If you’ve ever had a student confuse the sounds /th/ and /f/, you’re not alone. These sounds are made in a similar place in the mouth and can be hard for early learners to distinguish—especially when one is a digraph and the other is a single consonant. That’s why working with TH and F minimal pairs is such an effective strategy for supporting both speech clarity and phonics instruction
What Are Minimal Pairs
Minimal pairs are two words that differ by only one sound. For example, thin and fin or thumb and fun. Practicing these pairs helps students hear the difference between sounds and learn how that difference changes the meaning of a word.
These activities are especially helpful in minimal pairs speech therapy and for students working on auditory discrimination, phonemic awareness, or English language development.
Why Focus on TH and F?
The /th/ and /f/ sounds are often confused, especially by young learners. One is a digraph (two letters making one sound), while the other is a single consonant—but they can sound quite similar. Teaching students to differentiate think from fink or three from free helps them build clearer speech and stronger decoding skills.
You can read more about the importance of auditory discrimination in my post on Fun Ways to Teach TH, V and F Sounds, which includes practical strategies and games to support sound clarity.
Using Minimal Pairs in the Classroom
You don’t need a full speech therapy setup to use minimal pairs in your classroom. Here are a few ways I’ve used TH and F minimal pairs effectively:
- Picture sorting: Have students sort picture cards into two piles—/th/ and /f/—to build awareness of how the sounds differ.
- Listening games: Say a word and have students point to the correct image (e.g., thin vs. fin).
- Partner games: Play simple board games where students must say or identify minimal pair words correctly to move forward.
These kinds of activities work beautifully in small group interventions, speech support, or as part of your phonics centers.
TH and F Minimal Pair Resources You Can Use
To make things easy, I’ve created no-prep resources that target TH and F minimal pairs specifically:
1. Roll and Cover – TH and F Version
This game is perfect for helping students distinguish between these tricky sounds while having fun. Students roll a die and cover a picture that matches the sound they hear. It’s great for both speech support and phonics instruction. Get it as a freebie on my TPT store or in my free library for subscribers!
Learn more in my post on Time-Saving No-Prep Phonics Activities Every Teacher Needs.
2. Word Sorts – Minimal Pairs Edition
Students sort pictures or words by their initial sound—such as /dr/ vs. /tr/—to help them distinguish between the two phonemes. It’s a great way to build both phonemic awareness and spelling knowledge, especially when paired with follow-up writing or oral practice.
Read why word sorts belong in every classroom!
How It Supports Your Literacy Instruction
Practicing minimal pairs TH and F not only strengthens articulation—it also supports your broader phonics goals. Students become more aware of sound-letter relationships, build confidence in decoding, and develop better spelling and writing habits as they learn to differentiate similar-sounding words.
If you’re interested in learning more about how these concepts connect to structured literacy, check out my post on Best Practice in Literacy Instruction or dive deeper into Phonics vs. Phonological Awareness.
Explore My TPT Store
Looking for ready-made tools to support minimal pairs speech therapy and phonics instruction? Visit my Teachers Pay Teachers store, Primed for Primary, for no-prep games and phonics activities focused on TH and F minimal pairs, digraph practice, and more.
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