ShortVowelWords

Garden Detectives · Case 1

The Case of the Vanishing Jam

Short A · Level 1

Short A CVC words and the -am, -an, and -at families

Illustration for The Case of the Vanishing Jam

Before reading

Open the case file

Phonics focusShort A CVC words and the -am, -an, and -at families
Heart wordsthe · was · said · for

Hear the focus words

Read and investigate

The Case of the Vanishing Jam

Natural read-along narration · Amelia
Speed

Press Read with Amelia, or choose a sentence to begin.

Sam the cat had a pan of jam. He set the pan on a mat. Sam ran to get a bag. When Sam ran back, the jam was not on the mat.

Sam had a case to crack. He saw a red dab on the tan rug. The dabs led to Nan and her bag. “The jam is not lost,” said Nan.

Nan had put the pan in the bag for a picnic. Sam sat on the mat and had jam with Nan.

Check the evidence

Can you solve the case?

Choose the answer that is supported by the story.

1Where did Sam put the jam?

2What clue did Sam see?

3Why did Nan take the jam?

For adults

Use evidence, not guesses

Ask the learner to point to the sentence that proves each answer. If decoding is effortful, reread one paragraph at a time. A fluent second reading is more valuable than rushing to the next story.