Printable Practice Sheet
PhonicSheets Practice Sheet
WH Digraph (/w/) Decodable Words
6 verified decodable words targeting the consonant digraph wh. In this beginner set, the letters wh stay together in a single sound box because they work together to spell one single sound (/w/). Notice that whack (wh | a | ck) and which (wh | i | ch) each contain two multi-letter graphemes in a single word.
| Word | Sounds (Sound Boxes) | Position | Visual Asset |
|---|---|---|---|
| whip | whip | Initial (wh-) | Text Only |
| whim | whim | Initial (wh-) | Text Only |
| whiz | whiz | Initial (wh-) | Text Only |
| when | when | Initial (wh-) | Text Only |
| whack | whack | Initial (wh-) | Text Only |
| which | which | Initial (wh-) | Text Only |
Teaching the WH Digraph
In this beginner set, the consonant digraph wh represents /w/. When teaching this pattern:
- Emphasize the Single Sound: Remind students that we don't say /w/ ... /h/; the two letters team up to make one /w/ sound.
- Two Digraphs in One Word: Have students notice that whack maps as wh | a | ck and which maps as wh | i | ch — multiple digraphs can occur in one word.
- Three Sounds in Every Word: Every word on this list has exactly 3 sound boxes, even the 5-letter words!
- Accent Note: Some speakers maintain a wh/w distinction (/ʍ/); many modern speakers use /w/ for these words. Words such as who, whole, and whose behave differently and are outside this beginner set.