Heart word worksheet generator

A heart over the tricky part: read it, map it, write it

Make a practice page for tricky words. Each word is shown with a heart over the letters that do not say their usual sound. Your child sounds out the rest, learns the heart part by heart, writes one sound in each box, and then writes the word.

Pick a design

Now: . Hundreds of designs to choose from.

Choose each part yourself

To keep a copy, choose “Save as PDF” as the printer. What you type stays on your device: it is not sent to us and not saved.

Your worksheet:

How to make your worksheet

  1. Pick a ready set of heart words, or choose “Type your own words” and type them.
  2. For a word we do not know, put the tricky part in brackets, like s[ai]d.
  3. Choose how many words go on a page.
  4. Print. Say the sounds together first, then let your child try.

What is a heart word?

A common word with a part that does not follow the rules a beginner has learned. In “said”, the s and the d say their usual sounds; only the “ai” has to be learned by heart. So a child sounds out most of the word and remembers one small part.

Map it

Each box holds one sound. A sound can be more than one letter: “th” goes in one box. A small heart sits over the box that holds the tricky part.

Some hearts are for now

Words such as we, go and my are in the set “Tricky until long vowels are taught”. They follow a rule that comes later. Until then the vowel is a heart part.

Good questions

Which heart words are included?

Five sets, from the, a, to, is and of up to friend, people and again: more than 50 words in all. You can also type any word.

How do I mark the tricky part of my own word?

Put it in brackets: s[ai]d. If you leave the brackets out and we do not know the word, it is printed with a line that says to draw the heart by hand.

Is a heart word the same as a sight word?

Not quite. A sight word is any word read at a glance. A heart word is one with a part that must be learned by heart.

Can I print in black and white?

Yes. The hearts become outlines that your child can color in.

Make another kind of sheet

Free · 2 minutes

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