Spelling Mechanics Homeschool Word Study - Webs gh-Grade 6-1.… · letter. These words are the...

Spelling Mechanics Homeschool Word Study Level 6 Unit 1 ph, gh On the actual CD you will receive a .doc copy that can be manipulated to fit your personal word needs. Also, all files will be separated into unit folders, not on one PDF document and will be labeled as such. Please email me with any questions. Ann Cowan

Please note T=Teacher page; U=Student unit; K=Unit Key;

S=Sort; t=Unit test; Tk=Test Key. Labels used only on samples.

© 2009 Mattmann and Cowan Rev. 2012

mailto:[email protected]?subject=Spelling%20Mechanics%20Sample%20level%204%20Unit%205

© 2009 Mattmann and Cowan F

Unit 1: ph, gh

In this lesson students learn:

to differentiate between words that spell the /f/ sound with “ph” or “gh,” and

to review the idea that sometimes “gh” is silent.

Beginning the year: During this first week, give pretests of high frequency words to give the

students a beginning for their independent spelling list. In correcting these tests, print the correct

spellings next to the words. Students will copy these into their Personal Word List section of

their spelling notebook. They will build five-word lists from these. For very good spellers who

are getting few wrong, they can draw their five word lists from the sorts in the lesson (probably

from Level C). You will gather from their writing as well. Some will always need to supplement

their lists from the high level sorts because they are good spellers overall. They can also keep an

eye out for challenging words they come across in their reading to add to their lists.

First year of implementation:

We recommend that students have a background in how English developed. In this unit, students

are referred to the Anglo-Saxons. There is an interesting activity in Grade 5 (Level E), Unit 2 in

which students explore the lives of the early speakers of English through the words they used

(and which we still use today.) Before beginning this unit, your students might benefit from

doing the part of that fifth grade unit in which they delve into dictionaries with etymologies to

find old words the Anglo-Saxons used.

Unit 2 is the first lesson this year where Greek and Latin roots and prefixes are stressed. To

understand how these languages play a part in English, you may wish to present the entire unit or

parts of the fifth grade (level E) unit 8 (meaningful chunks from Greek and Latin) and fifth grade

unit 15 (etymologies).

We recommend the American Heritage Student Dictionary for grades 5 and 6. This dictionary

has etymologies for many, but not all, of the words. It is also recommended that you make at

least one copy of a high school dictionary, which has etymologies for every word, available to

your students. American Heritage also publishes a high school dictionary.

Lesson Focus

The “ph” and “gh” patterns remind us of how language reflects the people who speak it.

The “gh” is very much an Anglo-Saxon pattern. It’s found in basic, everyday words like fight,

ghost, laugh, and daughter. The Greeks brought much more complex ideas and words to the

language and the “ph” spelling along with its /f/ sound. The Anglo-Saxons knew of fighting and

winning; the Greeks spoke of “triumph.”

“Haughty” comes from an Old French word, haut, meaning ”high.” Old French was the

language of the Normans who invaded England. If the Anglo-Saxons had no word for such an

attitude, the ruling class of Normans brought it to them.

© 2009 Mattmann and Cowan F

A. Guide students through Part A.

B. Let students do Part B on their own later. Skip to Part C with class.

C. Work through Part C together.

D. As a test of understanding, use the following categories of word types for a class sort.

You may write them on the board or copy and cut out the categories at the end of this

document.

/f/ at beginning /f/ at end, plain word /f/ at end, fancy word silent ”gh” at the

middle or end

Randomly read the words from Sort A to the class. Find these words at the end of this

document to copy and cut out. Which category would they put the word in based on the

sounds?

E. Have children continue with unit independently.

Reference Section: Students cut out the chart in Part B and paste it in their notebooks.

Sorts: Students will be given their own level of words for this unit’s sorts. For parts one and two,

you might wish to have students who are working on the same sort pair up to give practice with

their own words.

The level C sort has many difficult words. You may wish to have students who would use this

sort choose a portion of the words to study in order to learn meanings and usage.

Student Sorts: All words in the student sorts are from Greek except for those mentioned below:

enough, cough, laugh, taught, fought,

caught, thigh, rough (all O.E.)

thorough (M.E.)

camphor (Arabic)

cipher (Arabic)

decipher (Arabic)

gopher (French)

typhoon (Chinese)

Differentiation: The student sorts A, B, and C may be given to the appropriate students for

study.

Integrating Sorts into the Classroom Routine Word sorting is most effective if time is taken to discuss what students are noticing and what

they are learning as they do word sorts. Rarely is it enough just to have the students sort words

on their own with no discussion. Once the word study discovery lesson has been taught and

students are working independently, it is helpful to meet with your sort groups, one group at a

time. (See General Teacher Resources for a document on types of word sorts and directions for

doing them.)

What can be done during a sort meeting?

Go through a sort the children have already done and have them check their sort as the

group reports which words go in each category and why. The teacher may write the sort

© 2009 Mattmann and Cowan 1-4 F

on a whiteboard as the children call out words. Errors can be corrected; this first sort

serves as a way for children to check themselves in subsequent sorts.

You can sort together, especially the Level A group or any group whenever the skill

warrants it. Have the children bring their cut out sort words to the small group. After

placing the categories, they take turns finding a word and placing it correctly while

explaining to the group the reason for their choice. Students may write the sort in their

notebook as they do this.

Go through definitions, especially with Sort C. Discuss how the words would be used in

sentences. You might also have a “dictionary party” and look up words in the small

group.

Depending on your children’s needs, meet with sort groups to go over difficult parts of

the unit.

What will other children do while you meet with a sort group?

They can work on other word study work: complete the spelling unit, do their first sort,

build a personal word list, or play a spelling game. Sort C students, especially, can look

up unknown words in the dictionary, and prepare for their sort meeting to go over word

meanings.

During an independent work time, students may work on any other academic work

while you meet with sort groups.

Silent Reading time is an ideal time to meet with a sort group. You would rotate this so

the same group is not missing this valuable reading time.

Launch Pad Previous Lessons for

Re-teaching or Practice

Gr.5-Units 7 & 8 (-ion)

Gr. 5-Unit 5 (Silent Letters)

Gr. 5-Unit 4 (I Before E)

History of English-General Sixth Grade Resources folder

Gr. 5-Unit 2 Old English

Gr. 5-Unit 9 Putting Words Together in Meaningful Chunks

Gr. 5-Unit 16 Etymology

Web Look, Cover, Write, Check (click on “ph” and “igh”)

Online Etymology Dictionary

http://www.amblesideprimary.com/ambleweb/lookcover/lookcover.html

http://www.etymonline.com/abbr.php


/f/ at beginning

/f/ at end, plain word

/f/ at end, fancy word

silent ”gh” at the

middle or end

gh ph

graph gopher

dolphin elephant


paragraph pamphlet

taught fought

Silent gh beginning

hyphen telephone

nephew orphan

sphere enough

caught thigh

middle end

earphone phrase

trophy triumph


cough laugh

rough thorough


Unit 1: ph and gh

A. Words beginning with “ph”

Find 10 words in the dictionary that begin with ‘ph’

and have an etymology listed. Write the word and a

brief definition, either from the dictionary or from your knowledge. Tell from

what language the word comes originally. Work in pairs or on your own.

Word Brief Definition Original Language

What do you notice about origin of these words? ______________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________


B. A New Language

English is actually a Germanic language. The Angles, Saxons, and Jutes who came to

Britain originally came from Germany and Denmark. The longer they were away from their

homeland, the more their language changed, gradually sounding less like German. Eventually

they thought of themselves as Britons rather than Germans.

You will notice that early English words (Anglo-Saxon or Old English) have German

sounds. When you pronounce the Old English word in the dictionary, you will pronounce every

letter. These words are the oldest English words and we still use many of them, though the

pronunciation has changed. This means the letters in the words don’t always match the way the

word is spoken which sometimes makes spelling them a challenge.

Words Containing “gh” and “ph”

Word Original Language Word Original Language

enough elephant

tough triumph

laugh paragraph

daughter trophy

fought (use the origin of “fight” here) alphabet

Think back to the Anglo-Saxons, simple people who spoke words they needed for everyday life.

What kind of words in the chart above are from Old English? (Don’t just list the words.)

