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oi, oy, ou and ow is a free printable Grade 2 English worksheet on the four spellings of the oi and ow sounds, aligned to Common Core standard RF.2.3. It prints 3 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions that each ask different questions, so no two students in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.

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All 25 sets ask different questions.

oi, oy, ou and ow

RF.2.3

NameDate

Sort each word into the right column.

1.Sort each word by its pattern: oi / oy / ou / ow (cow).

Sort: growl, found, royal, spoil, crowd, join, count, destroy

oioyouow (cow)
2.Sort each word by its pattern: oi / oy / ou / ow (cow).

Sort: avoid, employ, loud, town, cow, ground, point, destroy

oioyouow (cow)
3.Sort each word by its pattern: oi / oy / ou / ow (cow).

Sort: found, round, choice, town, boy, how, royal, avoid

oioyouow (cow)

LessonPrint · RF.2.3 · Set 1 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — oi, oy, ou and ow

Set 1. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.oi: spoil, join; oy: royal, destroy; ou: found, count; ow (cow): growl, crowd
  2. 2.oi: avoid, point; oy: employ, destroy; ou: loud, ground; ow (cow): town, cow
  3. 3.oi: choice, avoid; oy: boy, royal; ou: found, round; ow (cow): town, how

Questions about oi, oy, ou and ow

What does the oi, oy, ou and ow worksheet cover?

It practices the four spellings of the oi and ow sounds — 3 questions for Grade 2, all on Common Core RF.2.3: Read words with vowel teams, prefixes, suffixes and two syllables. The instruction to students is “Sort each word into the right column”, and the answer key follows on the next sheet.

Which Common Core standard does oi, oy, ou and ow practice?

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.2.3 — RF.2.3, under Reading: Foundational Skills for Grade 2. The published standard reads: “Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words.” The worksheet assesses that standard rather than a paraphrase of it.

What age or grade is this worksheet for?

oi, oy, ou and ow is written for Grade 2, typically ages 7-8. It is one of the sheets on RF.2.3, so it suits any student working at that standard — including older students revisiting it and younger ones working ahead.

Does oi, oy, ou and ow come with an answer key?

Yes. All 3 answers are generated from the same problems as the questions, so the key cannot drift out of step with the sheet. It starts on a fresh sheet of paper, after the questions, so it is not handed out with the class by accident.

How many different versions of oi, oy, ou and ow can I print?

25 — one per student, and all 25 ask different questions. Set 1 downloads the whole class as a single PDF. Every version is fixed to its own address, so a sheet printed today holds the same problems when you reopen it next week.

Is oi, oy, ou and ow free to print and photocopy?

Yes. oi, oy, ou and ow, its answer key and its 25 versions are free to print and photocopy for your own class, with no account, no email capture and no subscription at the download step. Please do not resell them or republish them as your own.

More practice for RF.2.3

Read words with vowel teams, prefixes, suffixes and two syllables.

All Grade 2 worksheets

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to RF.2.3 of the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts.