Segmenting and Blending L at the Beginning of Words

The ability to blend consonants together is an important skill to learn when decoding (reading) and encoding (spelling) words. This list of 50 words containing an initial l-blend (a consonant followed by the letter ‘l’) has been compiled to assist you in implementing your phonics program in your classroom. The letter ‘l’ is paired with the following initial consonants:

• cl (as in clap)
• bl (as in blow)
• sl (as in sled)
• fl (as in flag)
• pl (as in plus)
• gl (as in glue).

Multiple Applications for This L-Blends Word List 

This literacy resource can be used in numerous ways to support the diverse needs of your learners. Here are some of our suggestions:

Whole-class instruction

Project the word list on your interactive whiteboard. As a class, colour-code the words according to the consonants being blended with the letter ‘l’. Challenge the students to identify more words that begin with each l-blend.

Individual practice

Send the lists home so your students can revise decoding (reading) and encoding (spelling) the words on the list. Be sure to include only words containing letter-sound correspondences you have already addressed in class.

Formative assessment

Use the word list as a progress monitoring tool to keep track of your students’ phonemic awareness and to identify the various l-blends that require further review.

Easily Download This Resource for Your Students

Use the Download button to access the PDF or editable Google Slides version of this resource.