Spelling tricky words
Some words can be more difficult to learn to spell than others.
It is important to practise reading and spelling these tricky words so you get them right.
Watch: Spelling tips
Watch this Teacher Talk to learn some useful spelling tips from Mrs Hudson.
Watch this video to learn some useful spelling tips.
Hello, I'm Mrs. Hudson and we're going to find ways to remember those tricky spellings. There are so many words to spell. How can you remember all those spellings? Hmm, tricky!
Luckily I have two top spelling puzzles to help you spell any word. Yes, you can learn those spellings and have fun at the same time.
You'll need a pencil and some paper. Put me on pause while you get them. Okay? Ready?
Let's go.
Puzzle one is the memory puzzle. Write down these three words:
"bath",
"after",
"because".
Look at those words. Stare at them. Check them out letter by letter. See how they are written. Now, cover them up. And try to write them out from memory.
Go on, give it a go.
"Bath".
"After".
"Because".
Try to remember what you saw.
And no peeking.
"Bath".
"After".
"Because".
Have you finished writing them out yet? Okay, let's check how you did.
So, the correct spellings are:
"bath", B - A - T - H
"after", A - F - T - E - R
"because", B - E - C - A - U - S - E
Did you get them right? If you did, then well done. If you didn't, don't worry. Give yourself another go. Remember to look, cover, write, then check.
Okay, on to our next word puzzle.
Puzzle two. Spelling patterns. For this puzzle we're going to use the word "square". Write down the word "square" and look at it very carefully.
Can you see a spelling pattern? Two letters or maybe three letters that are next to each other that you have seen in other words?
"Hey!" Q U A
"I've seen them together in another word."
Yes. "Square" and "quarter" share a spelling pattern.
Can you think of any more words that share the "Q-U-A" pattern? Take a moment to think of some. Put me on pause again if that helps.
Okay, here are the ones that I got:
"Square",
"Quarter",
"Quack",
"Squat",
"Squash".
Ready to try another word? How about this one? "Wall".
Okay, can you write down some more words that share the same pattern and have two letter "L" together? Have a think. What other words are there that also have two "L"s together?
Okay, here are the ones I got:
"Wall",
"Bell",
"Jelly",
"Balloon".
As well as "wall", "bell", "jelly", and "balloon", you could've also had:
"All",
"Ill",
"Pull",
"Tall",
And even "Smelly".
This is a great game to play with a friend.
Here is a list of other words for you to try later:
"Path",
"Away",
"Knot",
"Once",
"Little".
Why not try both spelling techniques on these words later on? Put me on pause while you write them down.
Now you've got two fun ways to learn spellings.
Oh, and one last challenge. How many of the words you learned today can you put into one very silly sentence?
Like this: "After I squash the smelly jelly on the wall, I have a bath."
Phew! I used six words from today's spelling puzzles. Can you beat that? Good luck.
For more help, challenges and games on the subject visit BBC Bitesize.
Remember
You can learn how to spell the tricky words using the memory puzzle method.
- Look at the word
- Cover the word up
- Write it out from your memory
- Check if you wrote it correctly
You can also look for spelling patterns in words that look similar.
For example, 'old', 'cold', 'told' and 'hold' all have the same spelling pattern of 'old'.
What are syllables?
Words are made up of different sounds. These are called syllables.
Syllables are a bit like 'beats' in a word. You can count how many syllables are in a word by counting how many beats there are.
Saying the word out loud, or clapping along to the beats in the word, can help.
For example, the word bath has one beat or syllable ('bath').
The word because has two beats or syllables ('be' - 'cause').
The word beautiful has three beats or syllables ('beau' - 'ti' - 'ful').
Watch: Syllables
[MUSIC]
MR FIRTH
Hello, I’m Mr Firth and today we’re going to be focusing on words that have one or more syllables in them. But first, let’s remind ourselves what a syllable is.
A syllable is a beat of sound in a word. It can sometimes be part of a word, or it can be the whole word. Let’s start with colours.
We’re going to show you various colourful words to see how many syllables are in each word.
Here’s a handy tip too. Sometimes It helps to clap to keep counts of how many syllables a word has.
Let’s begin.
Blue. How many syllables does the word ‘blue’ have? The answer is one syllable.
(Claps) BLUE.
Let’s try another. How about orange? How many syllables can you count in the word ‘orange’?
The answer is two? O and RANGE. So two beats in a word means two syllables!
Now it’s your turn to try. I’m going to say the names of some animals and I want you to clap how many syllables are in each word.
Let's begin.
This is Sammy the snake. Let’s say the word ‘snake’ together and clap on each beat of the word. Ready? Here it goes.
Snake.
Can you tell how many syllables there are?
That’s right. There’s only one syllable in ‘snake’.
Let’s-s-s-s move away from Sammy the snake and find another animal.
Here’s a friendly parrot. Can you work out how many syllables are in the word ‘parrot’? Let’s clap together and find out, in three, two, one…
PAR ROT.
That’s two claps, meaning the word ‘parrot’ has two syllables in it. Thanks, parrot!
Great work! Now we know what a syllable is, let’s try out some harder words. Remember to clap each time you say a beat of a word, just like this…
SYL-LAB-LES.
Let’s go.
Here’s our first word. Yeah, you got it. The word is “elephant”. So let’s say each syllable with a clap.
So syllable one is EL.
Syllable two is E.
And the third syllable is PHANT.
All together now! EL E PHANT.
How many syllables did you count? That’s right, there are three syllables in the word ‘elephant’. That’s excellent work!
Let’s do another just to test you, this time with a more difficult word.
Recognise this animal? That’s right, it’s a hippopotamus. Now, I want you to write down the word ‘hippopotamus’ and try to work out how many syllables there are.
Remember, say the word slowly and clap on each beat to get the correct answer. Are you ready?
Say out loud each syllable and work out how many syllables you think there are. How many did you guess? Well, let’s see now with our clapping technique.
HI PPO POT A MUS
How many syllables did you count? If you counted five, then well done. You are correct!
Let’s do one more challenge. I want you to say out loud and clap the beat to each syllable of the following words, but this time I’m not going to help. You can do this!
How many syllables are in the word ‘apple’?
The answer is two syllables.
How about ‘banana’?
The answer is three syllables.
Let’s try this one.
‘Peach’.
The answer is one syllable.
And finally, ‘watermelon’.
The answer is four syllables.
Well done and that is our look at syllables today. I think you’ve been GREAT today. Actually, no. You’ve been FAN TAS TIC !
Why don’t you write a list of your friends’ names and see how many syllables they have? Happy counting!
For more help, challenges and games on this subject, visit BBC Bitesize.
Activity 1
Copy out the table below. Then, say the words in the list out loud.
Count how many syllables they have and write the word in the correct column.
The first two have been done for you.
child,children, poor,old, cold, would, people, sure, told, hold
| Words with one syllable | Words with two syllables |
|---|---|
| old | children |
You can check your answers using this answer sheet.
Activity 2
This activity will focus on these words:
child, children, poor, old, cold, would, people, sure, told, hold
Complete the sentences by typing out the missing word correctly.
Activity 3
Choose the correct spelling for each sentence. Then, copy each sentence out with the correct spelling.
The (child / childe) was eating her lunch.
My teacher asked me to (inprove / improve) my handwriting.
He was not (sure / shore) whether to buy the car or not.
She (told / tolde) her brother to wait next to the bikes.
The (pour / poor) cat got soaked in the rain!
You can check your answers with this answer sheet.
Karate Cats English game! game
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