Reproducible Practice Pages PLUS Easy-to-Score
Quizzes That Reinforce Spelling Rules and Skills
by Harold Jarnicki
New York • Toronto • London • Auckland • Sydney
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No Boring Practice, Please © Spelling © Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Scholastic Inc. grants teachers permission to photocopy the activity sheets from this book for classroom use. No other
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Cover by Jaime Lucero
Cover illustrations Mike Moran
Interior design by NEO Grafika
Illustrations by Kelly Kennedy
ISBN 0-439-53149-7
Copyright © 2005 by Harold Jarnicki
All rights reserved.
Printed in the U.S.A.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 40
12 11 10 09 08 07 06 05
No Boring Practice, Please © Spelling © Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Syllables Have the Beat . . . . . .6
The IGH Thing . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
The Syl-la-ble Thing . . . . . . . . . 7
The I’s Have It! . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Quickie Quiz: Syllables . . . . . . . 9
Quickie Quiz: I-IGH Words . . . 30
The Ruler of Plurals Says. . . . . 10
The TION and SION Show . . . . 31
Quickie Quiz: Plurals . . . . . . . . 13
Quickie Quiz: TION and SION . 32
Suffix: Is This the End? . . . . . . 14
Soft G and C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Groovy Suffix X-Word . . . . . . . 16
Tongue Twisters / Soft G and C
X-Word. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Quickie Quiz: Suffixes . . . . . . . 17
The Silent Letters . . . . . . . . . . 18
Silent Letter
Mega Crossword . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Quickie Quiz: Soft G and C . . . 35
Fun With PH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
What’s the PH Word?. . . . . . . . 37
Quickie Quiz: Silent Letters. . . 22
Quickie Quiz: PH Words . . . . . 38
AU … It’s Painless! . . . . . . . . . . 23
Commonly Confused Words . . 39
Quickie Quiz: AU Words . . . . . 24
Commonly Confused X-Word . 43
EI…IE…Oh! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Quickie Quiz: Commonly
Confused Words . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Groovy EI…IE X-Word . . . . . . . 26
Quickie Quiz: EI…IE Words . . . 27
Answer Key
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
No Boring Practice, Please © Spelling © Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
I ntroduction
I
magine a classroom where students do not slump in their
seats every time you announce it’s time for spelling; where
spelling lessons and practice bring exciting opportunities
along with a couple of laughs and a little competition; where students
get emotionally involved in spelling fundamentals, and improvement
- B Y T Edisplayed by students and recognized by teachers and
M I NisIproudly
parents.
MINI-BYTE
You might think such a classroom is merely a figment of my
imagination
I - B Y T E or a fantasy of some ambitiously naive first-year
MIN
education grad. I can boldly claim that such is not the case. I have
teaching for about 20 years and, with the help of some games, a
I-BY
M I Nbeen
TE
few jokes, and other gimmicks, have witnessed students get excited
about spelling, grammar, vocabulary, and more.
MINI-BYTE
The No Boring Practice, Please! series is an extension of my
classroom and one humble step toward helping kids do what comes
naturally—learn. If you’re ready to add spice to your spelling lessons,
then this book is for you.
Carefully structured as a good basic course of study, the recipe for
each lesson is simple. No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling dishes up
straight spelling practice with a dash (or splash) of fun. Inside you’ll
find a concoction of reproducible pages that cover syllabication,
plurals, silent letters, spelling rules (and rule breakers), commonly
confused words, and more. Flavored with engaging illustrations and an
edgy design, each practice page is easy for kids to swallow. Best of all,
you can serve these pages with only a minimal amount of teacher
instruction.
4
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Each unit opens with a brief, simple explanation of a key spelling
rule or concept in easy- to-understand language. Students are then
challenged to apply what they are learning through practice pages,
followed by a quick and easy- to-score quiz. Occasionally, you may
want to add an extra exercise or practice test depending on students’
progress, but the units are designed to stand on their own.
You may wonder what inspired me to write this book—and the rest
of the No Boring Practice, Please! series. Let me start at the beginning.
As a baby boomer’s hyperactive kid, I wasn’t a huge fan of school.
Sitting at a desk most of the day was tough enough. Add a generous
helping of dry spelling rules and my eyes would glaze over, roll back in
my head, and send me into a near comatose state where hands on
clocks ceased to move.
Years passed. After a less- than-stellar career in rock ’n’ roll, I
decided the teaching profession was a more lucrative gig. I had two
specific goals: (1) to become the teacher I never had; and (2) add a
little rock ’n’ roll to the school system.
Like it or not, we are teaching a new breed of children—one that
watches more than four hours of values-distorting TV each day,
plays mindless video games on a regular basis, and gobbles up
entertainment far more than nutriment. We welcome these mediasavvy kids into our classrooms and expect them to get excited about
plurals, silent letters, and syllabication. Let’s get real!
This is what drives the No Boring Practice, Please! series. The series
is academically sound and rich in language-skill development, but all
of its information is disguised by a hip design and comical illustrations
that have lots of kid appeal. Think of the series as whole-grain oats
packaged in a box of tutti-frutti breakfast cereal.
I know that students can get excited about doing well in spelling,
and I feel gratified to be part of the process. I hope the No Boring
Practice, Please! series helps teach and inspire.
May the force be with you.
Sincerely,
Harold Jarnicki
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
5
your hands a
p
nd
a
Cl
Name ___________________________________________
ce
Sy llables Have the Beat
-le
A syllable is a part of a word that has one vowel sound.
Every word is made up of one or more syllables.
-br
a
!
les
b
te syl -la
Syl lable Rules
❶ Every syllable in every word must have one vowel sound.
One vowel sound = one syllable
coat, flight, dog, gate
MINI-BYTE
A consonant
digraph is
two consonants
that make
one sound.
th, ch, sh, ph, wh
❷ Divide between two middle consonants . . .
It’s a-bout
the beat,
man !
rab-bit, lit- tle, hap-pen
. . . BUT never split up a CONSONANT
DIGRAPH.
moth-er, feath-er, graph-ite, catch-er
MINI-BYTE
❸ Sometimes a syllable can be a single vowel.
o-pen, i- tem, e-vil
E
M I N I -IfBaY
T
syllable has a single middle vowel and a consonant on
❹
each side, divide before the first consonant.
re-port, af- ter
E
M I N I❺- InBo-pen,
T
Y
words that end with a consonant plus -le
Warning! Rules
work most of the
time but not
all the time.
(as in syllable), divide before the consonant
preceding -le.
lit- tle, fum-ble, bub-ble
Tick-le breaks the rule!
MINI-BYTE
❻
Divide any prefixes or suffixes.
pre-view, hope-ful, teach-er
Ch
Divide each word into syllables and write the number of syllables.
Record the rule numbers that apply to each word. See the example.
WORD
I N SYL-LA-BLES
SYLLABLES
RULES THAT APPLY
broth-er
2
1, 2
brother
riddle
about
disappear
important
communication
6
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Name ___________________________________________
T he Sy l-la-ble T hing
ou
Vowels
a, e, i, o, u
as in caught
“Diphthong,”
now that’s a
weird word!
o u MINI-BYTE
as in noise
as in bought
aw
as in saw
E
ow
oy
T
Y
B
I
N
as in cow
as in toy M I
oo
Ch
as in boot
E
T
Y
B
I
N
MI
Write three words for each diphthong.
oi
ow
au/ou ✻
oy
aw E
T
Y
B
I
N
I
M
E
T
Y
B
I
N
MI
oi
y and w are
considered
vowels when
they are part of
diphthongs.
ou
✻
au
as in shout
hong) is
Diphthong (dif-t
make
two vowels that
one syllable.
oo
Did you know that au, ou, and aw can all have the same sound?
Ch
Use the clues and unscramble the syllables to form words.
Check off each syllable as you use it. M I N I - B Y T E
1
1
MINI-BYTE
2
MINI-BYTE
2
3. No school; break
4. Tasty
MINI-BYTE
3
3
won
4
MINI-BYTE
e
5
4
fought
noo
ca
de
der
cor
2. Letter system
MINI-BYTE
dle
rec
2
MINI-BYTE
I - B Ytraveler
M1.I NSpace
TE
1
MINI-BYTE
Across
MINI-BYTE
Down
ful
tion
bet
al
va
li
pha
tion
cious
tro
naut
as
Across
ven t
Down
3. Something that
makes a wrong right
5. Awesome
1. Past tense of fight
2. Pasta, spaghetti
4. Happening
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
7
IN
I - B YT hing
TE
TM
he Sy l-la-ble
Continued
3
1
MINI-BYTE
2
car
pre
an
NI-BYTE
M IAcross
c huc k
pe
3
tri
4. Funny drawing
5. Person walking
con
NI-BYTE
M IDown
hard; focus
E
M I N1.2.IThink
B
Y
Long, longT
ago
le
4
tor
cen
MINI-BYTE
1
4
1. Little jump
4. You can have it, if it’s this
5. TV
6. Not the same
ble
M I N I - B Y T Ele
te
vail
ni
a
hop
vi
4
5
tion
Down
2. A group or club
3. Bathroom
fer
6
sion
or
a
2
3
Across
MINI-BYTE
za
his
trate
5
MINI-BYTE
des
toon
3. Quiet laugh
en t
ic
let
toi
dif
ga
est?
t
e
h
t
r
o
f
y
d
u
t
s
I
How do
Make it into
a game!
8
•
•
•
Learn the Syllable Rules.
Play with
a friend!
Know what diphthong and digraph are.
Practice dividing words into syllables.
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Name: _______________________________________
Syllables
A
Syllable Rules:
Score:
Mark each statement as TRUE (T) or FALSE (F).
___________
_____ 1. Every syllable must have one vowel sound.
_____ 2. Every syllable must have one consonant sound.
/20
BONUS
_____ 3. Usually divide between two middle vowels.
(4 points)
_____ 4. Split up a consonant digraph into two syllables.
Organize these syllables
into a word.
_____ 5. Sometimes a syllable can be a single consonant.
_____ 6. Sometimes a syllable can be a single vowel.
chol
o
_____ 7. Divide before the consonant preceding -le, like this: un-cle.
psy
_____ 8. A prefix is usually a syllable on its own.
gist
_____ 9. Never split up one diphthong into two syllables.
_____ 10. Usually divide between two middle consonants.
Score:
B Definitions
___________
/16
1. Fill in the blanks to describe a consonant digraph.
A consonant digraph is _______ consonants making _______ sound.
2. Circle the consonant digraphs in this group: th
sk
sh
tr
ph
3. Fill in the blanks to describe a diphthong.
A diphthong is one _________________ made up of two _________________.
