-AN Word Family Worksheet

The -AN word family is a natural next step after children master shorter word families. Words like can, fan, man, pan, ran, tan, van, and plan are simple to decode and easy to picture, making them ideal for building reading confidence in kindergarten and first-grade learners.

Words in the -AN Family

The -AN family contains a wide range of words, from basic three-letter CVC words to slightly more advanced blends:

Three-letter words: can, fan, man, pan, ran, tan, van, ban, dan
Four-letter words: plan, clan, scan, span, than, bran

Starting with the simpler three-letter words lets your child experience quick success, which fuels motivation to tackle the longer blends.

Rhyming Activities That Work

Rhyming is a powerful bridge between spoken and written language. When your child can hear that man and van rhyme, they are already segmenting the word into its onset (m- or v-) and its rime (-an). This worksheet includes rhyme matching exercises where children draw lines between words that share the -AN ending and odd-one-out activities where they identify the word that does not rhyme with the rest of the group.

Word Building with -AN

One of the most effective phonics activities is giving a child the rime (-an) and asking them to add different onsets to build new words. You can do this with letter tiles, magnetic letters, or simply a pencil and paper. Write _an on a line and have your child fill in the blank with c, f, m, p, r, t, or v. Each new combination produces a real word, reinforcing the idea that changing just one letter changes the meaning entirely.

Extending to Blends

Once your child is comfortable with single-consonant onsets, introduce consonant blends: plan, clan, scan, span. These words follow the same -AN pattern but require blending two consonants at the start. This progression builds phonological complexity gradually, preventing frustration while steadily advancing decoding skills.

Making It Multisensory

Research shows that engaging multiple senses deepens learning. Try these add-on activities after completing the worksheet:

Write -AN words in sand, salt, or shaving cream.
Clap the onset and rime separately: "m" (clap) "-an" (clap).
Draw a picture of each word to connect the printed form with its meaning.
Read a short story together and count how many -AN words appear.

How This Connects to Reading

Children who master word families develop what reading researchers call analogical decoding. When they encounter an unfamiliar word like clan, they recognize the -AN chunk from words they already know and use it to decode the new word. This skill transfers across all word families and dramatically increases the number of words a child can read independently.

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More Word Families

For more tips on phonics instruction, check out our guide on how to teach phonics at home.