There are three sections in this resource:

Overview of Soft c and Soft g
Video Demonstration
Teaching Tips

The estimated time to complete this resource is 15 minutes.

You may download and print the following documents by clicking the links below.

Lesson Plan
Lesson Materials
Word List
Video Transcript

The letter c can make more than one sound. When the sound of a c is /k/, it is a hard c; however, when the sound is /s/, it is a soft c. When the letters e, i, or y follow the letter c, it makes the soft sound /s/, as in the word city.

The letter g can also make more than one sound. When the sound of g is /g/, it is a hard g; however, when the sound is /j/, it is a soft g. When e, i, or y follow the letter g, it makes the soft sound /j/, as in giant.

Teaching students the characteristics of the soft c and g are crucial. The sooner students learn these basic concepts, the sooner students can read and pronounce more words.

These videos demonstrate how to teach students to read and spell words that contain the soft c and soft g sounds.

Activities in the first video teach students how to identify whether the letter c in a word is making its hard or soft sound and the steps to follow to determine which spelling option to use when a word contains the /s/ sound.

Activities in the second video teach students how to identify whether the letter g in a word is making its hard or soft sound and the steps to follow to determine which spelling option to use when a word contains the /j/ sound.

Click play on the video when you're ready to begin.

When teaching soft c and soft g words:

• Teach soft c and soft g on separate days.
• The soft g spelling pattern has some notable exceptions (e.g., give, get, girl). Teach these exceptions as sight words.
• Provide multiple opportunities for students to interact with high-utility words in reading and writing activities.

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