4. Circle the diphthongs in this group: uo
aw
C Break It Down: Divide each word into syllables. S c o r e :
Word
In Syllables
Word
1. mother
11. astronaut
2. cattle
12. adventure
3. disappear
13. little
4. communication
14. report
5. frog
15. fought
6. riddle
16. alphabet
7. important
17. delicious
8. item
18. invention
9. open
19. noise
10. catcher
wo
oo
___________
oi
/60
In Syllables
20. stronger
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
9
Name ___________________________________________
The Ruler of Plurals Says...
Follow my rules for
plurals and you
won’t go wrong!
Plural means more than one.
MINI-BYT
E
M I N IC- Bh Y T
Plural Rule
E
1:
Examples:
Most nouns form their plurals by adding s.
chair
chairs
lizard
lizards
E
MINI-BYT
Change these singular nouns to plurals.
Singu l a r
Plural
E
MINI-BYT
Singu l a r
1. book
6. bank
E
2. game
7. comic
3. dream
8. pizza
4. power
9. friend
MINI-BYT
10. graph
5. skateboard
Plural Rule
2:
Examples:
Plural
For nouns ending in s, x, sh, or ch, add es.
box
boxes
bush
bushes
Ch
Change these singular nouns to plurals.
Singu l a r
10
Plural
Singu l a r
1. kiss
6. crush
2. fox
7. pass
3. knish
8. tax
4. beach
9. batch
5. watch
10. dress
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Plural
The Ruler of Plurals l
Says...
l
Continued
Spe
It!
Plural Rule 3 : For nouns that end in y preceded by a consonant, change
the y to an i, then add es.
penny
pennies
lady
ladies
al
P l u rExample:
c h !below. Then fill in the blanks using the words in the Box.
F i l l SRead
atherstory
e
’ e m u p ! But first, turn each word in the Box to plural.
country
party
city
celebrity
d
r
o
w
s
s
o
Cr
a Go-Go
lottery
story
mummy
possibility
BOX
THE
My Winning Tickets
This is one of my true ________________. Honest! It all started when Aunt Wilma bought me three
Plural
! hanging out at home, reading about the __________________ of ancient Egypt,
l
b
Then
one
day,
Ie
was
m
a
r
c
S
"ph"Word
lottery tickets for my birthday. I mean, who gives a kid lottery tickets? I asked Dad to hold them for me.
when Dad broke the news: My ticket
came up in three different __________________!
!
r c hnumbers
Sea
Suddenly, my future was filled with __________________! I could travel to foreign __________________.
Strictly
c t one of those __________________ that end up on TV talk shows!
r ebecome
P l u r a l I could
__________________.
C o reven
It!
I was planning all the __________________
I could throw for my friends to celebrate when Dad brought
I could buy hundreds of basketballs. I could follow my favorite baseball team as they play in different
me back to reality with this reminder: You have to be 18 years old to actually win the lottery! What a bummer!
Word
tch
a
M
!
h
c
Sear
Up!
Oh well … I guess my dreams can wait a few more years.
at chRule 4 :
MPlural
It !
Most nouns ending in f or fe can be made plural by simply adding s.
But the plural of some nouns that end in f or fe is formed by changing
the f to v, then adding s or es.
Examples:
Fi nd Th es e
Wo rd s
reef
reefs
knife
knives
Find the plurals for these words in the word search.
leaf
self
safe
kerchief
chief
shelf
roof
wife
K
B
M
O
W
L
M
E
F
S
P
A
P
S
R
R
Y
Y
M
Z
D
C H I
C A L
H W I
I P E
E S H
F V S
S U N
E
E
F
L
E
S
L
F
A
E
L
L
B
O
S
V
V
M
F
J
C
G S E V I W
E S F D M I
U V A O F R
G W L W O Y
V D Y E F R
M N M W H F
T X V S U S
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
11
ll
Continued
It!
Plural Rule 5 : For nouns ending in o preceded by a vowel, add s. For nouns ending
in o preceded by a consonant, add s or es.
l
a
r
u
Pl
radios
superhero
superheroes
h!
F i l l Examples:
a r cradio
e
S
’em up!
S p e Says...
The Ruler of Plurals
rd
o
w
s
s
o
r
C
a Go-Go
1
Across
Turn the clues into plurals by adding s or es.
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Plural
e!
S c r a m b l "ph"Word
9
10
11
S e12 a r c h !
13
y
Strictl
Plural Correct
It!
15
16
18
el l
W o r d SpMIt
h
h ! a!t c
Searc
INI-BYTE
M
Down
2. Duo
Soprano
I-BYTE
M3.I N
4. Zero
5. Trio
NI-BYTE
M6.I Mosquito
8. Stereo
9. Tomato
11. Hippo
12. Banjo
13. Hero
14
17
1. Video
4. Zoo
7. Dodo
10. Portfolio
11. Hobo
M14.I NProI - B Y T E
15. Bongo
15. Silo
I-BYTE
M16.I NLasso
17. Solo
Up!
ur al
Fi ll Pl ar ch !
Plural
: And then there are those few nouns that don’t follow any of the Plural
up ! Se
’e mRule
6
Rules. Either the spelling of the word changes to form the plural, or the
word doesn’t change at all.
Cr os sw or d
a Go -G oman
Example:
men
child
children
sheep
Pl ur al
Sc ra mb le !
Unscramble the words below. Hint: They’re all plurals
of the words in the singular chart.
"p h "Wo rd
"ph
Sea rch !
S
gular
SinSt
ly e
ri
s ct goos
Word
Pl ur al
ox
mouse
U n sc ra m b le
anrr ec tnshciee
Co
wom
relvaa
Ch
hetet
It !
inese
nteennaa
Wo rdsalmon
tooth
Se ar ch ! Ma tc hciem
foot Up ! onmwe
deer
larva
12
efte
antenna
reed
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
smonal
seege
noex
sheep
Name: _______________________________________
P lurals
A Plural Rules:
Score:
___________
/16
BONUS
Mark each statement as TRUE (T) or False (F).
(4 points)
_____ 1. To pluralize all words that end in f, change the f to v
then add s.
Write the plural of larva:
_____ 2. Some words that form plurals don’t end in s.
_____ 3. Some words don’t change their spelling when they
become plurals.
_____ 4. For all words that end in o, add es to change them to plurals.
_____ 5. Words that end in s do not need additional letters to become plurals.
_____ 6. If a word ends in y preceded by a consonant, change the y to i, then add es to make it plural.
_____ 7. Adding an s to the end of any word makes it plural.
_____ 8. Some words do not follow any plural rules.
B Plural Forms:
Spell the correct plural form of each word.
Singular
Pl ural
Score:
___________
Singular
13. penny
4. radio
14. wife
5. potato
15. key
6. woman
16. country
7. goose
17. leaf
8. foot
18. piano
9. antenna
19. dish
MINI-BYTE
3. chief
MINI-BYTE
12. deer
MINI-BYTE
2. ox
MINI-BYTE
11. tooth
MINI-BYTE
1. inch
10. tax
/60
Pl ural
20. Chinese
C Find 10 Mistakes:
Circle 10 plural words that are spelled
incorrectly. Write the correct spelling on the back of this page.
Score:
___________
/20
Willy likes to play his bongoes in the forest to the hum of mosquitos. He loves
playing for childs, oxs, and puppys. One day Willy hopes to play his music in different
citys. Of course he will take his dancing gooses and mouses with him. He hopes to be
a big hit. His goal is to be one of the most famous bongo-playing heros ever. Until
then, he just bothers all the men and womans in the village.
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
13
Name _____________________________________________
Suff i x: Is This the End?
Rule
1:
If a word ends with a ConsonantVowel-Consonant, double the final
consonant when adding a suffix
(a.k.a. the “CVC Rule”).
For words that don’t
follow the CVC Rule,
just add the suffix.
For example:
These words break Rule
Rule
2:
For
example:
jumped
starting
MINI-BYTE
edited
carpeting
judgment
If a word ends in e, drop the e, then add the
suffix. If the suffix is -ed, just add -d.
dance
race
For example:
BUT if the suffix begins
with a consonant like -ly or
-ment, leave the e on.
For example:
love
place
lovely
placement
running
skipped
hitting
MINI-BYTE
edit
carpet
judge
1.
run
skip
hit
MINI-BYTE
jump
start
R u l e B r e a ke r s !
yllable added
s
a
is
ix
ff
u
s
A
a word to
to the end of
eaning.
change its m
NI-BYTE
M Idanced
dancing
racing
R u le
B r e a ke r s !
ds
These wor
break Ru le
MINI-BYTE
raced
true
argue
judge
truly
argument
judgment
2.
As the Royal
Dude of Spelling,
I command thee to
make thy spelling
better!
C
Follow the examples and fill in the charts.
WORD
flip
14
ADD -ing
ADD -ed
flipping
flipped
WORD
hope
ram
place
fit
care
sort
shape
camp
arrange
act
move
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
ADD -ing
hoping
ADD -ment,
-l y, or -ful
hopeful
Suff i x: Is This the End?
Rule
3:
Here the r u l e
works perfectly!
Continued
If a word ends in a consonant plus y (as in fry), change
the y to i and add any suffix that doesn’t begin with i.
For example:
try
trying
tried
tries
The word key ends in y, but a consonant doesn’t come
before the y. So here the rule does not work perfectly.
Pay attention:
key
keying
keyed
keys
C
Follow the examples and fill in the charts.
WORD
marry
Spell
It!
ADD -ing
ADD -ed
ADD -s
marrying
married
marries
carry
bury
ferry
play
Plural !
Search
S p e l l Spell these words correctly.
s w o r dI t !
o - G o ❶ happy + ness =_______________________
a lplenty + ful =_______________________
P l u r❷
!
c hsatisfy
r❸
a
e
S
+ s =_______________________
l
a
rp !
+ ness =_______________________
m b l e ! ❹" Whealthy
hd o r d
p
"
r c h+! less =_______________________
e apity
s s w o rS❺
o-Go
Gl y
❻ beauty + ful =_______________________
❼ hurry + ed =_______________________
❽ party + s =_______________________
❾ merry + ment =_______________________
❿ funny + er =_______________________
t
a l C o r r e c t Write the correct form of the word on the line.
u r a l It !
❶ final She __________________ finished eating her broccoli.
!
e
ambl
d
appear We saw a flash, then all of a sudden, a ghost __________________!
" W o rThat’s
"ph
❷
h !cool!
S e a r cso
rd
h
c
t
❸ beauty
! Ma
rc c
t lhy
Up!
ural Correct
It!
Word
Match
!
h
c
r
ea
Those flowers are __________________.
❹ plan
We __________________ to go to the movies yesterday.
❺ happy
__________________ is a bowl full of chocolate.
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
15
Name _____________________________________________
uf f ixeach word and suffix to complete the puzzle.
Groovy GSurofof vixy SCombine
1
2
3
4
5
6
8
7
MINI-BYTE
9
10
11
MINI-BYTE
12
13
MINI-BYTE
14
15
16
I think this
is doable!
18
17
19
20
21
22
MINI-BYTE
MINI-BYTE
23
24
25
26
28
27
Down
Across
hope + ing
- B Y T E5.7. true
+ ly
8. open + ed
10. win + ing
11. change + able
13. prepare + ing
14. rob + ery
15. shape + ing
16. final + ly
-BYTE
-BYTE
16
17. control + er
20. slide + ing
23. do + ing
24. carpet + ing
25. edit + ed
26. achieve + ment
27. scoop + ing
28. write + ing
1. achieve + ing
2. dive + ing
3. stubborn + ness
4. fly + ing
6. recreate + tion
9. nine + ty
11. change + ing
12. arrange + ment
13. plan + ed
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
18. fan + ed
19. judge + ment
21. lose + ing
22. hop + ing
Name: _______________________________________
Suffixes
S c o r e : ___________ /
Circle each misspelled word. Then spell the words
24
correctly on the lines below.
openned
lovely
sitting
arrangeing
trys
monkeys
beautyful
famus
robery swimming
appearance
hurryed
campper
arguement
truely
planner
finaly
skating
satisfied
skipping
funnier
actting
A Correction!
Cor rect
it here:
1.
5.
9.
2.
6.
10.
3.
7.
11.
4.
8.
12.
B Change It!
WORD
Spell each form of
the word correctly.
MINI-BYTE
Score:
___________
MINI-BYTE
/24
BONUS
I -points)
M I N(12
BYTE
Sound out this word
and spell it correctly:
MINI-
E
B Ykashun
T
beeyootifi
MINI-BYTE
ADD -ing
ADD -ed
MINI-BYTE
1. flip
2. place
MINI-BYTE
3. move
4. appear
MINI-BYTE
5. hurry
6. play
MINI-BYTE
7. control
8. edit
C Spel l It Out:
Combine the words
and suffixes below. Spell the words correctly.
1. happy + ness
11. lose + ing
2. prepare + ing
12. achieve + ment
3. recreate + tion
13. plenty + ful
4. fly + ing
14. fan + ed
5. die + ing
15. scoop + ing
6. beauty + fy
16. healthy + ness
7. carpet + ed
17. chop + ed
8. judge + ment
18. move + ment
9. dive + s
19. sky + s
10. nine + ty
MINI-BYTE
Score:
___________
/40
20. carry + er
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
17
.u
d.
T he Silent Le t ters
h . . . w. .
Q u i et, p l ea
se!
..
Name ___________________________________________
. . . g. . . b
.
. . t. . . l.
.
.k
Some letters in words can be quite sneaky. They don’t
gu e
T on
make any sound
at all. Check out these silent letters.
T w is te rs !
T Et
S
i
l
Yn
Be
I
Silent D
N
I
M
W oYrTdE Wednesday
hedge
INI-B h
MC
crt R
ap
handsome
wedge
M aht a
E
T
Y
up!
I NpI -!B
i thandkerchief
Mu
badge
M
E
I N I - B Y T edge
Silent T
witch
watch
scratch
match
butcher
fasten
castle
listen
L e tI'NsI - B YM
T Ei x &
c h on the chart to fill in the blanks below.
M athet words
D oM i t ! Use
Silent L
palm
calm
salmon
calf
half
❶ Write three Silent D words that rhyme with each other.
ed
______________________
S cr am bl
______________________
Up
______________________
❷ Write two Silent T words that rhyme with each other.
______________________
______________________
n d the Silent L words, write the rhyming:
S o❸uFrom
g
l i nwords:
______________________
ll ab le
Sy
S p e l“lm”
______________________
______________________
ra m bl e!
Sc
______________________
“alk” words:
______________________
______________________
“olk” words:
______________________
______________________
“lf” words:
❹ Write the Silent D word that has three syllables. Put a hyphen between each syllable.
______________________
❺ Write four Silent T words that have two syllables. Put a hyphen between each syllable.
______________________
______________________
______________________
______________________
❻ Write two Silent L words that have two syllables. Put a hyphen between each syllable.
______________________
18
______________________
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
talk
walk
folk
yolk
almond
The Silent Letters
Continued
T on gu e
T wi st er s!
Silent K
knife
know
M a t c hkneeR a p knew
u p knot
i t u p knob
knit
knock
!
!
Silent Word Chart
Silent G
gnaw
gnu
sign
Silent B
design
foreigner
thumb
numb
crumb
lamb
climbing
bomb
comb
doubt
L e t 's M i x &
h on the chart to fill in the blanks below.
t cwords
M athe
D o i t ! Use
❶ Give a Silent K word for each definition.
Sc ra m bl ed
Past tense of know: ______________________
Up
You tie it: ______________________
Helps you open a door: ______________________
Leg joint: ______________________
nd
S o u Used
to slice bread: ______________________
Sy ll ab le
Spelling
all Silent
K’sbl
ande!
Silent G’s are followed by what letter? _____
ra m
❷ In the chart,Sc
Do you know what
a gnu is? No doubt
you’ll find the answer
on this page.
❸ Give a Silent G word for each definition.
Person from another country: ______________________
A pattern: ______________________
Type of antelope: ______________________
To chew on: ______________________
A symbol: ______________________
❹
Most Silent B’s follow what letter?_______
The only word in our list that breaks this rule is ______________________
❺ Write three rhyming Silent B words: ______________________
______________________
______________________
❻ Write the correct spelling for each of these phonetically spelled words.
kohm: ______________________
bom:
lam:
kliming: ______________________
______________________
______________________
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
19
The Silent Le t ters
Continued
T on gu e
S i l eTnwi
t st
W er
o rs!
d Chart
Silent H
what
where
when
honest
M a t c hwhy R a p hour
u p which
i t u pghost
!
!
Silent W
write
wrestling
wrinkle
whole
wreck
wrapper
Silent U
wrong
wrist
wrote
two
sword
guest
guess
guitar
guard
building
guilty
league
tongue
biscuit
Mix &
L e t ' s Use
the words on the chart to fill in the blanks below.
Do it ! Match
❶ Which Silent H words are often used in questions?
ed
Sc ra m bl
______________________
Up
______________________
______________________
______________________
______________________
❷ Write three Silent H words (other than honest) that begin with “hon-.” Hint: A dictionary may help.
nd
Sou
______________________ ______________________
Sy ll ab le
Spelling
______________________
Silent H word?
❸ Boo! What’s thisSc
e!
ra m bl______________________
❹ What two Silent W words don’t begin with w. ______________________
______________________
❺ Silent W word clues:
Past tense of write: ______________________
What a smashed-up car might be called: ______________________
Attaches hand to arm: ______________________
All of something: ______________________
Use an iron to get rid of this: ______________________
I honestly
can’t guess which
guest is in the
wrestling league.
Shh. . . Someone
might hear you!
Not right: ______________________
Covers a present: ______________________
❻ Most silent U’s follow what letter? ______
Write all the words that follow this rule. ______________________
20
______________________
______________________
______________________
______________________
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Name ___________________________________________
t Letter
li en
S
1
2
3
4
5
8
9
10
6
7
11
12
13
15
14
16
All the answers
can be found in the
Silent Word charts.
18
19
17
20
21
22
23
Across
24
1. Rock ‘n’ roll instrument
4. 50 percent
7. A very small fragment of
bread, cake, or cookie
9. Royal home
11. One of a group
13. Peaceful, relaxed
14. A person from another country
15. Long, sharp weapon
18. Feeling of uncertainty
20. Never cheats or lies
21. Not innocent
23. Baby sheep
24. Not to run
27. To hear carefully
29. It can be tied tightly
30. 1+1
31. Without feeling
33. Going up a mountain
34. A nut
35. Verbalize
36. Major _________ Baseball
26
25
27
28
29
31
30
33
32
34
35
36
Down
1. To estimate
2. Female wizard
3. Meat vendor
4. 60 minutes
5. Midweek day
6. Small, round type of bread
8. Baby cow
10. Where you’ll find your taste buds
12. What a mosquito bite makes you
want to do
16. Four fingers and a _____
17. This fish swims upstream
19. A structure
22. Part of an egg
25. Do it to a door to say
you’re there
26. Used to style hair
28. Lets people know what’s for sale
29. Do it to make a sweater
32. The sheriff wears one
UNSC R AMBLE
❶ rhou
❷ wenk
❸ stgoh
________________
❹ grwon ________________
❺ blam ________________
________________
❻ butod
________________
________________
❼ tahcm
❽ nefki
❾ siltne
________________
________________
________________
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
21
Name: _______________________________________
The Silent Letters
Correct It!
Score:
___________
/96
BONUS
Circle the misspelled word in each sentence. Then spell it
correctly on the line.
(4 points)
Circle the
misspelled word
.
1. Please come over on wensdae. ____________________________
2. Lisin carefully to the instructions. ____________________________
3. The teacher is writing with chok. ____________________________
sword fasten
a mond
4. I used the egg yoke in a cookie recipe. ____________________________
5. Ouch, I banged my nee! ____________________________
6. Kliming that tree won’t be so easy. ____________________________
7. She wants to disine a cool, new dress. ____________________________
8. Don’t leave a single krum on the carpet! ____________________________
9. We no where you live. ____________________________
10. With those dark clouds, there’s no dowt it will rain. ____________________________
11. My tung is blue! ____________________________
12. Yikes! Was that a goste? ____________________________
13. Shelly is playing in the Little Leeg this year. ____________________________
14. I’ll right you a letter when I get there. ____________________________
15. Gard your bike closely. ____________________________
16. No resling inside. ____________________________
17. They want to tear that bilding down. ____________________________
18. I’ll play the gitar, while you play the drums. ____________________________
19. Only to of us are going to the show. ____________________________
20. Grandma makes delicious biskits. ____________________________
MINI-BYTE
21. I felt like such a foriner when I went to Spain. ____________________________ M I N I - B Y T E
22. My mom wants to nit me a sweater. ____________________________
MINI-BYTE
23. Haff the team is going to practice now. ____________________________
MINI-BYTE
24. Let’s wok. I’m too tired to run. ____________________________
MINI-BYTE
MINI-BYTE
MINI-BYTE
MINI-BYTE
MI NI N I - B Y T E
MINI-BYTE
M
22
I-BYTE
MINI-BYTE
MINI-BYTE
MINI-BYTE
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
MINI-BYTE
Name: _______________________________________
AU. . . It’s Painless!
S p e l l!
It
cautious
t
h
nauseou
caug
ca us e
s
t
h
taugh
a
u
n
ted
pa us e
er
s
daught
a
uce
ap pla us e
er
t
h
g
u
a
s
a
l
t
ronaut
s
y
t
h
g
u
a
n
When you say these
words, au makes the
sound “a w w w .”
l
l ulr a h !
P
ela r c
Spe
F i l l p ! S It
!
u
’em
Use the au words in the boxes to complete these sentences.
al
After
riding
the
Pl ur
r dCosmic Crunch, I felt quite _______________.
o
w
Fi ll 1.o
s
sar ch
! rights of animals is a good _______________.
o
Protecting
the
C r2.! Se
G
’e m up
a Go
3. My cousin is my mom’s niece and my uncle’s _______________.
d spaghetti swimming in _______________.
ormy
Cr os4.sw
I love
or a l
-G
a Go
l uwas
5.PHe
very _______________ but he still broke
e!
l
b
m
cra
"p
rd
his nose skateboarding.
h"Wo
R ule B rea k e rs
because laughter aunt
S6.al
earc
Pl ur
I know my house isS_______________
because
with a ghost.
!
le dinner
Sc ra mbI eat
h!
Why are these words Rule Breakers?
Circle the correct answer.
tly
c
i
r
ct
e
St
r
l
r
a
Co
Plur
St ri ct ly
It!
❶
rd gentlemen, please give him a
"Woand
7. Okay,"ph
ladies
Se arc h!
big round of _______________.
because
a. The s sounds like a z.
b. The au sounds like a short o.
c. You forgot your lunch.
8. The word “_______________” comes from
Pl ur al ancient
ec tmeaning “space sailor.”
Co rrGreek
It ! d
ch
❷ aunt
Se
❸
Wor h! Mat
Wo rd
rc
atc
Up!
e
S
h
Ma
Se ar ch !
Circle five different ough words in this Word
Search. Each word appears three times. Then
write each word next to its definition below.
Up !
Sometimes the
sound “awww” makes
is spelled ough.
F
R
U
T
H
G
U
O
H
T
O
O
G
H
O
U
S
O
H
E
U
I
T
O
U
I
O
G
U
I
G
G
H
T
H
G
U
O
S
G
H
H
G
H
U
O
G
A
U
H
T
T
U
G
B
U
H
U
T
T
A
A
O
U
O
T
T
G
H
T
T
I
B
O
U
G
H
T
G
H
Au-au-au!
Look at that
cute human!
B
H
U
F
O
U
G
A
U
G
R
A
G
O
T
A
U
I
O
U
O
I
O
U
G
H
U
G
H
O
U
G
T
H
O
U
G
H
T
R
G
H
I
U
I
S
U
U
I
B
H
G
F
R
E
U
G
H
O
H
T
H
G
U
O
R
B
O
U
F
a. Christmas is coming.
b. The word ends in nt.
c. The au sounds like a short a.
laughter
a. The au doesn’t sound like aw.
b. The au sounds like a short a.
c. Both a and b.
Definition
Past tense of fight
Looked for
Past tense of buy
Past tense of bring
Past tense of think
fun!
This ought to be
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
23
Name: _______________________________________
AU Words
Score:
A What’s Right?
Circle the correctly spelled word
that matches the definition.
___________
/40
1. For that reason. a. becaus b. becauze c. becuase d. because
2. Sound of joy and merriment. a. laughter b. lafter c. lauter d. laugter
3. Your father’s sister. a. aunt b. ant c. aunnt d. auntt
4. Past tense of teach. a. tought b. taught c. taut d. tot
5. Past tense of buy. a. bought
b. bot
c. baught
d. bout
6. Made of tomatoes and put on spaghetti. a. ause b. saughse c. sauce d. cause
7. Momentary stop. a. paws
b. pauze c. pauce d. pause
8. Female child. a. doughter
b. daughter c. doter d. dauter
BONUS
(20 points)
Spell bikawz
correctly.
B Correct It!
Circle the 8 spelling mistakes in this story.
Then spell them correctly in the Correction Box.
What’s All the Fuss?
I was so happy we baught that house. It was in the perfect spot, up on a hill
overlooking the park. Perfect. At least that’s what I thaught.
Then things started to happen. That first night I heard a lot of strange noises
outside my room. Then I smelled something really putrid, like rotten tomato sawss.
I figured it was all in my imagination. “Gee, I should know better,” I laffed to
myself. “It’s not like the place could be hawnted or something!”
BOOM! I shot out of bed like a rocket.
“I’ve got to get out of here!” I yelled. “I’m getting nawseous!”
I ran to the stairs, stubbed my toe, tripped, and rolled all the way to the
bottom. Then I looked up in horror.
“What’s all the fuss?” my mom asked.
My Ant Wilma laughed, “Did the garbage trucks wake you?”
“Oh, no,” I kawt myself, “I just came down for a drink.”
Correction Box
24
3.
6.
1.
4.
7.
2.
5.
M I N I -8.B Y T E
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
MINI-BYTE
Score:
___________
/40
Can you spell
“receipt”?
Well I can, for I am
The Spelling Queen.
Now get to work!
Name ___________________________________________
EI. . . IE. . . Oh!
TE
Y
TE
Y
TE
neither
1:
seize
TE
weird
MI
Words that break Ru le
N
MI
Rule breakers!
TE
Y
ceiling
N
receive
Y
. . . except after c, then it’s ei.
N
field
MI
believe
MI
Use ie when the sound is long e . . .
B
I - Ru le 2 :
B ei when the sound is NOT long e,
Write
I
like when the sound is long a.
-B
weight
Ieight
B
I
Words that break Ru le 2 :
-B
friend Imischief
N
N
1:
MI
Y
Ch
B
TE
Ru le
Y
TE
It’s weird and I do mean “w-e-i-r-d.” Is it “ie” or
“ei”? Let’s explore some rules and find out!
It was fun to go through the snow on a _________________. (____)
❻ cownterfit
❼ eethir
❽ shreek
Security could tell that the money was _________________. (____)
TE
Y
Y
I-
B
N
❶ slay
❷ theef
❸ casheer
❹ reseet
❺ vale
B
N
N
MI
Example: a ight I spent eight dollars for my green worms. ( 2 )
I-
MI
3 = Breaks Rule One
4 = Breaks Rule Two
I-
MI
1 = Rule One
2 = Rule Two
N
All the ie and ei words are misspelled. Spell the words correctly. At the end of each
sentence, write the rule number that applies to the misspelled word.
B
MI
The _________________ ran into a brick wall. (____)
I-
M
I got a job as a _________________ at Louie’s Quick Mart. (____)
Ask for a _________________ just in case you want to return your CD. (____)
The bride’s face was covered by a _________________. (____)
_________________we make a run for it, or wait here until the rain stops. (____)
Did you hear me_________________ during that scary movie? (____)
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
25
Name _____________________________________________
. IE
E
I
.
.
.
I
.
E
.
y
I
v
E
o
o
y
r
v
o
Gro
1
C
2
3
E
4
S
5
U
6
7
I G
I
H
8
All the words in the
solution are “ie” and
“ei” words.
9
E
10
S
E
11
12
14
13
R
C
I
E D
15
G
18
I
E
T
21
C
L
22
23
P
Across
2. A large, grassy area
6. What a king or queen does
(rhymes with rain)
7. Your length
9. To accept something as true
10. Loud, shrill scream
13. Thinking too highly
of one’s self
15. A terribly sad feeling that
comes with the loss of
something
18. The overhead part of
a room
20. Often harmless trouble
22. Strange
23. Leader of a church
25. To notice
26. A pal
28. Goods to be shipped
26
E
Y
F
19
S
M
17
16
I
C
20
I
24
E
G
25
I V
P E
C
I
G
26
27
G
E
U
28
E
Down
1. Fake, phony, bogus
3. 4 + 4
4. To grab or take over
5. Your brother’s daughter
8. Store clerk
11. Might cover a bride’s face
12. To get
13. Leader of a tribe
14. Sense of right and wrong
16. Alien
17. To give way
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
19. Someone who steals
21. Spare time
22. Measure of heaviness
24. Santa’s vehicle
27. To fool
Name: _______________________________________
EI . . . IE Words
Score:
A What’s Right?
___________
/30
Circle the correct spelling.
1. a. feild
b. feeld
c. field
d. fielde
2. a. hight
b. hieght
c. height
d. hite
3. a. seiling
b. ceiling
c. sieling
d. cieling
4. a. shreek
b. schriek
c. shriek
d. shreik
5. a. recieve
b. receiv
c. reeceive
d. receive
6. a. thief
b. theif
c. theef
d. thieff
7. a. forein
b. foureign
c. foriegn
d. foreign
8. a. slei
b. seighl
c. sliegh
d. sleigh
9. a. cashier
b. casheir
c. cascheir
d. kashier
b. chief
c. chieff
d. cheiff
10. a. cheif
B Sound and Spell
Sound out the words and spell them correctly.
Score:
Misspelled
Word
Correctly Spelled
“ie or “ei” Word
1. vayl
___________
/60
2. eethur
3. kounturfit
4. frend
5. ate
BONUS
6. beeleev
(10 points)
Spell the ei or ie word that
means “to take over.”
7. conshuhnss
8. kuhnseetid
9. greef
10. frayt
11. wate
12. neece
13. misschif
14. preest
15. leeshure
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
27
Tongue
w is t e r s !
NameT
_____________________________________________
Ay-yay-yay!
One way to spell
the long -i sound
is igh!
T he IGH T hing
Use the igh words below to fill in the blanks.
Note: Some words may be used more than once.
h
R a p might knight fright flight fight uptight
i t u p ! bright night right plight light
!
I just want to say that I’m all ____________________.
ready to learn day or ____________________.
&
s M iI’m
x
Just give me the word and I take ____________________.
h
t ! M aThat’s
t c____________________!
I’m a ____________________ ____________________.
I don’t want to argue. I don’t want to ____________________.
I’m a knowledge machine, King Arthur’s ____________________.
ele d
T
mub
S cI’mroasang
loose
as a goose, I’m not ____________________.
is te rs !
Tw
That’s ____________________! I’m a ____________________ ____________________.
