3 Phonics Letter Clusters a, e, ea

Phonics: Letter Clusters a, e, ea The speech sounds associating the letter clusters “a, e, ea, ec” are /e/ or /æ/ as in the words like “egg, bed, deck, bread, spread, bat, cat, fat… ” The speech sound /e/ is described in terms of height and advancement of the tongue to be front and mid-high with lips unround and lax. The speech sound /æ/ is described in terms of height and advancement of the tongue to be front and low with lips unround and lax. This speech sound is articulated with the tongue placed low right before the front lower teeth. The speech sound /e/ is articulated with the mouth open in mid-high whereas the speech sound /æ/ is articulated with the tongue placed low with the mouth open so much wider. The minimal pairs in the table below perhaps help you to distinguish them better. Vowels in comparison / e / / æ / 1. bed bad 2. bet bat 3. Ben ban 4. bend band 5. lend land 6. send sand 7. fen fan 8. less lass 9. met mat 10. men man 11. peck pack 12. pen pan 13. pet pat 14. set sat 15. rent rant 16. ten tan