Digraphs for Kids: sh, ch, th, wh Explained With Activities
What are digraphs for kids? Two letters teaming up to make one sound — sh, ch, th and wh explained in plain English, with a complete 10-step play session that turns tricky spelling patterns into games your 5- or 6-year-old will actually enjoy.
A digraph is two letters that team up to make one sound — like sh in ship, ch in chip, th in this and thin, and wh in whale. This 10-step play session teaches all four through mirror games, sound sorting, a fishing game, a treasure hunt and shaving-foam writing. It takes about 20–30 minutes, needs only household items, and is built for ages 5–6.
The short version
- A digraph = two letters, one sound; it's one of the first spelling patterns kids meet in early readers.
- sh (ship, fish), ch (chip, chin), th (this/that = voiced, thin/thumb = unvoiced), wh (whale, wheel).
- The throat-buzz trick (hand on throat) is the simplest way to show the two th sounds apart.
- Play-based repetition — sorting, hunting, fishing — builds the sound skill faster than drilling.
- Keep sessions to 20–30 minutes and stop while it's still fun.
- Age
- Ages 5–6
- Prep
- 5 min
- Play time
- 20 min
- Mess
- Some
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Where
- Indoor
Why kids love this
Most phonics practice for 5- and 6-year-olds looks like schoolwork. This session is all play: funny faces in a mirror, a treasure hunt, fishing toy fish from a bowl, tracing swirls in shaving foam. Digraphs sneak in through games, so children ask to play again — and that repetition is the real engine of progress.
What you'll need
- A hand mirror
- 4 small baskets or bowls
- 8–12 picture cards or small toys (fish, ship, train, whale, feather, unlit candle). Keep cards text-free or face-down; today is about sounds, not spelling.
- A toy fishing rod (or stick with string and paperclip), a shallow bowl of water, and a few toy fish
- A tray with a thin layer of shaving foam
- Paper, crayons, and a few cushions
Before you start
1. Set the four baskets in a row with the cards or objects face-down in a pile beside them. 2. Spread shaving foam in the tray, drop the toy fish in the bowl, and have the mirror ready. 3. Practice the four sounds yourself first: sh, ch, th in this (buzzy) and thin (quiet), wh (blowing out a candle). Your child will copy exactly what you model. 4. Keep it a game session, not a test — no wrong answers, only funny ones worth trying again.
How to do it
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Meet the sh team. Share a secret: two letters can gang up and make one sound. Finger to your lips — "shhh" — and let your child join in, long then short.
-
Mirror mouth shapes. In the mirror, make the sh shape together: rounded pushed-out lips, teeth hidden. Compare with a big smile and a wide "ah."
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The chuffing train. Be trains: "ch-ch-ch-ch" in short puffs while chugging around the room. ch is punchy; sh is smooth and long.
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Blow out the candles. Blow out the unlit candle with a big wh — "whhh!" — like whale and wheel. Feel the puff of air on your hand: wh is a windy w.
-
The two voices of th. Hand on throat: this and that buzz — that's voiced th. thin and thumb have no buzz, just air — unvoiced th. Sort by feel.
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The great digraph sort. Flip the face-down cards one at a time, name each together ("fish — sh!"), and drop it in the right basket. Hear the first sound, match it to its digraph.
-
Go fish for sounds. The rod only catches when your child says the magic sound — "sh!" before every dip. After five catches, switch to "ch," then "th."
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Digraph treasure hunt. Hide the objects while your child covers their eyes. Call out a digraph — "Find something with ch!" Swap roles and let them hide things for you.
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Shaving-foam sound writing. Trace big swirls in the foam while saying the sounds: wavy lines for sh, zigzags for ch, spirals for wh. When the tray fills, smooth it flat and start over.
-
High-five round-up. Quick-fire review: call out words (ship, chip, this, whale) and your child shouts the digraph or jumps on a cushion. End with a high five: "You just learned four digraphs!"
Make it easier
Teach only sh and ch first; save th and wh for another day. Single letter sounds first — our phonics activities for preschoolers build the foundations this session stands on. Use 3–4 objects per basket instead of a full pile. Skip the throat-buzz test if the two th sounds confuse your child — teach just the quiet one (thin, thumb) for now.
Make it harder
Blend after the sort: you say a word ending, they add the digraph ("sh" + "ip" = ship). For more words to blend, see our ch digraph words list. Hide mid-word th objects too (mother, brother). Time the fishing game and beat your own record.
Other ways to play it
- Silly sentence chains: take turns adding same-digraph words — "The shy sheep shops for shoes." Collapse laughing, start again.
- I spy digraphs: "I spy something starting with wh." Works in the car, the store, anywhere. Spotting first words in the wild is the same skill our sight word games build.
- Digraph hopscotch: four chalk squares, one per digraph; call words for your child to jump to.
- Bedtime whisper round: whisper the four sounds as the lights go down — a calm two-minute review.
How it changes by age
- At 5–6, most children meet digraphs in school phonics and early readers. Early reading books come next — see our guide on how to teach a child to read. Before about 5, the voiced/unvoiced th distinction is usually too subtle — stick to steps 1–4 with younger children. If your 6-year-old finds the sort easy, jump to "Make it harder." For the letter-sound foundations underneath digraphs, see our guide on how to teach letter sounds to preschoolers.
What they're learning
A digraph is two letters making one sound — a key phonics idea that unlocks dozens of common words. Hearing and saying sh (ship, fish), ch (chip, chin), voiced th (this, that), unvoiced th (thin, thumb), wh (whale, wheel). Beginning-sound awareness: isolating the first sound in a word, the foundation of reading and spelling. Mouth awareness — how lips, teeth and voice shape sounds, sharpening pronunciation and listening.
Questions parents ask
What is a digraph in simple terms for kids?
What are the 4 main digraphs kids learn first?
How do you explain the two th sounds to a child?
What age should kids learn digraphs?
What is the difference between sh and ch sounds?
How can I practice digraphs at home without worksheets?
No phonics jargon needed beyond this session — model the sounds cleanly and keep it playful. Mixing up sh and ch is the most common confusion; the train game in Step 3 usually fixes it — punchy ch versus smooth sh. Ten focused minutes beats thirty tired ones. Stop while it's still fun.
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