Routine · Spelling and dictation
Adding endings: double, drop, change
Decide whether to double the last letter, drop the e, or change y to i before adding an ending, then write the word.
- Time
- 5 to 8 minutes
- Skill
- Spelling and dictation
- In a session plan
- Dictation
When to use it
When the lessons on doubling, dropping e and changing y to i are taught, and when a student writes hoping as hopping.
Materials
- A whiteboard
- A short checklist of the three rules
Steps
Shown with example words: word hopping; words hopping, baking, cried.
Get ready
Write a base word and an ending, such as hop plus ing.
I do
Think aloud through the checks. One vowel, one consonant at the end, and an ending that starts with a vowel: double. A silent e and an ending that starts with a vowel: drop the e. A consonant then y: change y to i, unless the ending starts with i.
Say: Short word, one vowel, one last consonant, vowel ending. I double: hopping.
We do
Do three words together, one for each rule. The student says which check fits before writing.
You do
Dictate base words with endings. The student writes the base, decides the rule, then writes the new word: hopping, baking, cried.
Student: Names the rule and writes the word with its ending.
Mix in words that need no change, such as jump plus ing, so the student checks every time.
Check
Read the new words aloud. Ask why one of them changed.
If the student...
Doubles when the word has a silent e, or drops the e when it should double.
Go back to the base word and look at the end of it together. Walk through the checks in order, write the word together, then have the student write it again.
Changes y to i before ing.
Show that ing already starts with i, and two i letters together look odd. Write it with the y kept, then the student writes it.
Tips
- Teach one rule at a time and mix them only after each is steady.
- A short checklist card with the three checks helps until the student does them in their head.
Example words
- Word
- hopping
- Words
- hopping, baking, cried
Original routines written by Literacy Trail. In the app, every routine is filled with your student's lesson.
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Have this routine filled in for every lesson
In Literacy Trail, the session plan picks a routine for each block and fills it with the words, sounds and sentence from your student's lesson. Every plan starts with a 15-day free trial.