Phonics Worksheets: Long A and Short A - Free Printable

Let me work through this problem step by step.

The worksheet asks students to:
1. Use a red crayon to color pictures that have the short "a" sound (like in "cat")
2. Use a blue crayon to color pictures that have the long "a" sound (like in "cake" or "ape")

Let me identify each picture and determine which sound it has:

Row 1:
1. Bat - short "a" (băt) → RED
2. Snake - long "a" (snāke) → BLUE
3. Cat - short "a" (căt) → RED

Row 2:
4. Plate - long "a" (plāte) → BLUE
5. Hand - short "a" (hănd) → RED
6. Map - short "a" (măp) → RED

Row 3:
7. Man (with child) - short "a" (măn) → RED
8. Flag - short "a" (flăg) → RED
9. Tape - long "a" (tāpe) → BLUE

Row 4:
10. Crane - long "a" (crāne) → BLUE
11. Grapes - short "a" (grăpes) → RED
12. Rat - short "a" (răt) → RED

Let me double-check my answers:

Short "a" sounds (RED): bat, cat, hand, map, man, flag, grapes, rat = 8 items
Long "a" sounds (BLUE): snake, plate, tape, crane = 4 items

Wait, let me reconsider "grapes." The word "grapes" has the short "a" sound in "grap-" so that's correct.

Let me verify each one more carefully:
- bat: băt ✓ short a
- snake: snāke ✓ long a
- cat: căt ✓ short a
- plate: plāte ✓ long a
- hand: hănd ✓ short a
- map: măp ✓ short a
- man: măn ✓ short a
- flag: flăg ✓ short a
- tape: tāpe ✓ long a
- crane: crāne ✓ long a
- grapes: grăpes ✓ short a
- rat: răt ✓ short a

Final Answer:
Color with RED (short "a" sound): bat, cat, hand, map, man, flag, grapes, rat

Color with BLUE (long "a" sound): snake, plate, tape, crane