Words Rule | EL Education Curriculum

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ELA G2:S2:C8:L36

Words Rule

In this Lesson

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Daily Learning Targets

  • Opening A: I can identify the vowel spellings in a word to help me determine how many syllables are in the word and use that information to decode it. (RF.1.3, RF.2.3)
    • I can decode a word with a vowel team (two vowels that make a long vowel sound) in the middle.
    • I can decode words with common suffixes.
    • I can decode (regularly spelled) two-syllable words with long vowels.
  • Work Time A: I can read, identify the syllable type, and spell words with the spelling patterns "ind," "old," "ost," and "ild." (RF.1.3, RF.2.3, L.2.2)
    • I can apply generalizations for decoding words with common vowel teams.
    • I can use knowledge of vowel sounds to help me decode words with different spelling patterns.
    • I can identify spelling patterns based on syllable type.

Ongoing Assessment

  • Observe students during Opening A.
    • Determine whether they can decode two-syllable words with the prefix "-e."
  • Observe students during Work Time A.
    • Determine whether they can correctly identify vowel patterns in words with "ind," "old," "ost," and "ild."
    • Also determine whether they can apply spelling patterns in writing words on white boards.
  • Exit ticket (see Differentiated Small Groups: Work with Teacher).

Agenda

Agenda

1. Opening (3–5 minutes)

A. Syllable Sleuth: Two-Syllable Words with Vowel Teams: “high-er,” “high-est,” “fast-er,” “fast-est,” “dark-er,” “dark-est,” “fly-ing,” “row-ing”

2. Work Time (10 minutes)

A. Words Rule: /ī/ and /ō/ Words Spelled with “-ild,” “-ind,” “-old,” and “-ost”: “child,” “wild,” “kind,” “find,” “cold,” “bold,” “most,” “post”

3. Closing and Assessment (2 minutes)

A. Reflecting on Learning

4. Differentiated Small Group Instruction and Rotations (40-45 minutes)

In Advance

  • Prepare "-ind," "-ild," "-old," and "ost" Word Cards for Work Time A (cut apart for display).
  • Copy Syllable Sleuth Word List (one for each pair).
  • Pre-determine partners for Work Time A.
  • Gather materials for differentiated small group instruction (see Differentiated Small Groups: Work with Teacher).

Vocabulary

Key: Lesson-Specific Vocabulary (L); Text-Specific Vocabulary (T)

  • base word, segment, similar, suffix, syllable, patterns (L)

Materials

  • Syllable Sleuth Word List in a transparent sleeve (one per pair)
  • White board markers (one per student)
  • White board erasers (or tissues, socks, etc.; one per student)
  • Clipboards if not sitting at a desk (one per student; optional)
  • "-ind," "-ild," "-old," and "-ost" Word Cards (for Work Time A; cut apart for display)
  • White boards if not working at a desk (one per student)

Opening

OpeningMeeting Students' Needs

A. Syllable Sleuth: Two-Syllable Words with Vowel Teams: "high-er," "high-est," "fast-er," "fast-est," "dark-er," "dark-est," "fly-ing," "row-ing"

  • (Suggested transition song, sung to the tune of "I've Been Workin' on the Railroad"):

"We've been workin' on some long words, sound by sound by sound. We've been workin' on some long words, so we can read more words aloud. We take a word like 'maybe' and break it into parts. 'May' plus 'be' makes 'maybe' and now it's time to start!"

  • Begin the Syllable Sleuth instructional practice:

1. Teacher says: "It's time to be syllable sleuths. We are going to find some clues to help us figure out how to break longer words into parts so we can read them. Let's start with a new word."

2. Teacher displays the word on the board: "higher."

3. Teacher models Syllable Sleuth practice aloud:

      • "Look for the vowels and put a dot below each."
      • "Look for the consonants between the vowels."
      • "Notice that the 'igh' long vowel pattern is present."
      • "Divide the word after the 'igh.'"

4. Teacher draws a swoop under the first syllable and asks:

"What do we know about the letters 'igh' when they are together like this?" (They make a long "i" sound.)

"So how do we pronounce this first syllable?" ("teach")

5. Teacher draws a swoop under the second syllable and asks:

"How do we pronounce this syllable?" ("er")

"How do you know?" (The "e" is controlled by the bossy "r.")

"Why did I divide the word after the 'igh'?" (They are a pattern that stays together to make the long "i" sound. It has a base word "high" and the suffix "-er"; words with suffixes are divided between the base word and the suffix.)

6. Teacher says: "The first syllable, 'high,' is the base word. The second syllable, '-er,' is a suffix. It changes the meaning of the word."

7. Teacher asks:

"What is the difference between 'high' and 'higher'?" ("Higher" means it is even more than just "high.")

8. Teacher says: "Remember, a sleuth is a detective. When you're a syllable sleuth, your job is to search for the clues that let you know you have found a syllable. As a syllable sleuth, you will look for vowel sounds to see how to divide the words into syllables to read them. You may notice base words and suffixes in our two-syllable words today. When you do, remember that we divide between them."

9. Teacher distributes the Syllable Sleuth Word List in a transparent sleeve, white board markers, white board erasers, and a clipboard (if not working at a desk).

10. Teacher reminds students (if needed) of the steps in the Syllable Sleuth practice that were just modeled:

      • "Locate the vowels and put a dot below them."
      • "Look between the vowels."
      • "Decide where to segment (divide) the word."
      • "Divide the word into syllables."
      • "Pronounce each syllable according to the spelling pattern (i.e., closed, open, magic 'e,' r-controlled, and vowel team)."

11. Students complete the Syllable Sleuth Word List.

12. Teacher invites students to read each word and:

      • Underline the base word.
      • Circle the suffix.

13. Teacher asks:

"What is the difference between 'higher and highest' or 'faster and fastest' or 'darker and darkest'?" (When the "-est" is added, it is the most it can be--"most high," "most fast," or "most dark.")
  • Consider annotating the letters in a vowel team by placing a dot under each and drawing a straight line between the dots. This can serve as a visual, reinforcing the fact that while there are two vowels, they make just one sound.
  • Step 11 can be done in a variety of ways, including:
    • Students apply Syllable Sleuth steps to one word at a time. After each word, the teacher models the division and decoding and students check their work.
    • Students work through the list independently or with partners. After a set period of time, the teacher models the division and decoding of each word while students check their work.
  • See Syllabication Guide as needed (see K-2 Skills Resource Manual). Below is the syllable division for words used in Opening A: "high-er," "high-est," "fast-er," "fast-est," "dark-er," "dark-est," "fly-ing," "row-ing."

Work Time

Work TimeMeeting Students' Needs

A. Words Rule: /ī/ and /ō/ Words Spelled with “-ild,” “-ind,” “-old,” and “-ost”: “child,” “wild,” “kind,” “find,” “cold,” “bold,” “most,” “post”

  • (Suggested transition song, sung to the tune of “The Muffin Man”):

Teacher: “Can you take a closer look, a closer look, a closer look? Can you take a closer look at these words today?”

Students: “Yes, we’ll take a closer look, a closer look, a closer look. Yes, we’ll take a closer look to group the words today.”

  • Begin the Words Rule instructional practice:

1. Teacher displays the Words Rule Word Cards on the board and reads aloud the words in random order: “wild,” “kind,” “child,” “find.”

2. Teacher says: “Think about what you notice when we read these words. You will share your thinking with a partner in a moment. After you notice, think about how you could group these words together in ways they are alike.”

3. Students read words silently and notice similar patterns, and decide how they would group words together.

4. Teacher says: “Now I would like you to share with your elbow partner what you noticed and how you could group words that are similar.”

5. Students turn to an elbow partner and each partner shares what they noticed and how they can group similar words.

6. Teacher asks:

“Who would like to share what they noticed about these words?” (They all have the /ī/ sound.)

7. Teacher says: “So all our words have the /ī/ sound.”

8. Teacher asks:

“How did you group these words together?” (in two groups: “ild” and “ind” spellings)

9. Teacher places the “ild” Word Cards (“wild” and “child”) together and the “kind” and “find” Word Cards together.

10. Teacher underlines the “ild” and “ind” in the words and says: “These words all have the long ‘i’ sound in them but they don’t have a vowel team or a magic ‘e’ to make the long vowel sound. A long time ago, long ‘i’ words with these spelling patterns used to have a magic ‘e’ on the end. They don’t anymore. When we see ‘ild’ or ‘ind’ at the end of a syllable like in these words, we just know that they make the sound /ild/ and /ind/.”

