Phonics Rules For Reading and Spelling PDF

Phonics Rules for Reading and Spelling

1. Vowels in syllables
Every syllable of every word must have at least one vowel sound. A vowel can stand
alone in a syllable, as in u●nit and an●i●mal. It can also be surrounded by
consonants, as in jet, nap●kin, and fan●tas●tic.

2. Short and long vowels
Vowels can make different sounds. The sounds they make depend on where they
are in a word. For example, is the vowel followed by a consonant? This helps
determine if the vowel makes its short or long sound: go vs. got, she vs. shed, hi vs.
him.

When there’s only one vowel in a syllable and it is followed by at least one
consonant, the vowel usually makes its short sound. Examples include on, itch,
mas●cot, and Wis●con●sin. This pattern is called a “closed syllable” because the
consonant “closes in” the short vowel sound.

When there is only one vowel and it is at the end of a syllable, the vowel makes its
long sound, as in he and ban●jo. This pattern is called an “open syllable.”

3. Silent e (Magic e)
When e is the last letter in a word, and there’s only one other vowel in that
syllable, the first vowel in that syllable is usually long and the e is silent, as in sale
and in●side. This syllable pattern is called “vowel-consonant-e.”

Some teachers call this the “silent e” rule. Some call it the “magic e” rule. The e
gives all its power to the other vowel and makes that vowel use its long sound (“say
its name”).

4. Consonant blends and digraphs
Digraph is a fancy word for two letters that represent one sound. In a digraph
made of consonants, the two consonants work together to form a new sound.
Examples include chap, ship, thin, whiz, and photo. Consonant blends are different.
These groups of two or more consonants work together. But unlike digraphs, their
individual sounds can still be heard as they’re blended together. Examples include
clam, grasp, and scrub.

5. Vowel digraphs
In a vowel digraph, two vowels are side by side. The first vowel is long and says its
name. The second vowel is silent, as in boat, paint, and beach.

Sometimes, two vowels work together to form a new sound. This is called a
diphthong. Examples include cloud and boil.

6. R-controlled vowels (Bossy r)
When a syllable has a vowel that is followed by r, the vowel is “controlled” by the r
and makes a new sound. Examples include car, bird, germ, form, and hurt. This rule
is sometimes called “bossy r” because the r “bosses” the vowel to make a new
sound.

7. The “schwa” sound
Any vowel can make the schwa sound; it sounds like a weak uh or ih. Words like
from and final have the schwa sound. Some words have more than one schwa sound,
like apartment and banana. It’s the most common sound in the English language.

8. Soft c and hard c, and soft g and hard g
When the letter c is followed by the vowels e, i, or y, it usually makes its soft
sound. Examples of that are cent, circus, and cyclone. With other vowels, the
letter c makes a hard sound, as in cat and cot.

Likewise, when the letter g is followed by the vowels e, i, or y, it usually makes its
soft sound. Examples of that are gel, giant, and gym. With other vowels, the letter
g makes a hard sound, as in gas, gorilla, and yogurt.

9. The “fszl” (fizzle) rule
The letters f, s, z, and l are usually doubled at the end of a one-syllable word
immediately following a short vowel. Examples include stuff, grass, fuzz, and shell.
Exceptions include quiz and bus.

10. Ending in k or ck
When a one-syllable word ends with the /k/ sound immediately following a short
vowel, it’s usually spelled with ck, as in duck and trick. When the /k/ sound follows
a consonant, long vowel sound, or diphthong, it’s usually spelled with k, as in task,
cake, soak, and hawk.

11. The /j/ sound and the /ch/ sound
In a one-syllable word, when a /j/ sound immediately follows a short vowel, it’s
spelled dge as in badge, hedge, bridge, dodge, and smudge. (The d “protects” the
vowel from the “magic e” rule.)

In a one-syllable word, when a /ch/ sound immediately follows a short vowel, it’s
usually spelled tch as in catch, fetch, stitch, blotch, and clutch. The exceptions to
this rule are such, much, rich, and which.

12. Drop the e with -ing
When words end with a silent e, drop the e before adding -ing. Examples:
bike/biking, give/giving, and dodge/dodging. This rule also applies to other suffixes
that start with vowels, like -ed, -er, -able, and -ous. Examples: grieve/grievous,
excite/excitable, and hope/hoped.

13. Doubling
In a one-syllable word like win where one short vowel is followed by one consonant,
double the consonant before adding a suffix that starts with a vowel. Examples:
winner, winning, winnable.

14. Plurals
For most words, add s to make them plural, as in cat/cats. But when a singular word
ends with s, sh, ch, x, or z, add es to make it plural, as in classes, brushes, and
foxes.

15. Y rules
To make plural a word that ends in a vowel immediately followed by y, just add s, as
in toy/toys. When y immediately follows a consonant, change the y to i and add es.
Examples: family/families, pony/ponies, and treaty/treaties.

Suffixes follow a similar set of y rules. When there’s a vowel right before y, keep
the y and simply add the suffix. Examples include play/playing and annoy/annoying.

When a word ends with a consonant followed immediately by y, change the y to i
before adding suffixes like -ed and -est. Examples include carry/carried and
happy/happiest.

But when the suffix begins with i, keep the y and simply add the suffix, as in
fly/flying and baby/babyish.

Exceptions to the Rules
Most words in the English language follow phonics rules. But any exceptions to
these rules need to be taught and memorized for reading and spelling. These words
are often found on lists of sight words/high-frequency words/trick words.

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