trugs – Teach Reading Using GameS

trugs printables · Stages 1 to 15

Print, cut and play

How to turn your trugs PDF packs into card games: printing, cutting, sorting the three games, and how to play Get It, Match It and Take It.

How to play
Download the game packs

Step 1

Printing the cards

  • Print the stage PDF in colour, on card that’s stiff enough to shuffle and deal. We use 275 gsm (300 micron) card, but any similar card works.
  • Choose Actual size or 100% in the print settings, not Fit to page, so every card comes out the same size.
  • Print one stage at a time, so the games don’t get mixed up.

Step 2

How to cut the cards

  1. Cut along the crop marks

    Carefully cut the cards out from the page, using the crop marks as a cutting guide. Ideally all cards should be the same size. Please take care when cutting.

  2. Sort into the three games

    Separate the cards by the colour of their borders: Get It (green), Match It (pink) and Take It (yellow). There is also an Explanation Card for each game, and stage cards.

  3. Band and store

    Put rubber bands round each game if you wish, and store them in a box with the clue card.

  4. Repeat

    Do the same with the other printed card packs.

How to play these traditional card games

The three trugs games

The person practising their reading skills is the reader. The person helping them is the helper. The reader can also practise some spelling skills in Match It and Take It.

For 2 players

Get It

  • Find the two Master Cards. Put one in front of the helper and one in front of the reader.
  • Shuffle the rest of the pack and place it face down.
  • Lift the first card from the pack. Cover the word with your fingers, but show the coloured shape in the corner of the card.
  • On the Master Card, look at the coloured words that match the coloured shape on the top card.
  • The reader reads each of these words, saying the sounds and blending them from left to right if needed.
  • Both reader and helper choose which word it could be, by reading it. Let the reader choose first.
  • Reveal the word on the card. Whoever chose correctly keeps the card, face up in front of them.
  • If no one chose correctly, the card goes to the bottom of the pack. The next person takes their turn.

The winner is the player with the most cards at the end.

For 2 to 4 players

Match It

  • Shuffle the cards and deal 5 to each player.
  • Place the rest face down between the players. Turn the top card over and place it beside the pack.
  • Players hold their cards so they can see them, but no one else can.
  • The first player puts down a card from their hand that is the same colour or the same number as the card beside the pack, and reads the word out loud, saying the sounds and blending them all through the word (unless they can read it automatically).
  • For spelling: read the word and ask a player to spell it before placing the card down. They repeat the word, identify the separate sounds in it and, if appropriate, write the letters for those sounds.
  • A player who can’t go but has a trugs card can use it as a joker: they put it down and tell the next player which colour to play.
  • A player who can’t go and has no trugs card picks up a card from the pack. Play moves on.

The first player to use up all their cards is the winner.

For 2 to 4 players

Take It

  • Shuffle the pack and place it face down between the players.
  • The first player takes the top card, keeps it hidden, and reads the word out loud, saying the sounds and blending them all through the word (unless they can read it automatically).
  • For spelling: the player reads the word out loud and asks another player to spell it. They repeat the word, identify the separate sounds and, if appropriate, write the letters for those sounds.
  • The player places the card on the table in front of them. The next player does the same.
  • When a player picks up a word of the same colour (the same set) as a fellow player’s, they take all the cards of that set and add them to theirs. Read all the words in the set out loud.
  • Play continues, with sets being collected and taken as players pick up matching cards.

The player with the most sets of cards at the end is the winner.

Where to start

Where to start and how often to play

  • The games are in stages, so it’s always best to start at the lowest numbered stage.
  • Play any of the three card games at that stage, as often as you wish. The games are graded in order of difficulty: Get It, then Match It, then Take It.
  • When the reader feels confident and can read the words automatically at one stage, move on to the next.
  • Each stage has an Explanation Card in place of a manual: a short explanation of that stage.

It’s always good to revisit earlier stages, to reinforce what has been learned and build confidence.

Need help? Lost a leaflet, or not sure which stage to start with? See the trugs user guides, or email trugs@readsuccessfully.com.

The stages

What each stage covers

Pack 1

Stages 1 to 5

  • Stage 1 cvc: sat, yes, big, fox, hug
  • Stage 2 ccvc: pram, trip
  • Stage 3 cvcc and ccvcc: left, best, crash, drank
  • Stage 4 two-syllable words: magnet, instruct
  • Stage 5 ar, or, er: car, port, her, stir, churn

Pack 2

Stages 6 to 10

  • Stage 6 split digraph (vowel-consonant-e): make, these, fine, code, tuneful
  • Stage 7 vowel digraphs and trigraphs: snail, seen, light, boat, statue
  • Stage 8 alternative vowel digraphs: boy, out, paw
  • Stage 9 two-syllable words: limit, pilot
  • Stage 10 three-syllable words: consider, discontent

Pack 3

Stages 11 to 15

  • Stage 11 c as in /s/: mice, pencil, succeed
  • Stage 12 g as in /j/: gem, page, rigid
  • Stage 13 consonant-le: candle, sensible
  • Stage 14 four-syllable words: independent
  • Stage 15 suffixes with ti, ci, si: electrician

Plus Tricky Words 1 and 2, and Stage 0 for first letters and sounds.