3rd grade the two sounds of oo worksheets
Third graders use this sort as a quick review of the two oo sounds, then carry the try-both habit into longer words like balloon, noodle, and football, where the wrong oo sound gives a word nobody has heard.
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Need one more? These are the skills next door at this grade.
The kind of words you'll sort
Write each word from the bank in the correct column.
woolfootballbloomhookfootspoonballoonfood
Columns: oo as in moon and oo as in book. "food" belongs under oo as in moon; "hook" belongs under oo as in book.
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 3rd grade sheet
3rd grade sheets draw from 31 words, 14 to a page. 1st to 3rd grade print from the same 31 words. Nothing on the sheet changes between them.
Some of the words:
moontoothsmoothscooproostbookstoodhoodbrookcrook
- Sorting. Write each word from the bank in the correct column. 14 words per page.
Every version prints on US Letter or A4, with its answer key on the last page.
How to teach this
Teach the flip strategy for new words: try the moon sound; if the word sounds wrong, flip to the book sound. Flexible decoding beats memorization, and oo is the perfect team to learn it on.
Watch for: The spelling gives few clues (oo before k usually says the book sound: look, took), so the ear decides. This sort cannot be done silently, and that is by design. The book sound hides in some of the most common words kids write: good, look, took. Misreading them with the moon sound is the error this sheet targets.
Common questions about 3rd grade the two sounds of oo
- What if my child reads a new oo word wrong?
- Teach the flip: try the other oo sound and see which makes a real word. That self-correcting move is one of the most valuable habits a young reader can own.
- Which words matter most?
- The everyday dozen: good, look, book, took, food, room, school, soon. They appear in nearly everything kids read and write at this level.
Related worksheets
- 2nd grade the two sounds of oo A step easier, same skill
- 3rd grade alphabetical order Same grade, nearby skill
- 3rd grade consonant-le endings (-le, -el, -al) Same grade, nearby skill
- 3rd grade Dolch grade 3 sight words Same grade, nearby skill
- 3rd grade Fry instant words Same grade, nearby skill
- The two sounds of oo, all grades The full progression
- All 3rd grade English worksheets Every skill at this level
- All 3rd grade worksheets Everything at this level
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Reviewed by the One more sheet team. Content version 241, updated October 2026.
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