SET 3
Stuck in the mud
Written by Jan Polkinghorne. Illustrated by A. Dobozy and C. Morey.
SPELD SA
Phonic Book Series
Practice page
Practise the sounds
s a t i p n
c k ck e h r m d
g o u l f b
Practise blending sounds
pig mud tug fell
slip skid black stuck
Practise high frequency words
the was saw they
no are a is
OK last
Vocabulary
The words on this page can be used to help the student’s comprehension before, during or
after reading the book. Link the meanings of words with what the student already knows,
show examples or have students act out the words.
saw – spotted
mud – dirt mixed with water
stuck – unable to move
slip – slide
skid – lose grip and slide sideways
tug – pull
help! – shouted by a person in a danger
A big, fat pig ran in the
mud. The pig got its legs
stuck in the mud.
1
Ina and Brad saw the
pig. They saw the black
pig stuck in the mud.
2
Can they get the pig
from the mud?
3
They tug the pig!
Ina fell in the mud.
4
Brad got Ina up but fell
in the mud himself.
5
Slip! Skid! Tug!
At last they got the pig
from the mud.
6
The pig is OK but are
Brad and Ina?
7
No! They are stuck in
the mud. HELP!
8
From blending to fluency
To develop fluency, the student needs to re-read the same book multiple times. Students
might initially sound out every word and re-read every sentence but, with practice,
blending will become more automatic. The fluency chart can be used to develop
automaticity of blending by providing single word blending practice.
While reading the book, the student:
• blends the sounds of each unknown word in the sentence
• identifies and reads high frequency words
• re-reads the sentence from the beginning
• discusses the meaning of the sentence
When finished, the student needs to re-read the whole book and practise reading the
same book until they can read at a steady pace with minimal sounding out.
Making connections - questions and discussion
After the student has read the book, or the relevant page, ask them one or more of the
following questions and discuss:
1. What happened in the story at the beginning, middle and end?
2. What is the problem in this story?
3. How do you think Brad and Ina got out of the mud?
4. Find the words ‘slip’, ‘skid’ and ‘tug’ in the story. Talk about the
meaning of the words. Can you use one in your own sentence?
5. What do you know about pigs?
Fluency chart
if up at tug
pig ran got fell
fat mud its get
him legs lost from
Brad slip help skid
stop self black stuck
SPELD SA Phonic Books follow the sequence of letter-sounds used in the Jolly Phonics
synthetic phonics program. The books can be used with other phonics programs.
Set 1 s, a, t, p, i, n
Set 2 c, k, ck, e, h, r, m, d
Set 3 g, o, u, l, f, b
Set 4 ai, j, oa, ie, ee, or
Set 5 z, w, ng, v, oo (book), oo (room)
Set 6 y, x, sh, ch, th (think), th (that)
Set 7 qu, ou, oi, ue, er, ar
Set 8 y (sunny), a (apron), a-e (cake), e (female), e-e (eve), i (silent), i-e (kite),
o (open), o-e (home), u (student), u-e (tune)
Set 9 ay (play), ey (they), oy (toy), y (mystery), ea (dream), ie (chief), y (dry),
igh (night)
Set 10 oe (toe), ow (rainbow), ow (now), ir (bird), ur (turn), ew (few),
au (launch), aw (paw), al (talk)
Reproduction of this material, as a whole, with appropriate acknowledgment, for non-
commercial or private purposes is permitted. Text and images remain the intellectual
property of SPELD SA.
SPELD SA acknowledges the traditional custodians of the lands on which we deliver our
services. We pay our respects to elders past, present and emerging, and recognise their
cultural heritage, beliefs and relationship with the land.
Copyright SPELD SA, 2021
SPELD SA
Phonic Book Series
