How it works
The into sight word is two small words a child already knows, in and to, with no space. This sheet has them trace it, circle it among onto, unto, in and to, and finish We got ___ the car.
Read the full guide
In plus to, closed up
Wiktionary gives into as in joined to to. Cover the last two letters and read in; cover the first two and read to. Children who know both halves often leave a gap, so the row in into to into asks them to find the joined word. The o says oo, as it does in to.
The o goes quiet in fast speech
Said slowly, the word is in-too. Before a consonant in running speech it weakens to in-tuh: into the box. The spelling never changes. Into can also mean becoming, as in It turned into rain., where nothing goes inside anything.
- Build in and to from the tiles as two words, then slide them together.
- Act it out: a block goes into the box, and then it is in the box.
- Dictate Get into line. Only line needs care: its last e is silent.
Questions and answers
Why does my student write in to as two words?
Because both halves are words they know. Show the row in into to into and ask which word has no gap. Then let them build in and to from tiles and push the tiles together.
How is the sight word into different from onto?
By one letter: into starts with i and onto with o. Into moves to the inside of something, and onto moves to the top of it. The row into onto into unto puts them side by side.
Can into be sounded out?
Nearly. Short i, n and t sound out. The o says oo, not its short sound, the same surprise as in to. A child who can read to can read into.