How do you know whether to use ai or ay?

Use ai in the middle of a word or syllable (rain, explain) and ay at the end (day, holiday). Oa and ow follow a similar pattern: oa in the middle (boat), ow at the end (snow).

What about ee and ea?

Both say long e and both can come in the middle, so there is no position rule. Students learn which team each word uses by sorting words like season, between and teacher.

Is there an answer key for each worksheet?

Yes. All four sheets have an answer key that shows every spelling, so a parent or teacher can check the work in a minute.

What spelling patterns do 3rd graders learn?

3rd graders spell long vowels and vowel teams (rain, team, boat), r-controlled vowels (star, fork, bird), common homophones, and words with endings, where the rules for dropping a silent e, doubling a consonant and changing y to i come in (CCSS L.3.2.E and L.3.2.F). Silent letters in words like knee and write round out the year.

How do I know when to double a consonant before adding ing?

Double the last consonant when a one-syllable word ends in one short vowel and one consonant: hop becomes hopping and sit becomes sitting. Words with two vowels or a final e do not double: rain becomes raining and hope becomes hoping. The adding endings pages practice all three rules.

In what order should I use these spelling worksheets?

Start with long vowels and vowel teams, since they are the most common patterns, then r-controlled vowels. Move to adding endings once those feel easy, and use the homophone and silent letter pages as review. Each subtopic on this page holds four sheets.

3rd Grade Vowel Teams Worksheets

Ages 8-9 · Free previews · Print-ready PDFs

Written by Adi Ackerman, Head Teacher

Free printable vowel teams worksheets for 3rd grade students (Ages 8-9). Aligned to Common Core standards. Ready to print.

3rd Grade Reading Spelling Vowel teams Clear All

Vowel Teams Ai and Ay

Grade3rd Grade

TopicSpelling

Vowel Teams Ee and Ea

Grade3rd Grade

TopicSpelling

Vowel Teams Oa and Ow

Grade3rd Grade

TopicSpelling

Vowel Teams Oo and Ew

Grade3rd Grade

TopicSpelling

More spelling worksheets

Explore all of our 3rd grade spelling worksheets, covering spelling list practice, trace and write spelling words, identify correct spelling, color & spell, and more.

Word scrambles Long vowels R-controlled vowels Homophone spelling Adding endings Silent letters

Frequently Asked Questions

A vowel team is two letters that work together to make one sound, like ai in rain or ee in tree. Many sounds have two teams, so spelling them takes practice.

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3rd Grade Vowel Teams Worksheets

Vowel Teams Ai and Ay

Vowel Teams Ee and Ea

Vowel Teams Oa and Ow

Vowel Teams Oo and Ew

More spelling worksheets

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a vowel team?

How do you know whether to use ai or ay?

What about ee and ea?

Is there an answer key for each worksheet?

What spelling patterns do 3rd graders learn?

How do I know when to double a consonant before adding ing?

In what order should I use these spelling worksheets?

What is ClassWeekly?