A Must Have Reading Game!

Have you seen Blah Blah Blah, the Phonics Card Game?

I am always on the hunt for fun and educational games to play at school, either in homeroom class, with my kindergarten students, or with the students I see as part of my role as the EK-1 Learning Specialist. I felt like I hit the jackpot when I found this gem! It is from the website Mrs. Wordsmith. I was intrigued when I read the description:

“The hilariously fun phonics card game

Finally, a way to make phonics fun! Blah Blah Blah is a hilariously fun card game, perfect for kids who have been introduced to the letters and sounds that make up words but who need some practice in order to master them. Decode words using phonics with three decks of increasing difficulty, race to get rid of cards by matching sounds and letters, and play wild cards to trip up your opponents!”

I quickly placed my order and excitedly waited for the game’s arrival. Who doesn’t love a good game, much less a good card game? (My children and I have rediscovered playing cards these past six months!) But a game that focuses on identifying the sounds of letters in words? Even better! I have been a constant cheerleader for teaching students how to read using phonics. With 44 phonemes (sound variations) in the English language and more than 170 graphemes (different written representations for these sounds), learning how to read in English can be tricky, to say the least!

When the game arrived, my son and I quickly sat down at the kitchen table to play a round. The game has three levels. The first level focuses on CVC words…just short vowels. The second level focuses on CCVC or CVCC words…words with short vowels, blends, and digraphs. The third level focuses on long vowel spelling patterns with blends and digraphs! A teacher’s dream, that’s for sure! Blah, Blah, Blah helps children become aware of the phonetic regularities in English, and it gives them an interactive and FUN way to master these patterns.

Here is what the playing cards look like. (Photo from Mrs. Wordsmith website: https://www.mrswordsmith.com/products/blah-blah-blah-phonics-card-game)

Back to the game: My son and I began with the first level. I immediately was excited at the thought of bringing this into my classroom! Level 1 is just perfect for kindergarteners. After dealing seven cards to each player, you place one card face-up on the table. You have to match a letter from your card on it in order to place your card down. The reading practice comes into play when you place your card down. For example, if a card has the word dog on it, you have to make each letter sound/d/ /o/ /g/ and then blend the sounds together to read the word. These are the EXACT skills we are working on in kindergarten daily! We finished the first deck and then moved on to play with the second and third decks, each deck getting more challenging. Blah, Blah, Blah has quickly become a favorite game! (It is played like UNO…which is another of my family’s favorites!)

So if you are looking for an engaging and educational game to play with your child, I encourage you to take a look at Blah, Blah, Blah. You won’t be disappointed!