Up
Now I wish I may, I wish I ____________________
Have the courage, never have a ____________________.
t ch
d
up!
ing
Rap
! a ____________________
t u p I’m
iBecause,
And I know that I can handle this ____________________
S y ll a b le
r a m b le !
i xc&
MS
____________________.
Oh yeah! I’m a ____________________ ____________________.
Take a word from Box A and pair it with a word from Box B.
Write the new compound word in Box C.
t's
i t ! Ma t ch Box A
Box
play
head
moon high
to mid
eye
up
S c r a m b le d
Two words put
together make a
compound word!
Up
und
lling
28
B
night
light light
t
tight sight wrigh night
light
Box C
S y ll ab le
S c ra m bl e!
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Name _____________________________________________
The I’s Have It !
R u l e -b r e a k e r
Crossword
height bite
satellite
There’s more than
one way to spell that
long-i sound!
kite white dynamite
Fahrenheit parasite
Use the long -i words above to complete the crossword.
2
1
Across
3. Opposite of black
4. Organism that lives off others
5. An explosive
7. Tallness
8. An object put into orbit around a planet
3
4
5
Down
6
1. A scale used to measure
temperature
2. Flying toy on a string
6. Mouth action
7
8
Editor Dude
Proofread this tense and exciting adventure. Circle and correct 10 spelling errors.
The Cliff-Hanger
It was close to midnite when it occurred. What a frite I had! Everything happened so fast. First,
there was a brite flash, then BOOM! A dynamight blast! For a couple of seconds, it got really hot.
It must have been over a hundred degrees Fahrenhiet! My throat got so tite, I could hardly
breathe! My skin was clammy. I thought this mite be it. A glowing green lite shone through my
window. I was about to hide. . . yet, something made me get out of bed and peer outside. I
looked hi and low. My eyes blurred for a moment, but when I looked up, I saw a huge dark
shadow. Its hieght must have been at least eight feet!
Editor’s Notes
1.
6.
2.
7.
3.
8.
4.
9.
5.
10.
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
29
Name: _______________________________________
I-IGH Words
A Spel l it Cor rectl y
Sound out each word in the chart
and spell it correctly. Beware:
Some words may not have an igh
combination. . . but you’ll know
that if you’ve studied!
Score:
___________
Misspel led
Corrected
1. flite
2. knite
3. fite
4. bryte
/80
5. lite
6. kite
7. pairisyte
8. fairinhite
9. wyte
BONUS
10. rite
(5 points)
11. satilite
What word means
“a million units of computer
information”?
12. hite
13. hedlite
14. nite (opposite of day)
15. dynamyte
16. frite
17. tite
18. myte
19. hi (opposite of low)
20. hilite
B What’s the Word?
Score:
___________
Write the correct word on the line.
/15
1. Tallness _________________________
2. An explosive _________________________
3. Organism that lives off others _________________________
4. An object put into orbit around a planet _________________________
5. Sense that uses the eyes _________________________
30
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
h
!
d
ng
Name _____________________________________________
T he T IO N and SION Show
The English
language may cause
frustration. . .
Sp el l
It !
When you hear the sound shuhn (say reservation,
station, investigation) you usually spell it -tion.
When you hear the sound zhuhn (say explosion,
television, and division) you usually spell it -sion.
ur al
Fi ll Pl ar ch !
Se
each word with the suffix -tion or -sion.
. . . and confusion!
m up ! Complete
em
’e
To ng ue1. The fireworks caused a brilliant explo___________ in the sky.
! or d
rssw
teos
Tw isCr
2. Using
subtrac___________, I solved the math problem.
a Go -G o
3. We had much prepara___________ to do to get ready for the trip.
4. The tough competi___________ made us a stronger team.
Rap
Pl ur5.al
My dad read the morning edi___________of the newspaper.
!
p
i t u Sc ra m bl
e!
6. I couldn’t
make
d important deci___________ without help.
or that
"ph "W
Se ar ch !
7. You will need some suntan lo___________ when you go to the beach.
&
M i x St
ly
ri ct8.
Sally got her vi___________ checked at the eye doctor.
h
c
t
a
M
Pl ur al Co rr ec t
9. Mr. Hill met his wife at the train sta___________.
It !
10. The popula___________ of China is well over a billion!
Sc ra m bl ed
11. In my science experiment, I had to come up with a good conclu___________.
U p Woarrd
M at ch is a part of a whole thing.
chA!frac___________
Se 12.
Up !
Sy ll able
Sc ra m ble!
Read each clue. Form
the Answer using the
Syllable Tiles. Use
each tile once.
tion
la
lu
mul
ti
Repeated addition
tion
re
Talk with someone
va
il
Cl ue
Answer
Your cousin
A cut to the skin
during an operation
It fools your eyes
in
sion
ver
ci
con
Attack, takeover
sa
sion
pli
sion
ca
tion
in
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
31
Name: _______________________________________
-TION and -SION
Score:
___________
Find 20 M istakes
/100
Circle each spelling error in the story. Then spell each word correctly in the chart below.
Freebie
Amphibian Nayshuhn
Wilbur couldn’t believe his eyes. Was that really a frog? Wilbur cleaned his glasses. No,
he thought, it had to be an iloozhuhn. Wilbur looked at his teacher. She was talking about
multiplykashuhn.
He looked outside again. The weather report didn’t call for prisipitayshuhn, but there was
a low dark cloud over part of the school. Was this some sort of strange aberration? Or was he
just feeling frustrayshuhn over his schoolwork?
A frog bounced off the window. Wilbur stood up quickly, knocking his chair over.
Konvursayshuhn stopped.
“Wilbur, what are you doing? The math kompuhtishuhn is tomorrow. We still have a lot of
preperashuhn to do,” said his teacher.
“F-f-f-rogs! Out the window,” said Wilbur, drawing everyone’s atencion outside. Suddenly
the room was filled with konfuzhuhn. Wilbur was covered in purrspirazion. There was a loud
explotion and more frogs fell from the sky like presipitasion. Was it an alien invation? Would
this be the day’s conclution? And then the principal’s salutashuhn could be heard.
“Students and teachers, do not worry. The Science Department wishes to apologize for
the interupption. They had an unfortunate situasion. They promise the strange precipitation
will stop shortly. You may now return to addition, subtrakshuhn, and multiplication without
further hesitashuhn. Just watch your step outside.”
Freebie
1.
Nation
11.
2.
12.
3.
13.
4.
14.
MINI-BYTE
5.
15.
6.
16.
M I N I - B7.Y T E
17.
8.
M I N I - B9. Y T E
10.
M32I N I - B Y T E
18.
19.
20.
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
IN
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Name ___________________________________________
Sof t G and C
Meet the Letter
Softeners!
Wow! Now I can
keep my words
clean and my
letters soft!
The Rules
giant
If g is followed by any of the letter
softeners, its sound will be /j/.
large
If c is followed by any of the letter
softeners, its sound will be /s/.
gym
celebrity gyrate cyclops
circle engine g
cent garage
Rules Breakers
ceiling science agent
sponge
cyclone
Sometimes the letter softeners don’t work. That
niece
magic
means the c will sound like a k or ch even when it is
followed by an e, i, or y. The g will sound like a /g /.
lounge
excite
If you need a g or c
softened, use an i,
e, or y, okay?
C
E
T
W
I
C
E
L
Z
R
R
M
C
C
C
S
E
C
N
E
T
N
E
S
Y
S
H
N
I
C
T
Y
L
B
E
E
C
S
Q
J
U
D
G
E
M
N
Y
R
E
T
G
R
G
S
O
R
A
N
G
E
A
P
S
A
B
Y
A
K
E
A
R
S
G
L
J
I
I
R
U
S
R
L
N
S
T
M
J
C
O
U
G
Y
M
N
A
S
I
U
M
C
I
R
O
U
S
Match
It !
G
M
A
G
I
C
E
T
Y
V
I
C
Q
N
P
Fi nd T he se
Wo rd s
Q
I
E
E
I
B
I
C
Y
C
L
E
X
G
O
D
D
C
D
N
I
L
P
E
N
I
G
N
E
N
P
X
E
O
U
O
O
I
O
N
E
P
A
C
G
G
M
I
C
P
L
L
H
L
N
T
C
I
E
E
P
H
N
S
I
I
A
C
T
I
J
U
A
I
A
V
U
T
C
N
D
N
L
Y
A
H
B
R
P
P
A
W
E
G
B
G
E
Z
Q
C
D
S
R
Y
S
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
33
b
g
Name ___________________________________________
T o ng u e
T w is te rs !
Use a
dictionary!
Make up tongue twisters using soft g and c
words. Say them fast
A genuine giant general judged gymnastics.
The excited cyclist circled the circus ceiling.
a p Turn!
RYour
u p ! Twister:
i t Soft-G
_________________________________________________________________________________.
&
Mix
Soft-C Twister:
tch
M a__________________________________________________________________________________.
edd -C
bl an
raftm-G
S cSo
1
Up
3
Y
S
C
6
C
Across
Sy ll ab le
Sc ra m bl e!
4
L
5
1. Overhead part of
a room
3. One-eyed creature
5. Tornado
7. Citrus fruit
9. Law enforcers
10. Tricks and illusions
12. One who presides
in court
14. Round shape
16. Very unfortunate
18. Motor
20. Representative
22. Study of the physical
world
23. Place for car
25. Hundred years
26. Empty room or gap
27. Lie around
28. Sea creature useful
in the kitchen
29. Two times
2
E I
7
N
A
8
S
S
E
9
P
10
M
12
13
11
I
C
D
14
I
16
15
T R
17
G
C
L
18
20
19
21
G
22
I
Y
R
23
C
34
24
X
25
26
U R
27
28
P A
C
U N
29
O N
W
Down
2. Needed
4. Complete thought
6. Famous person
8. Your sister’s daughter
9. A part
All the answers
are soft-g and
-c words!
Y
10. Buy it at a pharmacy
11. Kind and calm
13. To make a choice
15. Very large person
17. School room used for
physical education
19. Turn, spin, rotate
21. Two-wheeled vehicle
24. To stimulate
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Name: _______________________________________
Soft G and C Words
Sound It Out:
Score:
___________
/100
Sound out these phonetically spelled words and spell them correctly.
Phonetic
Spell ing
Correct Spel l ing
1. majik
2. peess
3. byesikuhl
4. jyeuhnt
5. seyeklaups
6. jimnayzeeuhm
7. syeklone
8. ayjuhnt
9. eksite
10. syeuhnss
11. spuhnj
12. guhrahj
13. seeling
14. jyerate
15. kneess
16. lounj
17. enjuhn
18. juhj
19. suhlebruhtee
20. surkuhl
21. jentuhl
22. meduhsuhn
23. orinj
24. diside
25. trajik
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
35
Name ___________________________________________
so u n d
Fun with P H
pharmacy
phony
graph
M at ch Match each “ph” word below with its correct meaning.
