What is the difference between a blend and a digraph?

In a blend, both letters keep their sounds and you hear them in quick sequence: the c and r in crab. In a digraph, two letters team up to make one brand-new sound: the ch in chip. Kids who can state that difference almost never confuse the spellings.

Why are the columns called l-blends, r-blends, and s-blends?

Blend families are named for the letter they share. Bl, cl, fl, gl, and pl all end in l, so they're the l-blends; br, cr, dr and friends are the r-blends; s-blends like st, sn, and sw start with s. Sorting by family reveals the pattern faster than memorizing pairs one at a time.

1st grade beginning blends (bl, cr, st)

1st grade beginning blends (bl, cr, st) worksheets

Consonant blends are two-letter teams where both sounds survive: bl, cr, st, and their many cousins. First graders sort words by their blend family (l-blends, r-blends, and s-blends), training their ears to catch two sounds riding together.

Free printable PDF worksheet, aligned to Common Core RF.1.3.

Each print is a different sheet with its own answer key. You don't need to sign up.

The kind of words you'll sort

Say each word, then write it under its blend family.

clockgreenstarstoneglassdressplatesnapcrayonscoopplusdrum

Columns: l-blends and r-blends and s-blends. "glass" belongs under l-blends; "green" belongs under r-blends; "snap" belongs under s-blends.

Every print pulls a new set of words at this level, so a make-up test or a second sibling gets a different mix.

What's on a 1st grade sheet

1st grade sheets draw from 90 words, 15 to a page. 1st and 2nd grade print from the same 90 words. What changes is the standard (RF.1.3 here) and the teaching notes below. 2nd grade sheets print 21 to a page.

Some of the words:

blackcleanflipfruitgrabgrassproudstepstopswim

Sorting. Say each word, then write it under its blend family. 15 words per page.

Every version prints on US Letter or A4, with its answer key on the last page.

How to teach this

Stretch the word slowly and count the sounds on fingers: c-r-a-b has four, and the first two both belong to the blend. If your child says "cab" for crab, the r got swallowed; slow the word down until both letters show. Sort aloud, always.

Watch for: A blend is not a digraph: in a blend you hear both letters (crab), in a digraph the two letters make one new sound (chip). The columns are named for the letter the family shares: bl and fl are l-blends, cr and tr are r-blends, and st and sw are s-blends.

Common questions about 1st grade beginning blends (bl, cr, st)

What is the difference between a blend and a digraph?: In a blend, both letters keep their sounds and you hear them in quick sequence: the c and r in crab. In a digraph, two letters team up to make one brand-new sound: the ch in chip. Kids who can state that difference almost never confuse the spellings.
Why are the columns called l-blends, r-blends, and s-blends?: Blend families are named for the letter they share. Bl, cl, fl, gl, and pl all end in l, so they're the l-blends; br, cr, dr and friends are the r-blends; s-blends like st, sn, and sw start with s. Sorting by family reveals the pattern faster than memorizing pairs one at a time.

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Aligned to Common Core RF.1.3. Reviewed by the One more sheet team. Content version 240, updated August 2026.

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