How to Teach Spelling: Vowel Patterns

Fun Tips for Learning Spelling and Understanding Long Vowel Sounds

Feb 9, 2009

When teaching spelling, start with short vowel sounds, then move to vowel diagraphs. Take one sound at a time. The long "ee", the long "a", and here, the long "i" sound.

The best way to teach English spelling is to get kids to relate to the sound of words. First, get them to master the basic vowel sounds. Then, introduce more complex vowel combinations or diagraphs like the long “ee” sound and the long “a” sound. Once they are familiar with those spelling rules, introduce the long ”i” sound.

Use Graphics Aids for Better Retention

Using stiff cardboard or acrylic, make a big, old-fashioned capital “I ” graphic, with the horizontal arms on top, making sure that they extend out on both sides nicely, and are strong and sturdy enough to carry along other small alphabets for a ride. Using this graphic will create strong visual cues for your kids, and make the activity more enjoyable and memorable.
Using brightly coloured stiff paper or board, make smaller cutouts of lower case letters “e”, “g” and “h”. Punch holes on the top of each letter and thread them through with string so you can hang them on the extended arm of the “I”.
Using the same coloured material, make a set of about ten blank cards. Make four more cards with the words KIT, BIT, DIN, HID written on it.
Have ready a pack of colourful sketch pens, to write with on the cards.

Introduce the “i” Sound

Before you introduce your child to the long “i” sound, make sure he or she is familiar with the basic vowel sounds. Spend a few minutes exploring how the shape of the mouth changes to make the various “i” sounds – the short, plosive sound in simple words like BIT and HIT, the longer sound in the pronoun “I”. Throw “i” words around, and let her discover how the mouth opens up or narrows for the various sounds.

Long “i” Sound: ”ie” Words

Slowly move to words with the long “i” sound, like TIE and PIE. Explore how the mouth shape changes to include the lesser “e” sound. Play around with the sound, and discuss how it is different from the short “i” sound. Bring in the graphic “I” cutout at this point, and demonstrate how the “i” sound is using the help of the “e” sound to make the sound of TIE. Have your child hold up the “I” graphic, and hang up the lower case “e” on the extended bar so it makes an “Ie”. Discuss how the “e” is taking a ride on the shoulders of the “I”!

Ask your child to call out similar words. If he calls the right words, make him write them out one by one on the blank cards, just like the graphic “I” with letters hanging from the arms. If he has problems, gently guide him to words like PIE, DIE, LIE.

Long “i” Sound: “igh” Words

Once your child is familiar with the “ie” sound, lead her back to the graphic “I”. Ask her to think of other “i” sounds, and other letters that “i” takes help from. Make a couple of long sighs, act out words like child, introduce some dramatics and mime to liven up the activity. Gently lead her into words like SIGH, RIGHT. Along with her, explore the mouth sounds in “igh”. This time, you hold up the graphic “I” and ask her to hang up the lower case “g” and “h” on the extended bar. Along with her, write out four more “igh” words on the cards. Guide her to words like HIGH, FIGHT, NIGHT, LIGHT.

Long “i” Sound in the “VCe Pattern”

Once your child is confident about the “igh” sound, introduce the long “i” sound that occurs in words like KITE, in what is known as the vowel consonant followed by “e” pattern, or the VCe pattern. Explore with mouth movements, how the short “i” sound in KIT becomes the long “i” sound in KITE, in the pattern of vowel “i” followed by consonant “t” followed by “e”. Pick up the card with KIT written on it, and add a lower case “e” to it. Pick up the other cards one by one; BIT, DIN, HID. Ask her to say the word out aloud, then, as she adds the lower case “e” to it, explore the new sound along with her. Discuss how the shape of the mouth changes.

Wrap up the session with some mime using the graphic “I”, going over the three long “i” sounds covered in this session, using words your child might come up with. Be creative, and make up a little story about “e” and “igh” riding on the shoulders of “I”. Do the activity a couple of times, and introduce “ild” and “ind” words as well. When your child is comfortable with these spellings, it’s time to move to other combinations and sounds, like simple and complex "u" sounds.

Related Reading

If you enjoyed reading this, you might also enjoy Rudyard Kipling's How the Alphabet was Made

The copyright of the article How to Teach Spelling: Vowel Patterns in Kids Educational Activities is owned by Kalyani Candade. Permission to republish How to Teach Spelling: Vowel Patterns in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.