ShortOriginal decodable reading
The Mud Run
Short U passage · Short U with -ud, -un, and -ump words
This controlled text gives a learner a meaningful reason to apply already taught spellings. Preview the target words before reading, then reread for smoothness and meaning.
Before reading
Preview the focus words
Read each word from left to right. Say the vowel sound, blend the word, and briefly explain any word that is new.
Keep the reading tightly matched to this spelling pattern.
Enough connected text to practise phrasing without overload.
Answer from the printed passage, not from a guess.
Read and understand
The Mud Run
Teaching note: Read once for accuracy, then reread for smoother phrasing and meaning.
Read it twice
Gus had a fun run in the sun. The path went past a stump and then through a patch of mud.
Gus did a jump, but his foot went in the mud. He ran on and got mud on his cuff.
At home, Gus sat in a tub and had a scrub. The mud run was fun, but the tub was a mess.
Talk about the text
Check understanding
Ask the learner to point to the sentence that gives each answer. This keeps comprehension tied to the words on the page.
- Where did the path go?
- What happened when Gus jumped?
- How did Gus get clean?
Read, spell, transfer
Five-minute word work
Find two focus words with the same ending or vowel pattern. Read them, then write them in a pair.
Choose one focus word. Change its first sound and decide whether the new word is real.
Say one sentence from the text. Let the learner write it, then compare each sound-spelling choice with the printed sentence.
Offline practice
Print this passage
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