Long O Spelling Patterns

We know that the long o sound says its name. But how many ways are there to spell this long vowel sound? There are FIVE common ways to spell the long o sound. (I include 6 examples in the chart below because of the two different spelling rules — or generalizations — about the o spelling pattern.)

It is worth acknowledging that the long o sound can also be spelled as oo (as in door and floor); ou (as is soul); and ough (as in though and dough). However, these spelling patterns are so far and few between for the long o sound that they are not included in this chart as a main go-to for spelling patterns of this sound.

Knowing these different spelling patterns for this one sound is vital in developing phonemic awareness that will support students on their journey of becoming strong, confident, and fluent independent readers. As students move from picture-heavy readers to more text-heavy books, they need to be equipped to confidently tackle words without guessing or using pictures. Targeted phonics instruction will not only help students decode more fluently, but students who have strong decoding and fluency skills also comprehend what they read more efficiently. In this post, I list each of the five spelling patterns as well as when each spelling pattern is most likely to be used.

O

Can spell the long o sound at the end of a syllable or when followed by two consonants. Ex: robot; gold

O_E

Can spell the long o sound when the silent final e makes the o say its name. Ex: cone

OA

Can spell the long o sound at the beginning or in the middle of a base word. Ex: oat; coat

OE

Can spell the long o sound at the end of a word. Ex: toe

OW

Can spell the long o sound at the end of a base word. Ex: snow

Note: The placement of the ow will sometimes shift to the middle of a single syllable word when that word changes form (such as to past participle), and almost exclusively when it ends in n. Examples: grown, known, flown. The word bowl is also an exception.

For targeted practice with the different spelling patterns of the long o sound, check out this decodable reading resource in my shop.

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Long I Spelling Patterns

We know that the long i sound says its name. But how many ways are there to spell this long vowel sound? There are FIVE different ways to spell the long i sound. (I include 6 examples in the chart below because of the two different spelling rules — or generalizations — about the i spelling pattern.) Knowing these different spelling patterns for this one sound is vital in developing phonemic awareness that will support students on their journey of becoming strong, confident, and fluent independent readers. As students move from picture-heavy readers to more text-heavy books, they need to be equipped to confidently tackle words without guessing or using pictures. Targeted phonics instruction will not only help students decode more fluently, but students who have strong decoding and fluency skills also comprehend what they read more efficiently. In this post, I list each of the five spelling patterns as well as when each spelling pattern is most likely to be used.

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I

Can spell the long i sound at the end of a syllable or when followed by two consonants. Ex: lion; child

I_E

Can spell the long i sound when the silent final e makes the i say its name. Ex: lime

IE

Native English words cannot end in i, and so requires a silent final e to be added. The word pie ends in an ie and makes the long i sound because a silent final e must be added after the i. ie also spells the long i sound when the tense or form of the word is changed. Ex: fry to fries; cry to cried

IGH

Can spell the long i sound in the middle or at the end of a base word. Ex: light; sigh

Y

Can spell the long i sound at the end of mostly  single syllable words. Ex: cry.

* y can also spell the long i sound in the middle or at the end of a few multisyllabic words (ex: cycle; supply; apply), or when the verb suffix fy is added to a word (ex: solidify). This is not to be confused with the adjective suffix fy (ex: goofy; stuffy), which then makes a long e sound. 

For targeted practice with the different spelling patterns of the long i sound, check out this decodable reading resource in my shop.

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Word Building Game

Games are a vital part of learning and can support learning in a myriad of ways. This image below is my screen from a recent Zoom session with one of my rising middle school students. We were ending a session playing the asked-for-over-again word building game.

WHAT IS IT?

This is a word building game I play frequently with my students. They love that they’re playing a game, and I love that they are building their vocabulary, spelling, and organization skills.

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HOW DO YOU PLAY?

It’s pretty simple. Choose a word and create 4 columns: one column each for 2-letter, 3-letter, 4-letter, and 5+ letter words. When playing virtually, I create a chart like this on my screen, and my students either a) creates a similar chart on paper or b) creates a document on their devices that they can screen share with me. Once the word is revealed and the grid is created, it’s go time. I allot approximately three minutes for students to build as many words as possible using the letters in the given word. Letters cannot be used more than once, but they can be used in any order.

You’ll notice that I have a FOCUS ON section. I do not use this with every student, but I will if my goal is to target particular spelling patterns, or if I have a student who has particular difficulty with task initiation and / or finding words, particular more complex ones.

HOW DO YOU CHOOSE A WORD?

When choosing a word, I typically choose one that is seasonal, relevant to a current events issue, or related to a student’s interest. The word in this example above is from a recent session after Hurricane Isais wrecked havoc through our area and knocked out power, resulting in weeklong (and longer) power outages for many. My family is thankful that when we bought our house, there was already a generator installed. Unfortunately, the generator broke down after day 4 of working as back up. Hence, generator seemed like an appropriate word for many reasons that week: it was relevant, it targeted vocabulary and parts of speech (i.e. What are other forms of the word?: generate, generation, generated, etc…), and it honed particular spelling skills I wanted to focus on with this specific student.

This game can be differentiated for many different learning levels and needs. For extension work, ask students to pick a word to use in a well-written and descriptive sentence.

Happy Playing!

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Coordinating Conjunctions Craft Activity

Conjunction junction, what’s your function? were the famous Schoolhouse Rock words. (And it’s still impossible to talk about conjunctions without hearing them.) There are three categories of conjunctions: coordinating, subordinating, and correlative. They are all specific words that connect phrases, words, and clauses. This post focuses exclusively on coordinating conjunctions. 

There are seven coordinating conjunctions that can be easily remembered using the acronym FANBOYS: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so. A good visual is what always helps me most, so I designed this coordinating conjunction fan to demonstrate the usage of these conjunctions for all those other visual learners out there. Also, kids LOVE putting these together.  To make this handheld fan, follow these simple steps:

What You’ll Need

  • Standard size (8.5in x 11in) sheet of paper

  • Marker

  • Ruler

  • Tape

How To

  1. Use a rule (or you can eyeball it!) to make roughly 1.5in marks

  2. Make six horizontal folds. This will then allow for seven spaces, one for each conjunction. There is enough space to also include the purpose for and / or an example of each coordinating conjunction. 

  3. Write each conjunction and purpose (see below for details) in each space.

  4. On the bottom where the conjunction FOR is written, you can flip up the to the opposite side and write COORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS.

  5. Tape the bottom folds together to create a fan.

  • For a set-by-step video, you can hop on over to my Instagram page and watch it the reels section.

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For

Purpose: To give a reason.

Example: I brought my umbrella with me when I left the house, for it was supposed to rain.

 

And

Purpose: To join words, phrases, or sentences that show a similar idea.

Example: Sam finished his homework, and then he ate his dinner.

 

Nor

Purpose: To introduce or present a further negative idea or statement.

Example: Jen does not like to travel in airplanes, nor does she like to travel on trains.

 

But 

Purpose: To show contrasting or opposite ideas. 

Example: They wanted to bake muffins, but they didn’t have all of the ingredients. 

 

Or

Purpose: To show a choice or different options.

Example: We can go to the beach this morning, or we can go this afternoon.

 

Yet

Purpose: To join two ideas that are opposite. Similar to the use of the word but.

Example: Pete studied every day for the test, yet he still did not do as well as he had hoped. 

 

So

Purpose: To show the result or effect of something (not to be confused with so as an adverb, meaning to a great extent)

Example: Three feet of snow fell last night, so we were not able to leave the house today. 

 

I hope these examples and demonstration help your learners master coordinating conjunctions a bit more easily!

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