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

What do you notice about the pronunciation of ‘gh’ in these words?_______________________

______________________________________________________________________________

What kind of words are the ‘ph’ words compared with the Old English words?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________


C. Etymology:

Look up “haughty” in the dictionary and explain its history: _____________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

The ‘gh’ is silent in this word, and many Old English words have this silent ‘gh’ which used to

be pronounced. However, this word isn’t Old English. Explain why it makes sense that the word

isn’t Old English and comes from the language that it does. (Remember your history of Engl ish!)

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

PART ONE —Missing Parts Choose 5 words from your sort. Leave out the “ph” or “gh.” You may also leave

out letters immediately before or after “ph” or “gh.” Then write a definition. See

if a partner can figure out your word and write the entire word in the last column.

Definition Clue Word My Partner’s Guess

Success or victory trium**

PART TWO— Matching

Write 10 words (from your sort) that are different from Part One in the “Word Box.” List 10

definitions in mixed order on the “Definitions” lines. Have a partner write words from the word

box in the correct blanks.

Word Box


Definition (Mix up the order!)

My Partner’s Guess

PART THREE—Review of “ion”

A. Write the base word of the following words in the blank.

1. competition ________________________

2. definition ________________________

3. opposition ________________________

4. imagination ________________________

5. proposition ________________________

How do you add ‘ion’ to base words that end in silent ‘e?’ ______________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

B. Write the base word of the following words in the blank.

1. prevention ________________________

2. digestion ________________________

3. direction ________________________

What do you notice about adding “ion” to these roots? _________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

C. Fill in the chart, following the pattern.


How do you add “ion” to words ending in “it?” _______________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

PART FOUR—Silent Letters

A. Put a suffix on the following words that will make the silent letter say its name.

sign 1. What ______________________ will the catcher give the pitcher?

crumb 2. This flaky cookie will ______________________ when I bite into it.

design 3. The teacher will ______________________ someone to collect the test papers.

bomb 4. The rock star’s fans will ________________ him with requests for autographs.

muscle 5. Preparing for the triathlon made the athlete’s body even more______________.

B. Put a suffix on the following words that will make the last consonant lose its sound.

moist 6. I will ________________ this cloth and put it on your feverish forehead.

soft 7. Soaking chicken bones in vinegar will ________________ them.

haste 8. Put fertilizer in the soil to ________________ the plant’s growth.

fast 9. Be sure to lock the front door; I will ________________ the back door.

PART FIVE—“I before E”

Write “ie” or “ei” in the short blank. Then rewrite the entire word in the long blank.

1. cash____r 1. _________________________

2. d____sel 2. _________________________

3. counterf____t 3. _________________________

4. gr____vance 4. _________________________

admit admission

permit _________________________

_________________________ commission

_________________________ submission


5. surv____llance 5. _________________________

6. polterg____st 6. _________________________

7. dec____ve 7. _________________________

8. fahrenh____t 8. _________________________

PART SIX—What’s the Big Idea?

Write about your understanding of this unit’s patterns.

Your topic sentence should be general. What are the patterns and what sounds do

they make?

How are the patterns similar and different? Include language origins, where they

can be found in words, the role of the word meanings

Include examples after each rule part. Don’t wait until the end!

Use phrases like “for example,” “a word that shows this is,” “such as,” “for

instance,” “to illustrate,” and “including.”

Your conclusion should sound finished and should echo the ideas in the topic

sentence.

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________


Unit 1: ph and gh

A. Words beginning with

“ph”

Find 10 words in the dictionary that begin with ‘ph’ and

have an etymology listed. Write the word and a brief definition, either from the

dictionary or from your knowledge. Tell from what language the word comes

originally. Work in pairs or on your own.

Word (samples) Brief Definition Original Language

phaeton

phalanx

phantasm

phantom

pharmacy

phase

pheasant

phenomenon

philanthropy

phlox

What do you notice about origin of these words? They’re Greek


B. A New Language

English is actually a Germanic language. The Angles, Saxons, and Jutes who came to

Britain originally came from Germany and Denmark. The longer they were away from their

homeland, the more their language changed, gradually sounding less like German. Eventually

they thought of themselves as Britons rather than Germans.

You will notice that early English words (Anglo-Saxon or Old English) have German

sounds. When you pronounce the Old English word in the dictionary, you will pronounce every

letter. These words are the oldest English words and we still use many of them, though the

pronunciation has changed. This means the letters in the words don’t always match the way the

word is spoken, which sometimes makes spelling them a challenge.

