only the first letter can be heard. Confusing, I know!

So just to clarify, here is a list of diphthongs with their counterparts:

Why are Vowel Teams and Diphthongs Important?

Understanding vowel teams and diphthongs is crucial for several reasons. First, they help us decode and pronounce words accurately. By recognizing vowel teams and diphthongs, readers can correctly identify the sounds they produce and pronounce words with confidence. Second, knowing vowel teams and diphthongs improves our reading and comprehension skills. By understanding the different sounds produced by vowel teams and diphthongs, we can interpret the meaning of words more effectively. Finally, vowel teams and diphthongs contribute to our writing skills. When we write, we must choose the appropriate vowel team or diphthong to accurately represent the intended sound. This knowledge enhances our ability to communicate through our writing.

Still confused? Looking to read more about this topic? Here is a link to one of my most detailed blog posts yet and it is all about teaching diphthongs: Teaching Diphthongs-Not for Wimps!

Here are some links to other blogs that are worth your time to read:

Teaching Vowel Teams and Diphthongs from Teaching With Haley O’Connor

All About the Vowel Team/Diphthong Syllable Type with Literacy Learn

Vowel Team Syllable (Vowel Digraphs & Vowel Diphthongs) from Thrive Literacy Corner

Scroll down for a freebie game to help reinforce your teaching of diphthongs!