Silly Questions is a really fun game that you can play at home or at school to teach specific phonic patterns. The idea for this game is from the “Progression in Phonics” book, or the more updated “Letters and Sounds” book, that are used in the UK. The best thing about this game is that it can be used by teachers as part of a whole class activity, in pairs and individually. For parents, the game can also be played at home to reinforce new letter-sounds that your child might be learning at school. Here’s how to play:

1. Download the free printable that we’ve provide for CVC words and CVCC/CCVE words: Silly Questions CVC Words Silly Questions CVCC & CCVC Words
2. These printables can be left as is or you can customise them to suit your child’s learning needs, i.e the words can be changed to match what they are learning at school
3. Cut the sentences and ‘yes’ and ‘no’ answers into strips
4. If working with an individual child, the child will read the sentence aloud and match it with a yes or no answer.
5. If working with an entire class, ask the children to read the sentence aloud and to hold up a yes or no answer (thumbs up and thumbs down can be used to save on paper if required!)
6. If working with pairs, display a question on the board and ask them to decide if it warrants a yes or no answer using flashcards. Ask the children to show their flashcards and select a pair to read the question aloud.

If you want to change it up a bit, or if your child is particularly interested in computer games, this activity can also be played online here.