Spellings in yr1

[Whitecup]

Hi

I was just wondering if anyone would mind sharing with me their DCs spelling lists please? My dds teacher has decided to stop sending spellings and homework home. My dd is keen to do extra work but not really sure how to support this at home. I'm trying my best but can't help feeling my ideas confuse her.

Thanks

Auntie B

They are nearly all words that children regularly misspell because they are irregular in some way. Some of those with regular patters (day, say, play) get misspelt too because the pattern gets undermined by a few very HF word like 'they'.

If u take a closer look at the 300 words grouped by sound which I pasted in before, u can see very clearly while learning to spell English takes a long time.

Been feet green keep need queen see sleep three tree trees -
even here these - each eat please sea tea - be he he’s me she we we’re - people - key

could couldn’t would - pulled put - book good look looked looking looks took
food room school soon too - do into to - two who - through

home over clothes going - boat - cold old told - only don’t most
go no so - oh - grow know snow window

a am an and as at back bad began can cat dad gran grandad
had has hat have magic man ran sat than that that’s

• animals dragon (without doubled consonants as in ‘granny, stagger’)

baby came gave made make place take - again - great
away day may play say way - they

car dark garden hard park - are - (in S English also: laughed - after asked can’t fast last plants)
air - where there there’s - their - bear
because – saw - all called small - water - thought

the bed best end get help her let let’s new next red them then went when yes - said - head - friends - every everyone
better eggs fell tell well -
any many - ready very ever never (no doubled consonants)

were - birds first girl - work

big children did didn’t different fish him his if in is it it’s its king little miss still thing things think this which will wind wish with - live lived river

inside like liked cried time while, I’ve - by fly my why -
eyes - find I I’ll I’m - night right

across along box dog floppy fox from got hot
long lots not of off on stop stopped top - gone - want wanted was what
or for horse morning - before more - your door
but duck fun jumped just much mum must run sun under up us
another - come (coming) mother other one some something - once
use - you
about around found house mouse our out round shouted - down town - how now

This is just small part of the 4,000+ common words which have to be memorised one by one.

If English spelling was like most European languages, if it had a reall spelling code, the main patterns would have no, or very few exceptions, exceptions. (In Finnish they have none at all.)

Learning to write English could easily be made much easier than it is now. If the main patterns were used consistently, there would be no exceptions to learn. Phonics would work reliably. Learning to write would take about 9 years less than it does now. There would be no arguments about how best to teach children to read and write.

phonics does work reliably if it isn't mixed up with other methods masha

Phonics works reliably with phonically reliable spelling systems - with reliable relationships between sounds and letters. English spelling is not completely phonic: too many sounds have unpredictable spellings for it to be called 'phonic', as u can see below.

(The figures in brackets show how many of the 7,000 most used English words which I have analysed use that spelling - and how many spell it differently.)

1. a: cat – plait, meringue (466 – 3)
2. a-e: plate – wait, weight, straight, great, table dahlia, fete (338 – 69)

-ain: rain – lane, vein, reign, champagne (39 – 19) -ay: play – they, weigh,ballet,cafe, matinee (35 – 20)

1. air: care – hair, bear, aerial, their, there, questionnaire (31-are – 27 other)
2. ar: car – are + (Southern Engl. bath) (138 – 1)
3. au: sauce – caught, bought,always, tall, crawl (44 au – 76 other)

-aw: saw – (0)- but in UK 11-aw + 40 awe, or, four, sore, war

1. b: bed (0)
2. ca/o/u: cat, cot, cut – character, kangaroo, queue (1022 – 33)

cr/cl: crab/ clot – chrome, chlorine (192 – 10) -c: lilac –stomach, anorak (89 – 9) -ck: neck –cheque, rec (62 – 6) k: kite/ kept – chemistry (124 – 7) -k: seek –unique (36 – 5) -sk: risk –disc, mosque (86 – 10) qu: quick – acquire, choir (78 – 4) x: fix – accept, except, exhibit (98 – 15)

1. ch: chest – cello (155 – 1)

-tch: clutch – much (24 – 7) 9 d: dad – add, blonde (1,010 – 3)

10. e: end– head, any, said, Wednesday, friend, leisure,
    leopard, bury (301 – 67)