S pIte! l l
I t !“p h” Words
Meanings
Egyptian ruler
fake
of a material thing
drugstore
stage of development
fear
a few words together
list of books
life story
to change to another form
camera picture
an exceptional thing or event
study of Earth’s physical features
diagram that shows data
communication device
city in Pennsylvania
morph
Fi nd Th es e phobia
Wo rd s phenomenon
Plural
Search!
bibliography
geography
We don’t have
words like these photograph
in our planet!
telephone
pharmacy
Philadelphia
biography
graph
pharaoh
phony
phase
phrase
physical
word
-G o
H i n t : Use th
e
dictionary.
He’s definitely
got a “ph”
phobia.
l
le!
"p h" W o rd
S ea rc h!
y
Circle 20 “ph”
words in this
word search.
Correct
It !
! Match
Up!
36
A
I
H
P
L
E
D
A
L
I
H
P
M
Y
H
P
A
R
G
O
E
G
L
H
H
P
A
R
G
O
T
O
H
P
Q
A
K
W
V
J
J
L
K
R
K
Q
W
R
N
H
Y
M
L
Z
K
B
N
X
G
A
P
R
O
P
H
E
T
D
R
R
T
O
R
J
Y
C
X
P
D
X
A
N
E
H
A
I
B
O
H
P
H
P
Z
N
L
P
N
Y
M
Y
H
D
H
O
M
M
E
M
K
M
K
R
H
M
N
O
N
E
P
W
Z
G
G
H
O
P
T
Y
S
Y
H
B
L
E
W
R
P
N
A
A
H
V
O
L
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
A
L
P
M
A
H
R
R
Q
J
N
B
C
H
K
H
N
H
A
L
G
K
E
P
I
P
P
P
P
H
C
R
N
O
H
M
S
F
Y
M
B
C
P
C
M
A
I
N
Y
M
R
Y
M
Z
T
M
S
A
L
B
H
L
H
N
N
J
Z
E
Y
C
C
Z
P
H
E
N
O
M
E
N
O
N
B
Y
Y
H
P
A
R
G
O
I
L
B
I
B
Name ___________________________________________
Fill in the blanks with the correct “ph” word.
What’s
the pH
Wo rd?
morph
arachnophobia
phenomenon
bibliography
geography
photograph
phase
phantom
phrase
physical
nymph
telephone
pharmacy
Philadelphia
biography
graph
pharaohs
phony
1. I read Martin Luther King Jr’s __________________________ to learn about his life.
2. She has ___________________________—she’s afraid of spiders.
3. Please repeat that __________________________. I couldn’t hear you.
4. Mr. Go went to the __________________________ to buy some aspirin.
5. __________________________ activity will make you strong.
6. The solar eclipse was quite a __________________________!
7. These pictures will look great in my __________________________ album.
8. Our teacher made us include a __________________________ with our project.
9. Let’s chart our answers using a bar __________________________.
10. Just be yourself. Don’t be __________________________.
11. __________________________ is a big city in Pennsylvania.
12. A dragonfly larva is called a __________________________.
13. Mom says my teenage sister is going through a __________________________.
14. Sorry I didn’t call you. Our __________________________ was out of order.
15. Watch out for the __________________________ ghost from the green lagoon!
16. The __________________________ of Egypt were buried with most of their riches.
17. That cow can __________________________ into a three-eyed monster!
18. In __________________________ class, we learn about our country.
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
37
Name: _______________________________________
PH Words
Score:
___________
/54
A Spell Correctly:
Write the correct spelling of each of these phonetically spelled “ph” words.
Phonetic
Spelling
Correct Spelling
Phonetic
Spelling
1. bibleeogruhfee
10. fohbeeuh
2. byeogruhfee
11. fohtuhgraf
3. fairoh
12. fonee
4. fantuhm
13. fraze
5. farmuhsee
14. graf
6. faze
15. jeeogruhfee
7. fenomuhnon
16. morf
8. filedelfea
17. nimf
9. fizuhkuhl
18. teluhfone
B Fill It In:
Correct Spelling
Score:
___________
Write the most appropriate “ph” word in the blank.
/30
1. In this ____________________ everyone is smiling.
2. King Tut was one of the most famous ____________________ of ancient Egypt.
3. A tadpole goes through more than one _______________ to become a frog.
4. The __________________ is ringing! Please answer it.
5. The baby genius is a __________________.
6. Dad’s story about the ghostly __________________ wasn’t scary.
7. When I saw our cat __________________ into a dog, I knew
it was time to run.
8. We studied the __________________ of South America.
9. That list of books makes a good __________________.
10. I had to wait in line at the __________________ for my
grandma’s medicine.
38
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
BONUS
(16 points)
What do you call the
fear of open places?
Name ___________________________________________
Commonly Confused Words
Round
Some words sound alike, but
they are not spelled alike.
1
Commonl y confused
TO: helps indicate a direction; connection to something
Let’s go to the Sponge Boys concert.
We all began to sing.
F ill in the blanks with
the cor rect word.
1. I want _______________ go _______________.
2. _______________ of you can sit in front.
TOO: more than enough; also
That’s too much ice cream.
Graham is coming, too.
3. _______________ is _______________ many
_______________ ride on one bike.
TWO: spelling for number 2
Sonya has two goldfish.
TH ER E: at that place
Meet me over there.
4. _______________ house is over _______________.
TH E I R: belonging to them
Joe’s cousins like their new house.
TH EY ’R E: contraction for “they are”
They’re good storywriters.
5. _______________ going to meet us later.
6. _______________ in the bushes, _______________ hiding.
7. _______________ supposed to wait with me.
YO UR: belonging to you
Thanks for letting me borrow your bike.
8. _______________ flowers are growing!
YOU’RE: contraction for “you are”
You’re my best friend.
9. _______________ mom wants you to come as
soon as _______________ finished.
ITS: belonging to it
The bird built its nest in the tree.
IT’S: contraction for “it is”
It’s a lovely day.
10. _______________ going to rain tonight.
11. The dog gobbled down _______________ dinner.
12. If _______________ too cold, I will stay in.
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
39
Name ___________________________________________
Commonly Confused Words
Round
2
Commonl y Confused
ALREADY: by this time
We did that already.
F ill in the blanks with
the cor rect word.
1. She is _______________ to leave.
2. We have been _______________ since morning.
ALL READY: prepared to do something
We’re all ready to go.
3. I _______________ finished.
4. Are you _______________? Let’s go!
RI GHT: correct; opposite of left; part of immediately
Jordy’s work is right.
Turn right at the corner.
Come here right away.
5. _______________ that in your book.
6. That was the _______________ thing to do.
7. _______________ that in the _______________ hand
corner of the paper.
WR I TE: mark down (on paper)
I want to write a story.
8. Do it _______________ now!
WEAR : to have on
She’s going to wear her soccer jersey.
WHERE: in what place
Where are you going?
9. _______________ is the party?
10. I don’t know _______________ to put that.
11. Are you going to _______________ the red hat?
12. _______________ your swimsuit to the park.
THREW: past tense of throw
The catcher threw to second base.
THROUGH: in one side and out the other; finished
I had to climb through the window.
I’m all through with work.
13. I _______________ the garbage into the can.
14. Can you get _______________ the maze?
15. Put the thread _______________ the eye of the needle.
16. I _______________ the ball as hard as I could.
THAN: used mainly in comparisons
Irvin is older than Katharine.
THEN: means “at that time” or “soon after”
We went to the park, and then we played tag.
17. Until _______________, she had never laughed.
18. Run, _______________ walk.
19. I’d rather read _______________ dig that hole.
20. She’s looking better _______________ ever!
40
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Name ___________________________________________
Commonly Confused Words
Round
3
Commonl y confused
F ill in the blanks with
the cor rect word.
1. We need to dig a _______________.
WHOLE: all of it
I ate the whole pie myself.
HOLE: an empty place
Don’t fall into that deep hole.
2. I have to complete the _______________ thing.
3. Watch out for the _______________ there.
4. The _______________ team will be at the game.
BREAK: come apart; no longer work; space
If you break the lock, we won’t get in.
Give me a break!
BRAKE: stop; stopping device
Brake at the red light.
5. Let’s take a ten-minute _______________.
6. Step on the _______________.
7. _______________ before you hit the fence.
8. Don’t drop the dish or it will _______________.
9. _______________, I think I’ll stay home.
NO: negative
There’s no way I’m going.
KNOW: to understand or be aware of
I know the answer.
10. Does he _______________ your name?
11. My dad will _______________ the way.
12. There was _______________ one there.
NEW: just purchased or made
The new car shone in the sun.
KNEW: past tense of know
I knew that yesterday.
PI ECE: a part of
Please give her a big piece of pie.
PEACE: calm
I could feel peace out in the woods.
13. Jojo _______________ you were coming.
14. I _______________ the answer, but I have forgotten it.
15. We’re moving into our _______________ house.
16. Can I please have a _______________ of that?
17. He is having another _______________.
18. Let’s have _______________, not war!
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
41
Name ___________________________________________
Commonly Confused Words
Round
4
Commonl y confused
F ill in the blanks with
the cor rect word.
1. Pam is going _______________ you go or not.
WEATHER: atmospheric conditions
The weather is so hot and humid.
WHETHER: if it happens that
I am not sure whether we are going or not.
2. It’s been lovely _______________ this summer.
3. He’s not sure _______________ he can attend.
4. We’ll check the _______________ before going.
ACCEPT: receive or agree with
I want you to accept this award.
Do you accept my idea?
EXCEPT: not including
He likes them all except for the blue one.
5. I can go every day _______________ Monday.
6. Sam won’t _______________ her present.
7. _______________ me as I am.
8. He’ll eat any vegetable _______________ beans.
9. I can _______________ all the instruments.
H ERE: in this place
I’m here hiding in the bushes.
HEAR: sense through the ear (auditory)
Can you hear the waterfall?
10. Come _______________ now!
11. _______________ we go again.
12. Please _______________ what I have to say.
PLANE: aircraft
We traveled over the mountains by plane.
PLAIN: simple, not fancy
I’ll wear a plain dress to the concert.
13. I’ll just have my pizza _______________ this time.
14. She is just a _______________ dog , but we love her.
15. Everything looked so tiny from the _______________.
16. It’s just _______________ old me!
PAST: before now
In the museum, we see cool things from the past.
