Long vowels are vowel sounds that are pronounced the same as the name of the letter itself. For example, the long 'a' in 'cake'.

Short vowels are vowel sounds that are pronounced differently than the name of the letter. For example, the short 'a' in 'cat'.

The short vowel sounds in English are: a (as in cat), e (as in bed), i (as in sit), o (as in hot), u (as in cup).

The long vowel sounds in English are: a (as in cake), e (as in see), i (as in kite), o (as in home), u (as in mule).

A long vowel sound is often followed by a silent 'e' at the end of the word, or it can be found in a vowel team (like 'ai' in 'rain').

A short vowel sound is typically found in a closed syllable, where the vowel is followed by one or more consonants (like 'cat' or 'bed').

A vowel team is a combination of two vowels that together make one vowel sound, such as 'ai' in 'rain' or 'ea' in 'bread'.