11 Letter Q Worksheets – Free Printables!

Teaching the Letter Q

It’s important that teachers be intentional in every concept we teach, and teaching letters and sounds is no exception.

When teaching young students about the letter q, it’s especially important, since it’s so unique! Here is some important information about the letter q:

• The common letter q sound is made up of two separate sounds: /k/ /w/. This is why some do not include the letter Q on a sound wall. I created two versions of my sound wall, one with /kw/ and one without. You can use the /kw/ as a scaffold for younger students who have trouble hearing these two sounds when spelling. And since students will very quickly learn to make the two sounds together, you can switch to the other sound wall once kids have mastered the phoneme-grapheme connection (/k/ /w/ = qu)
• Q can also make the /k/ sound, like in the word unique. The q sound: /k/ /w/ is much more common, so we teach only this sound to young learners. They can learn the second sound in higher grades.
• Qu is considered a consonant unit. This is different from digraphs, like ch, sh, or th, where two letters come together to make one sound.

The Qu Spelling Rule

In English, the letter q is always followed by a u, so q shouldn’t be taught in isolation. When I teach the letter q to young students, I explicitly teach the qu spelling rule.

The rule is simple: “Never a q without a u.”

The rule rhymes, which is great for helping kids easily remember the jingle. Say it over and over again and have your students repeat it.

👑 To make learning the rule multi-sensory with my students, I always use hand motions and a linking word. In this case I use the word queen, so when I say the q sound: /k/ /w/, I pretend to put a crown on my head.

When teaching letters, use our alphabet flash cards, and have your kids repeat the spelling rule when they see the ‘qu/queen.’

This will engage auditory, visual, and kinesthetic learners as they see the letters, say the sound, and use the hand motions!

Multisensory learning has been proven to be the most effective way to remember and recall new concepts, so this easy, yet intentional, approach is the way to go!

The Worksheets

These worksheets are designed to help students learn all about the letter q and the qu rule. We included 11 worksheets for students in preschool and Kindergarten. Get all the worksheets at the bottom of this post!

Uppercase & Lowercase Practice Worksheets

Uppercase and Lowercase Matching: Students draw a line to connect uppercase and lowercase letters.

Coloring Letters: Students practice identifying uppercase Q and lowercase q.

Uppercase & Lowercase Matching Puzzles (2 sided)

Matching Puzzle Cards. The front of the cards have a picture that begins with the letter q, and an uppercase and lowercase letter q. The back of the cards are the full words, with the first two letters (qu) separated from the rest of the word.

Bring the puzzle together to match the words and pictures together, while matching the capital Qu and lowercase qu letters together.

Letter Q Write, Tap, and Read Worksheet

Beginning Sounds Tap & Read: This is an introductory orthographic mapping activity. There are 6 letter q words pictures with partially completed sound boxes.

Students write the qu into the first Elkonin box. They should touch the dots below each box and say each phoneme out loud. They should then blend the sounds together and say the word out loud. Finally, they write each word on the writing lines.

More Resources for Teaching Letters

• A-Z Beginning Sounds Worksheets
• Letter A Worksheets
• Letter B Worksheets