17. Grandpa likes to talk about the _______________.
18. We all _______________ the drivers’ course.
PASSED: went by; advanced; handed to
Faster cars passed the slow one.
Sally passed into grade six!
Bob passed her the ball.
19. She _______________ me when we raced.
20. It’s hard to remember some things about my
_______________.
42
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Name ___________________________________________
ly
n
o
m
m
o
C
Confused
3
2
1
4
5
6
7
9
8
11
10
12
14
13
15
16
I’m all ready two
confused too no weather
or not my answers
are write.
18
17
19
20
22
21
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
Across
2. Mark down on paper
4. Stop! Hit the ______!
5. You dig it
6. To have on
7. Past tense of know
9. Before now
11. By this time
13. Not old
15. 1 + 1
16. You are
18. If it happens that
20. Not fancy
Down
21. They are
23. In one end and out
the other
25. Calm and quiet
26. Belonging to them
27. Aircraft
28. It is
29. Receive
30. At that place
1. To understand or be
aware of
2. In what place?
3. Soon after
4. To make into pieces
8. Atmospheric conditions
10. Past tense of throw
11. Prepared to do
something
12. Belonging to you
13. Negative response
14. All of it
15. Indicates direction
or connection
17. Correct
19. Sense through ears
21. Used to compare
22. Not including
24. In this place
25. Went by
26. Also
27. A part of
28. Belonging to it
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
43
Name: _______________________________________
Commonly Confused Words
S u r v i v o r C h a llenge
Score:
___________
/100
Fill in the blanks with the Commonly Confused Words in Rounds 1 to 4. Hint: Keep the
worksheets from Rounds 1 to 4 handy.
My Island Holiday
____________ not a story that is easy to tell, but I’ll try ____________ explain the ____________ thing.
I hopped into my private ____________ at the ____________ of dawn. With a cloudless sky, the
____________ was perfect. I had been ____________ stressed for weeks. I was really looking forward
____________ some ____________ and quiet far, far away from civilization.
I had been in the air for about ____________ hours before I ____________ something was wrong—
very wrong. I could ____________ one engine cough and sputter. One of my engines stopped working. I
tried to see ____________ the other one was going ____________. I took a quick look below me and saw an
island. I would have ____________ fly ____________ the trees and make an emergency landing on the beach.
I flew ____________ some coconut trees, knocking ____________ coconuts ____________ the ground. I was
concentrating hard and managed ____________ touch down and stop without a problem. “At least
____________ I’m safe,” I said out loud.
I heard some branches snapping. I looked left. I looked ____________. I couldn’t see anything. My
heart started beating faster. I was just happy to be ____________, safe on the ground, but I was worried. I
____________ something or someone was watching me. I grabbed a branch and began to ____________
H-E-L-P in the sand.
____________ was that sound again. This time I saw ____________ it came from. I decided to
investigate.
I walked ____________ my ____________ and into the jungle. I could tell that someone had just run
____________. I kept walking in the same direction. Suddenly I found myself in a clearing surrounded by
people and cameras.
“____________ about time you got ____________” a woman with an English accent said. “We’ve had
everything ____________ and waiting for you for an hour. What took you so long?”
“This is all ____________ confusing,” I said. “____________ am I? Who are you?”
“____________ on Bogo-Bogo Island! ____________ the newest winner of a million dollars!”
44
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Key
Syllables Have the Beat! (p. 6)
Word
In Syl-la-bles
brother
riddle
about
disappear
important
communication
broth-er
rid-dle
a-bout
dis-ap-pear
im-por- tant
com-mu-ni-ca- tion
Number of Rules That
Syllables
Apply
2
1, 2
2
1, 2, 5
2
1, 3
3
1, 2, 6
3
1, 4, 6
5
1, 2, 4, 6
The Syllable Thing (pp. 7–8)
Answers may vary, but could include:
ou – out, about, snout, pout
oi – oil, toil, boil, soil
ow – now, bow, brow, chow
au/ou – taught, astronaut, fought, thought
oy – boy, decoy, Roy, annoy
aw – paw, law, claw, draw
oo – shoot, toot, loot, root
A
S
A
T
L
R
P
O
H
3
V A C A T I O N
A
B
4
D E L I C I O U S
T
T
C
H
U
C
K
L
T
O O N
R
R
2
H O P
3
T
R
O
G
4
A V A I L A B L E
L
N
Mini-Byte 4
5
T E L E V I S I O N
T
Z
A
6
D I F F E R E N T
E
E
F
L
E
S
L
F
A
E
L
L
B
O
S
V
V
M
F
J
C
G S E V I W
E S F D M I
U V A O F R
G W L W O Y
V D Y E F R
M N M W H F
T X V S U S
7. T
8. T
2
3
M
A
T
15
B O N G OS
E
S
12
B
A
N
J
O
A
N
4
Z O O S
E
5
O
S
O
E
S
Q
U
I
T
O
S I L OS
16
O
E
18
S
L A S S O S
Plural Scramble
Chinese
antennae
mice
women
6
7
deer
feet
larvae
teeth
8
D O D O S
M
T
O
R
R T F O L I O S
13
T
E
R
E
O
H
E
14
P R O S
O
E
O L O S
salmon
geese
oxen
Quickie Quiz: Plurals (p. 13)
Plural Rules
1. F
3. T
2. T
4. F
5. F
6. T
7. F
8. T
BONUS: larvae
I
O
N
Quickie Quiz: Syllables (p. 9)
Syllable Rules:
1. T
3. F
5. F
2. F
4. F
6. T
C H I
C A L
H W I
I P E
E S H
F V S
S U N
17
P E D E S T R I A N
E
C
1
F
O
U
2
N
G
O
H
3
4
C O R R E C T I ON
V
D
5
W O N D E R F U L
N
E
T
R
R
Y
Y
M
Z
D
I
P
P
H
I
S
5
1
Mini-Byte 2
P
R
E
O
N
C
E
N
T
4
C A R T
3
E
F
S
P
A
P
S
V I D E OS
U
O
9
10
O
P O
T
11
R
H O B O E S
2
Mini-Byte 3
2
K
B
M
O
W
L
M
1
C
1
Find Those Words
Crossword a Go-Go
1
Mini-Byte 1
Fill Me In
stories; mummies; lotteries; possibilities;
countries; cities; celebrities; parties
9. T
10. T
Plural Forms
1. inches
2. oxen
3. chiefs
4. radios
5. potatoes
6. women
7. geese
8. feet
9. antennae
10. taxes
11. teeth
12. deer
13. pennies
14. wives
15. keys
16. countries
17. leaves
18. pianos
19. dishes
20. Chinese
BONUS: psychologist
Definitions:
1. two, one
2. th, sh, ph
Break It Down:
1. moth-er
2. cat- tle
3. dis-ap-pear
4. com-mu-nica- tion
5. frog
Find 10 Mistakes
bongos; mosquitoes; children; oxen; puppies; cities;
geese; mice; heroes; women
3. sound, vowels
4. aw, oo, oi
Suffix: Is This the End? (pp. 14–15)
Rule 1 and Rule 2: Try It!
6. rid-dle
7. im-por- tant
8. i- tem
9. o-pen
10. catch-er
11. as- tro-naut
12. ad-ven- ture 18. in-ven-tion
19. noise
13. lit- tle
20. strong-er
14. re-port
15. fought
16. al-pha-bet
17. de-li-cious
The Ruler of Plural Says… (pp. 10–12)
Try it!
1. books
2. games
3. dreams
4. powers
5. skateboards
6. banks
7. comics
8. pizzas
9. friends
10. graphs
1. kisses
2. foxes
3. knishes
4. beaches
5. watches
6. crushes
7. passes
8. taxes
9. batches
10. dresses
Word
ADD -ing
ADD -ed
ram
fit
sort
camp
act
hope
place
care
shape
arrange
move
ramming
fitting
sorting
camping
acting
hoping
placing
caring
shaping
arranging
moving
rammed
fitted
sorted
camped
acted
hopeful /hopefully
placement
careful /carefully
shapely
arrangement
movement
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
45
Rule 3: Try It!
Word
ADD -ing
ADD -ed
ADD -s
carry
bury
ferry
play
carrying
burying
ferrying
playing
carried
buried
ferried
played
carries
buries
ferries
plays
Spell It!
1. happiness 3. satisfies
5. pitiless 7. hurried 9. merriment
2. plentiful
4. healthiness 6. beautiful 8. parties 10. funnier
Correct It!
1. finally
2. appeared
3. beautiful
4. planned
Groovy Suffix X-word (p. 16)
3
S
T
4
F
L
A
I
R
8
O P E N E D
V
C
I
R
N
E
11
D
I
V
I
N
9
N
W I N N I N G
P R E P A R I N G
L
O
N
N
S
E D I T E D
N
G
R O B B E R Y
18
19
A C H I E V E M E N T
N
N
Quickie Quiz: Suffix (p. 17)
Correction!
1. opened
5. famous
2. arranging
6. robbery
3. tries
7. hurried
4. beautiful
8. camper
flipping
placing
moving
appearing
hurrying
playing
controlling
editing
6. beautify
7. carpeted
8. judgment
9. dives
10. ninety
C L I M B I N G
T
C
O R D
17
A
S
A
S T
C
L
H
M
O
28
S T E N
I
G
34
A L M O N D
D
36
L E AG U E
T A L K
28
W R I T I N G
9. argument
10. truly
11. finally
12. acting
flipped
placed
moved
appeared
hurried
played
controlled
edited
11. losing
12. achievement
13. plentiful
14. fanned
15. scooping
The Silent Letter (pp. 18–20)
Let’s Do It! (p. 18)
1. edge, hedge, wedge
2. watch, scratch, match
3. palm, calm; calf, half; talk, walk; folk, yolk
4. hand-ker-chief
5. butch-er, fas- ten, cas- tle, lis- ten
6. salm-on, al-mond
E
Unscramble
1. hour
2. knew
3. ghost
4. wrong, grown
5. lamb
6. doubt
7. match
8. knife
9. listen
Quickie Quiz: Silent Letters (p. 22)
15. Guard
8. crumb
1. Wednesday
16. wrestling
9. know
2. Listen
17. building
10. doubt
3. chalk
18. guitar
11. tongue
4. yolk
19. two
12. ghost
5. knee
20. biscuits
13. league
6. Climbing
21. foreigner
14. write
7. design
22. knit
23. Half
24. walk
BONUS: amond
AU … It’s Painless! (p. 23)
Fill ’em Up!
1. nauseous
3. daughter
2. cause
4. sauce
BONUS: beautification
Spell It Out!