11. Teacher writes the words “mild” under “wild” and “child” and invites students to read the word.

12. Teacher writes the words “grind” and “blind” under “kind” and “find” and invites students to read the words.

13. Teacher repeats steps 1–12 with Words Rule Word Cards (“old” and “ost”), reading them in random order: “cold,” “most,” “bold,” “post.”

14. Teacher invites students to notice that these long “o” words are not spelled with vowel teams or magic “e” syllable types and explains that when they see those patterns at the end of a syllable, they just need to know that they make the long “o” sound.

15. If time allows, write the suffixes “-er” and “-est” to the end of “kind,” “wild,” “cold,” and “bold,” and invite students to make connections to the work they did in Opening A.
  • Consider extending this work time to include a dictation. Teacher distributes white boards, white board markers, and white board erasers and invites students to use what they've learned about those sound/spelling patterns to write the following dictated words: "sold," "poster," "behind." Or this may be an alternative to the suggestions listed in the differentiated small group instruction.
  • Consider posting anchor charts for syllable types and vowel teams. This supports students in analyzing spelling and sound patterns to determine where a word should be broken into syllables. See the Syllabication Guide in K-2 Skills Resource Manual for sample charts, including keywords for each syllable type and vowel team.

Closing & Assessments

ClosingMeeting Students' Needs

A. Reflecting on Learning

  • Emphasize that successful learners take responsibility for their learning by setting goals for themselves. Invite students to reflect on something concrete they can work on during whole group or differentiated small group instruction. This may be based on their assessment goal-setting conferences, on feedback during differentiated small group work, or on their own self-identified needs. Example:
    • "My goal is to identify vowel sounds in words. I am going to work toward that goal in small group time."

OR:

    • "During Syllable Sleuth, I realized that I need to look to see if there are base words and suffixes in the words I am reading. So, during differentiated small group instruction, I will ask my teacher to help me work on this."
  • For students who need additional support organizing their ideas: Provide sentence frames. Examples:
    • "During Words Rule, I _____."
    • "When I work by myself during small group time, I will _____."

Differentiated Small Groups: Work with Teacher

Suggested Plan: Teacher works with students in the Partial Alphabetic and Full Alphabetic groups. If possible, teacher should also meet with the Consolidated Alphabetic group at least once per week.

Note: Groups not working with the teacher at a given time should be engaged in purposeful independent rotation work. Refer to the Independent and Small Group Work guidance document for more details (see K-2 Skills Resource Manual).

Partial Alphabetic:

  • Students complete exit ticket:
    • Students build "ild," "ind," "old," and "ost" words using Letter Tiles (see K-2 Word List for examples).
    • Students check spellings.
    • Students write list of words created as exit ticket.
    • Look over the exit tickets with student(s). Analyze words that were more challenging and discuss why.
  • Use the Assessment Conversion chart to determine appropriate Grade 1 lessons and Activity Bank ideas to use in daily small group instruction.
  • Students complete Cycle 8 worksheet with teacher support.
  • Additional Supporting Materials:
    • Letter Tiles (not included in supporting materials)
    • Paper and writing utensils (one per student; for writing words built with Letter Tiles)
    • Cycle 8 worksheet

Full Alphabetic:

  • Students complete exit ticket:
    • Students complete Sentence Builders with "ild," "ind," "old," and "ost" (found in supporting materials).
    • Look over the exit tickets with student(s). Analyze words that were more challenging and discuss why.
  • Write a sentence with "ild," "ind," "old," and "ost" words.
  • Students complete Cycle 8 worksheet (with teacher or during independent rotations) with teacher introduction.
  • Additional Supporting Materials:
    • Sentence Builders (one per student)
    • Paper and writing utensils (for students to write sentences; optional)
    • Cycle 8 worksheet

Consolidated Alphabetic:

  • Students complete exit ticket:
    • Students complete Sentence Builders with "ild," "ind," "old," and "ost" (found in supporting materials).
    • Look over the exit tickets with student(s). Analyze words that were more challenging and discuss why.
  • Check in with Accountable Independent Reading.
  • Consider inviting students to write an article for the Sunnyside Gazette, using as many "ild," "ind," "old," and "ost" words as they can.
  • Students complete Cycle 8 worksheet during independent rotations
  • Additional Supporting Materials:
    • Sentence Builders (one per student)
    • Paper and writing utensils (for students to write an article for the Sunnyside Gazette; optional)
    • Cycle 8 worksheet

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