Words containing “gh” and “ph”

Word Original Language Word Original Language

enough Old English elephant Greek

tough Old English triumph Greek

laugh Old English paragraph Greek

daughter Old English trophy Greek

fought (use the origin of “fight” here)

Old English

alphabet Greek

Think back to the Anglo-Saxons, simple people who spoke words they needed for everyday life.

What kind of words in the chart above are from Old English? (Don’t just list the words.)

They’re simple words for every day use.

What do you notice about the pronunciation of ‘gh’ in these words?_It is either the /f/

sound at the end of the word, or it is silent in the middle of the word.

What kind of words are the ‘ph’ words compared with the Old English words? They’re for

fancier ideas that the Anglo-Saxons wouldn’t have used.


C. Etymology:

Look up “haughty” in the dictionary and explain its history: Comes from the Old French word

meaning “high.”

The ‘gh’ is silent in this word, and many Old English words have this silent ‘gh’ which used to

be pronounced. However, this word isn’t Old English. Explain why it makes sense that the word

isn’t Old English and comes from the language that it does. (Remember your history of English!)

“Haughty” isn’t the kind of everyday word the Anglo-Saxons would have needed. The

Normans brought it to England when they invaded.

PART ONE —Missing Parts Choose 5 words from your sort. Leave out the “ph” or “gh.” You may also leave

out letters immediately before or after “ph” or “gh.” Then write a definition. See

if a partner can figure out your word and write the entire word in the last column.

Definition Clue Word My Partner’s Guess

Success or victory trium**

PART TWO— Matching

Write 10 words (from your sort) that are different from Part One in the “Words” box. List 10

definitions in mixed order on the “Definitions” lines. Have a partner write words from the word

box in the correct blanks.

Word Box


Definition (Mix up the order!)

My Partner’s Guess

PART THREE—Review of “ion”

A. Write the base word of the following words in the blank.

6. competition compete

7. definition define

8. opposition oppose

9. imagination imagine

10. proposition propose

How do you add ‘ion’ to base words that end in silent ‘e?’ Change the silent “e” to “i” or

“a” and add “tion.”

B. Write the base word of the following words in the blank.

4. prevention prevent

5. digestion digest

6. direction direct

What do you notice about adding “ion” to these roots? You just add “ion.”


C. Fill in the chart, following the pattern.

admit admission

permit permission

commit commission

submit submission

How do you add “ion” to words ending in “it?” Change the “t” to “ss” and add “ion.”

PART FOUR—Silent Letters

A. Put a suffix on the following words that will make the silent letter say its name.

sign 1. What signal will the catcher give the pitcher?

crumb 2. This flaky cookie will crumble when I bite into it.

design 3. The teacher will designate someone to collect the test papers.

bomb 4. The rock star’s fans will bombard him with requests for autographs.

muscle 5. Preparing for the triathlon made the athlete’s body even more muscular.

B. Put a suffix on the following words that will make the last consonant lose its sound.

moist 6. I will moisten this cloth and put it on your feverish forehead.

soft 7. Soaking chicken bones in vinegar will soften them.

haste 8. Put fertilizer in the soil to hasten the plant’s growth.

fast 9. Be sure to lock the front door; I will fasten the back door.

PART FIVE—“I before E”

Write “ie” or “ei” in the short blank. Then rewrite the entire word in the long blank.

9. cash____r 1. cashier

10. d____sel 2. diesel

11. counterf____t 3. counterfeit


12. gr____vance 4. grievance

13. surv____llance 5. surveillance

14. polterg____st 6. poltergeist

15. dec____ve 7. deceive

16. fahrenh____t 8. fahrenheit

PART SIX—What’s the Big Idea?

Write about your understanding of this unit’s patterns.

Your topic sentence should be general. What are the patterns and what sounds do

they make?

How are the patterns similar and different? Include language origins, where they

can be found in words, the role of the word meanings

Include examples after each rule part. Don’t wait until the end!

Use phrases like “for example,” “a word that shows this is,” “such as,” “for

instance,” “to illustrate,” and “including.”

Your conclusion should sound finished and should echo the ideas in the topic

sentence.