1. happiness
2. preparing
3. recreation
4. flying
5. dying
13
33
35
26
S C O O P I N G
10
C A L M
15
U
SW
F O R E I G N E R
16
I
S
U
T
20
19
18
E
D O U B T
H O N E
A
U
U
21
22
I
G U I L T Y
M
Y
23
L A M B
O
26
24
25
27
D
W A L K
L I
C
29
I
K
K N O T
N
31
30
32
N
T WO
M
N U M B
A
16
F I N A L L Y
G
27
5
W
C A S T L E
H
D
O
N
E
N
9
W
4
H A L F
I
T
O
6
7
C R U M B
B
11
R
WH I C H
12
S
S
14
F
A
J
N
U
23
D O I N G
24
E
C A R P E T I N G
D
P
M
25
2
G U I T A R
U
E
S
B
U
T
C
A
L
14
S H A P I N G
N
I
S
17
N
C ON T R O L L E R
E
M
G
20
21
22
E
S L I D I N G
H
N
O
O
1
3
8
N
E
T
12
13
Silent Letter
Mega Crossword
(p. 21)
10
C H A NG E A B L E
T
H
R
15
Change It!
1. flip
2. place
3. move
4. appear
5. hurry
6. play
7. control
8. edit
2
6
T R U L Y
B
I
B
N
O
G
R
N
Let’s Do It! (p. 20)
1. what, when, why, which, where
2. Answers may vary, but could include: honesty, honor,
honorable
3. ghost
4. two, sword
5. wrote, wreck, wrist, whole, wrinkle, wrong, wrapper
6. g; guest, guess, guitar, guard, guilty, league, tongue
1
C
5
H O P I N G
7
N
E
5. Happiness
Let’s Do It! (p. 19)
1. knew, knot, knob, knee, knife
2. n
3. foreigner, design, gnu, gnaw, sign
4. m; doubt
5. thumb, numb, crumb
6. comb, lamb, bomb, climbing
16. healthiness
17. chopped
18. movement
19. skies
20. carrier
Rule Breakers
1. b
Word Search
fought
sought
bought
brought
thought
4 6 No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
2. c
5. cautious
6. haunted
3. c
7. applause
8. astronaut
Quickie Quiz: AU Words (p. 24)
What’s Right?
1. d
3. a
2. a
4. b
5. a
6. c
Editor Dude
1. midnight
2. fright
7. d
8. b
BONUS: because
Correct It!
1. bought
2. thought
3. sauce
4. laughed
5. haunted
6. nauseous
EI … IE … Oh! (p. 25)
Try It!
1. sleigh (2)
3. cashier (1)
2. thief (1)
4. receipt (1)
Groovy EI…IE
X-word (p. 26)
1
C
4
S
O
U
E
6
R E I G N
Z
T
B E L I E V E
R
9
7. aunt
8. caught
5. veil (2)
7. Either (3)
6. counterfeit (2) 8. shriek (1)
2
F
24
P R I E S T
L
E
10
I
Syllable Scramble
1. multiplication 3. relation
2. conversation 4. incision
17
Y
I
E
L
D
P E R C E I V E
G
E
27
26
S
N
F R I E N D
E
G
C
U
E
R
H
C
28
F R E I GH T
Sound Out & Spell
1. veil
5. eight
2. either
6. believe
3. counterfeit
7. conscience
4. friend
8. conceited
7. d
8. d
9. grief
10. freight
11. weight
12. niece
10. population
11. conclusion
12. fraction
5. illusion
6. invasion
16. salutation
17. interruption
18. situation
19. subtraction
20. hesitation
E
Soft G and C (p. 33)
Soft G and C Word Search
I
V
E
Quickie Quiz: EI…IE Words (p. 27)
What’s Right?
1. c
3. b
5. d
2. c
4. c
6. a
16. fright
17. tight
18. might
19. high
20. highlight
5. sight
Quickie Quiz: -TION and -SION (p. 32)
Find 20 Mistakes
1. Nation
6. Conversation 11. perspiration
2. illusion
7. competition 12. explosion
3. multiplication 8. preparation 13. precipitation
4. precipitation 9. attention
14. invasion
5. frustration
10. confusion
15. conclusion
25
G
H
What’s the Word?
1. height
3. parasite
2. dynamite
4. satellite
11. satellite
12. height
13. headlight
14. night
15. dynamite
The TION and SION Show (p. 31)
Fill ’em Up!
1. explosion
4. competition 7. lotion
2. subtraction 5. edition
8. vision
3. preparation 6. decision
9. station
F
E
23
Quickie Quiz: I-IGH Words (p. 30)
Spell It Correctly
1. flight
6. kite
2. knight
7. parasite
3. fight
8. Fahrenheit
4. bright
9. white
5. light
10. right, write
9. high
10. height
BONUS: megabyte
3
I E L D
I
5
G
N
7
H E I G H T
8
T
E
C
C
A
S H R I E K
H
11
I
V
12
14
13
E
C O N C E I T E D
R
15
16
R
T
H
E
G R I E F
O
18
L
O
C E I L I N G
19
E
E
R
S
T
21
20
E
H
M I S C H I E F
C
L
22
V
W E I R
E
I
I
3. bright
5. Fahrenheit 7. might
4. dynamite 6. tight
8. light
9. a
10. b
13. mischief
14. priest
15. leisure
BONUS: seize
The IGH Thing (p. 28)
Rap It Up!
Answers may vary; possible answers could be: right; night;
flight; right; bright light; fight; knight; tight; right; bright light;
might; fright; plight; bright light; bright light
Mix & Match
highlight
moonlight
The I’s
Have It! (p. 29)
headlight
tonight
uptight
eyesight
1
F
3
WH
A
H
4
P A R A S I T
midnight
playwright
Tongue Twisters! (p. 34)
Answers will vary.
2
K
I T E
T
E
E
5
D Y N A M I T E
H
H E I G H T
7
I
6
B
I
T
8
S A T E L L I T E
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources
47
Soft G and C X-word
Quickie Quiz: PH Words (p. 38)
Spell Correctly
1. bibliography
10. phobia
2. biography
11. photograph
3. pharaoh
12. phony
4. phantom
13. phrase
5. pharmacy
14. graph
6. phase
15. geography
7. phenomenon 16. morph
8. Philadelphia 17. nymph
9. physical
18. telephone
2
1
C E I L I N G
4
3
C Y C L O P S
E
6
5
C Y C L O N E
T
E
P O L I C E
N
I
E
E
C
7
8
O R A N G E
I
E
S
S
M AG I C
E
E
N
T
A
R
9
12
11
10
13
C
E
B
J U D G E
14
D
E
C I R C L E
I
E
A
C
16
15
17
I
T R A G I C
G
I
E
D
I
Y
21
20
N
A G E N T
M
B
22
N
S C I E N C E
T
A
C
25
C E N T U R Y
C
L
19
E N G I N E
18
X
A
T
E
S P A C E
Quickie Quiz: Soft G and C (p. 35)
Sound It Out
8. agent
1. magic
9. excite
2. piece
10. science
3. bicycle
11. sponge
4. giant
12. garage
5. cyclops
6. gymnasium 13. ceiling
14. gyrate
7. cyclone
Fill It In
1. photograph
2. pharaohs
3. phase
Y
24
G AR A G E
23
26
I
27
L O U N G E
28
M
S P O N G E
Y
C
I
T
T W I C E
10. pharmacy
7. morph
4. telephone
5. phenomenon 8. geography
9. bibliography
6. phantom
Bonus: agoraphobia
29
15. niece
16. lounge
17. engine
18. judge
19. celebrity
20. circle
21. gentle
22. medicine
23. orange
24. decide
25. tragic
Fun With PH (p. 36)
Match It!
morph – to change to another form
phobia – fear
phenomenon – an exceptional thing or event
bibliography – a list of books
geography – study of Earth’s physical features
photograph – camera picture
telephone – communication device
pharmacy – drugstore
Philadelphia – city in Pennsylvania
biography – life story
graph – diagram that shows data
pharaoh – Egyptian ruler
phony – fake
phase – stage of development
phrase – a few words together
physical – of a material thing
Commonly Confused Words (pp. 39–42)
Round 1 (p. 39)
5. They’re
1. to, too
6. There, they’re
2. Two
7. You’re
3. Two, too, to
8. Your
4. Their, there
Round 2 (p. 40)
1. all ready
2. all ready
3. already
4. all ready
5. Write
6. right
7. Write, right
8. right
9. Where
10. where
11. wear
12. Wear
13. threw
14. through
15. through
16. threw
17. then
18. then
19. than
20. than
Round 3 (p. 41)
1. hole
2. whole
3. hole
4. whole
5. break
6. brake
7. Brake
8. break
9. No
10. know
11. know
12. no
13. knew
14. knew
15. new
16. piece
17. piece
18. peace
Round 4 (p. 42)
1. whether
2. weather
3. whether
4. weather
5. except
6. accept
7. Accept
8. except
9. hear
10. here
11. Here
12. hear
13. plain
14. plain
15. plane
16. plain
17. past
18. passed
19. passed
20. past
Commonly Confused Crossword (p. 43)
3
2
1
W R I T E
K
4
B R A K E
H
H
N
5
6
7
8
H O L E
W E A R
K N E W
PH Word Search
R
E
W
N
9
13
E
10
P A S T
14
H
K
N E W
R
T WO
H
16
Y O U ‘ R E
O
15
17
R
P L A I N
20
22
T H E Y ‘ R E
21
24
E
26
T H E I R
E
30
48
A
27
P L A N E
I
E
C
T H E R E
11. Philadelphia 16. pharaohs
17. morph
12. nymph
18. geography
13. phase
14. telephone
15. phantom
19
W H E T H E R
A
E
D
A
T H R O U G H
O
O
E
12
A L R E A D Y
O
T
L
U
H
L
R
E
R
11
18
L
E
G
H
23
What’s the PH Word? (p. 37)
6. phenomenon
1. biography
2. arachnophobia 7. photograph
8. bibliography
3. phrase
9. graph
4. pharmacy
10. phony
5. Physical
9. Your, you’re
10. It’s
11. its
12. it’s
X
P E A C E
E
A
P
S
25
28
S
I T
A C C E P T
D
S
‘ S
29
Quickie Quiz: Confused Words (p. 44)
It’s; to; whole; plane; break; weather; too; to; peace; two; knew;
hear; whether; too; to; through; past; two; to; to; here; right;
there; knew; write; There; where; past; plane; through; It’s; here;
all ready; too; Where; You’re; You’re
No Boring Practice, Please! Spelling
© Harold Jarnicki, Scholastic Teaching Resources