Free decodable readers, sorted by phonics pattern

What decodable means

A decodable reader is a book a beginner can read by sounding out the letters. Most of its words are short and regular, like cat, hop and sits, where each letter makes a sound the child has learned. Teachers call many of these CVC words, for consonant, vowel, consonant, as in c-a-t. The rest are a few common words, such as the, I and said, that a child learns to know by sight because sounding them out does not work.

How to read one with your child

Read the title and the first page aloud yourself, then let your child read the next pages, pointing under each word. When they stop at a word like hat, have them say each sound from left to right, joining the sounds smoothly (hhh-aaa-t), then say the word fast. Ask: is that a real word? If it is a common word that cannot be sounded out, like the or said, just tell them what it says. Please do not ask them to guess from the picture or the first letter: sound it out first, then use the picture to check. Read the same book again on another day.

How we picked these books

Peabody has 50 books at levels 0 and 1. We counted the words in every one with a short script and checked the counts by hand. A book is on this page when at least 85 of every 100 words are sound-it-out or common words, at least 3 in 4 of its different words are, and it has at least five different sound-it-out words. The number on each card is that count. Peabody's books are not matched to any phonics program or teaching order, so if your child's program teaches the sounds in a different order, use the sections below to find the sound you are on.

Looking for one short vowel?

Some books practice a vowel without leading with it. These are the books with at least three different words for each short vowel:

• Short a: Where Is the Cat?, The Hat Cat, In My Bag, The Red Hat, Dex on the Bus, Meg and the Seed and Moss and the Box.
• Short e: Can I Pet It?, Where Is Ned's Hat?, Kip and the Crab, Frogs Are Amazing, Dot and the Log and Meg and the Seed.
• Short i: Kip and the Crab, The Little Red Hen, Liv and the Ants, Frogs Are Amazing, Meg and the Seed and Moss and the Box.
• Short o: Where Is Ned's Hat?, Frogs Are Amazing, Gus and the Big Rock, Dot and the Log, Dex on the Bus and Moss and the Box.
• Short u: Where Is the Cat? and Gus and the Big Rock.

Ways to practice the sounds

These are habits teachers use to help children sound words out. Pick one at a time.

• Blend smoothly. Stretch the sounds and keep them joined: mmmaaannn, not m... a... n. A sound that cannot be stretched, like b, d or p, should be short and quick, a plain "b" and not "buh", because an extra "uh" makes the word hard to hear. Then say the word fast and ask if it is a real word.
• Use sound boxes. Draw a row of boxes, one for each sound in a word from the book: hat has three. Say the word slowly, push a coin or a bean into a box for each sound, then slide a finger under the boxes from left to right and say the word fast. Start with words whose sounds can be stretched, like sun, mop and fan. A digraph such as ck in duck is one sound, so it shares one box. Every book on this page has a Sound boxes sheet on its print page, made from the book's own words, and later your child can write the letters in the boxes.
• Build the word. With paper squares or magnet letters, make cat, then change one letter at a time and say the new word each time: cat, hat, hit, sit, sat.
• Blends and digraphs. A digraph (sh, ch, th, ck, ng) is two letters that make one sound, so teach it as one unit. For a blend like st or fl, say each sound and then join them, s-t-o-p, instead of memorizing st as a lump.
• Tell the common words. Words like the, was and said cannot be sounded out. Show the word, say it, have your child say it and spell it out loud, then say it once more. Keep three to five on cards, and ask for them now and then. Each card on this page lists the common words its book repeats.
• Read it again. Read the same book on another day. Read a page and have your child read it back, take turns by page, or read it together at your child's pace. If too many words in a book are a struggle, read it together or pick an easier one.

Where these ideas come from

They are described in the U.S. Department of Education's practice guide Foundational Skills to Support Reading for Understanding in Kindergarten Through 3rd Grade and, for sound boxes and decodable books, by Reading Rockets (Elkonin boxes, decodable books). We took the ideas, not a program. Peabody's books are not a phonics course, and your child's teacher may use a different order or different words, so follow them first. If sounding out is very hard for your child, talk to their teacher.

After these

Decodable books are one kind of reading. Children also need stories read aloud to them and richer books to read as they grow, and the whole library has them. Books that repeat a few words on every page are on the sight word stories page, and the whole shelf of level 0 and 1 books is on beginning reader books. For the sounds themselves there are free phonics games, and the next step up is level 2.

More free stories

• The whole library: free stories by reading level, no account needed.
• Classic stories retold short: fables, fairy tales, myths and legends.
• Free sight word stories for kids, to read and print
• Free beginning reader books for kids just learning to read
• Free short stories for 1st graders
• By level: Level 1

Questions parents ask

What is a decodable reader?

A decodable reader is a book a beginner can read by sounding out the letters, with a few common words to learn by sight. Its words are mostly short and regular, like cat, hop and sits.

Are these matched to a phonics program?

No. They are Peabody's own books, and they are not matched to any phonics program, teaching order or published level. We counted each book's words and put it under the short vowel it has the most different words for, or under blends or mixed when no one vowel is ahead. If your child's program teaches the sounds in a different order, use the sections to find the sound they are on.

How do I help my child sound out a word?

Have them look for parts they know, say each sound from left to right, join the sounds smoothly and then say the word fast. Ask if it is a real word and if it makes sense. If it is a common word that cannot be sounded out, like the or said, tell them the word and have them say it. Sound it out first and check the picture after, rather than guessing from the picture.

What are sound boxes?

Sound boxes are a row of boxes with one box for each sound in a word. The child says the word slowly, pushes a coin into a box for each sound, then slides a finger under the boxes and says the word fast. Every book on this page has a Sound boxes sheet on its print page, made from the book's own words.

How do I print one?

Press Print on a book's card. It opens a page where the book prints as a small cut-and-staple book, all on one page, or as a sound-boxes sheet. It is free and needs no account.

Which short vowel should my child start with?

Start with whichever sound their program or teacher is on. If you are choosing, Where Is the Cat? is the first card on this page, and every book is short enough to read in a minute or two.

Do the books cost anything?

No. Every story on this page is free to read through the end of 2026, with no account and no card.