Free printable · Sound: short a
Short a CVC Decodable Story – Crab in a Gap (Free Printable)
A short decodable story that practises the short a sound, plus a matching handwriting sheet. Every word can be sounded out by a child who has learned first sounds, apart from a few common tricky words.
Download the free PDF (2 pages, A4)Prints well in black and white. Free for home and classroom use.
For parents
- Read the story together three times this week. Your child colours a star each time.
- Point to each word as they read. Short a says a as in apple. Stretch it out: c-a-t, cat.
- Hunt for the short a words and write six of them in the boxes.
- Finish with the tracing sheet: trace the grey words, then write each one on its own.
For teachers
- Fits a systematic synthetic phonics sequence at Set 1 · First sounds, after teaching the short a sound. Suits Foundation.
- Tracing sheet uses the QLD Beginners handwriting style.
- 50 words, 13 different short a words, short sentences.
- Use for small-group reading, repeated reading for fluency, or homework.
- Photocopy freely for your class.
short a words in this story
- and
- a
- crab
- gap
- has
- snap
- ran
- sand
- clap
- can
- nap
- pack
- fab
Tricky words used
- a
- is
- the
- has
- into
Common words that can't be fully sounded out yet. Practise them by sight.
More First sounds printables
Practise short a with Digby
In Wombat Words, your child reads stories like this one aloud and Digby follows along, then they trace the tricky words in their school's handwriting style. You get a report showing which sounds they've mastered.