11. er: her – turn, bird, learn, word, journey (70er – 124)

12. ee: eat– eel, even, ceiling, field, police,people,
    me, key,ski, debris, quay (152ea – 304)
    --y: jolly– trolley, movie, corgi (475 – 39)

13. f: fish– photo, stuff, rough (580 - 44)

14. g: garden– ghastly, guard (171– 28)

15. h: house– who (237 – 4)

16. i: ink– mystery, pretty, sieve, women, busy, build (421 – 53)

17. i-e: bite – might, style, mild, kind, eider, height, climb
    island indict sign (278 – 76)
    -y: my – high,pie, rye, buy, I, eye (17 – 14)

18. j: jam/ jog/ jug (0)
    jelly, jig – gentle, ginger (18 – 20)
    -ge: gorge (0)
    -dg: fidget– digit (29 – 11)

19. l: last– llama (1,945 – 1)
    20: m: mum– dumb, autumn (1,128 – 19)

20. n: nose– knot, gone, gnome, mnemonic (2,312 – 34)

21. -ng: ring (0) 22

22. o: on– cough, sausage, gone(357 – 5)
    want – wont (19 – 1); quarrel– quod (10 -1)

23. o-e: mole – bowl, roll, soul; old – mould
    boast, most, goes, mauve (171 – 100)
    -o: no –toe, dough, sew, cocoa, pharaoh, oh, depot (106 – 59)

24. oi: oil– oyster (29 –1)
    -oy: toy –buoy (12 – 1)

25. oo (long): food– rude, shrewd, move, group, fruit, truth, tomb,
    blue, do, shoe,through, manoeuvre (94 – 108)

26. oo (short): good– would, put, woman, courier (15 -21)

27. or: order– board, court; wart, quart– worn, quorn (188 – 16)
    -ore:more – soar, door, four, war, swore,abhor (23– 17)

    • (14 –aw/awe in UK)

28. ou: out– town (74 – 24);
    -ow: now – plough (11 – 4)

29. p: pin (0)

30. r: rug– rhubarb, write (1,670 – 27)

31. s: sun – centre,scene (138 – 49)
    -ce: face – case; fancy– fantasy (153 – 65)

32. sh: shop – chute, sure, moustache, liquorice (166 – 30)
    -tion: ignition– mission, pension, suspicion,fashion (216 – 81)

33. t: tap, pet – pterodactyl, two, debt (1,398 – 4)
    --te: delicate – democrat (52 – 3)

34. th (sharp): this (0)

35. th (soft): thing (0)

36. u: up– front, some, couple, blood (308 – 68)

37. u-e: cute – you,newt, neutral, suit, beauty, Tuesday, nuclear (137 – 21)
    -ue: cue –few, view,menu (20– 22)

38. v: van (0)
    -ve: have –spiv (116– 3) [80 with surplus –e]
    -v-: river– chivvy (73 – 7) – v/vv after short vowel

39. w: window– which (216 – 31)

40. y: yak– use (31 – 11)

41. z: zip– xylophone (16 – 1)
    -se: rose –froze (85– 33)
    wise– size (UK 31 – 3, US 11 – 22)

42. zh: -si-/-su-: vision, measure – azure (20 – 3)

43. Unstressed, unclear vowel sound (or schwa),
    occurring mainly in 8 endings and 2 prefixes:
    -able: loveable– credible(33 – 17)
    -ccle: bundle (2 consonants + -le for -l) (0)
    -al: vertical– novel, anvil, petrol (200+ – 32)
    -ary: ordinary– machinery, inventory, century,carpentry(37 – 55)
    -en: fasten– abandon, truncheon, orphan, goblin, certain (73 – 132)
    -ence: absence– balance (33 – 26)
    -ent: absent – pleasant (176 – 58)
    -er: father –author, armour, nectar, centre, injure,quota (UK 340, US 346 – 135/129)
    butcher – picture (42 –ure)
    de-: decide – divide (57 – 29)
    in-: indulge – endure (73 – 30)

Phonics works reliably if children are taught well ... it's just easier if the language has a more transparent alphabetic code. English is complex so the task is more difficult not impossible!
and your lists are still confused!