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________


Level A

Directions: Sort by ph and gh letter pattern AND THEN whether the pattern is in the beginning, middle or at the end.

gh ph Silent gh beginning middle end

graph gopher hyphen telephone earphone phrase

dolphin elephant nephew orphan trophy triumph

paragraph pamphlet sphere enough cough laugh

taught fought caught thigh rough thorough

Word Sort 2: Hear It! Sort It!

Directions: Work with a partner. Write your patterns across the top row. Your partner will read a word to you. Listen for the patterns in each

word. Tell your partner which pattern the word follows. He or she will give you the word to place in the column you said. After all words are

sorted read each column and make changes if needed. Then switch roles. When you and your partner both finish sorting the words, write all the

words in each column on a piece of paper.


Level B



trophy triumph trough amphibian haughty slaughter

physical sapphire sophomore graphite cipher decipher

emphasize geography biography prophecy sphinx symphony

pamphlet typhoon typhoid nymph triumphant pheasant






Level C




amphitheater apostrophe atmosphere physics cacophony phoenix

calligraphy choreograph chlorophyll ephemeral esophagus phenomenon

petroglyph hieroglyphics paraphrase philosophy periphery pharmacy

xylophone distraught fraught camphor euphoric sophisticated







Unit 1: ph, gh

Part 1 – My Words

1. ___________________________

2. ___________________________

3. ___________________________

4. ___________________________

5. ___________________________

Part 2 – Add “ph” or “gh” to the word and write the WHOLE word in the long blank.

1. trium____ (a victory)

1. __________________________

2. rou____ (not smooth)

2. __________________________

3. ____rase (part of a sentence)

3. __________________________

4. dau____ter (not my son)

4. __________________________

5. dol____in (like a fish) 5. __________________________

6. paragra____ (section of writing)

6. __________________________

Write the whole word for 7-10.

7. too chewy; this meat is very _________ 7. __________________________

8. past tense of “catch.” I _______ a fish. 8. __________________________

9. I have a cold; I have a bad ___________. 9. __________________________

10. It’s not funny, but still you ________. 10. __________________________


Part 3–Add “ion” or “tion.” Write the WHOLE word. Don’t forget to make letter changes

if necessary!

1. admire ___________________________ 6. prevent ___________________________

2. compete___________________________ 7. permit ___________________________

3. admit ___________________________ 8. digest ___________________________

4. define ___________________________ 9. imagine ___________________________

5. direct ___________________________ 10. oppose ___________________________

Part 4– Silent Letters. Add the letters necessary to make the silent letter make its sound.

Write the WHOLE word in the sentence

sign 1. The morning alarm is a ______________________ to get up.

crumb 2. A cliff will ______________________ over hundreds of years of weather.

design 3. Will you ______________________ someone to lead us to art class?

bomb 4. A young child will ______________________ you with questions.

muscle 5. Walking makes your legs more________________________.

Part 5 – ei and ie

Use the “clue” letters to help you. Write the WHOLE new word in the blank.

1. r_____ns ___________________ 6. perc____ve ___________________

2. h____ght ___________________ 7. counterf____t ___________________

3. p____ce ___________________ 8. d____sel ___________________

4. br____f ___________________ 9. cash____r ___________________

5. rec____ve ___________________ 10. w____gh ___________________


Unit 1: ph, gh

Part 1 – My Words

1. ___________________________

2. ___________________________

3. ___________________________

4. ___________________________

5. ___________________________

Part 2 – Add “ph” or “gh” to the word and write the WHOLE word in the long blank.

1. trium____ (a victory)

1. triumph

2. rou____ (not smooth)

2. rough

3. ____rase (part of a sentence)

3. phrase

4. dau____ter (not my son)

4. daughter

5. dol____in (like a fish) 5. dolphin

6. paragra____ (section of writing)

6. paragraph

Write the whole word for 7-10.

7. too chewy; this meat is very _________ 7. tough

8. past tense of “catch.” I _______ a fish. 8. caught

9. I have a cold; I have a bad ___________. 9. cough

10. It’s not funny, but still you ________. 10. laugh


Part 3–Add “ion” or “tion.” Write the WHOLE word. Don’t forget to make letter changes

if necessary!

1. admire admiration 6. prevent prevention

2. compete competition 7. permit permission

3. admit admission 8. digest digestion

4. define definition 9. imagine imagination

5. direct direction 10. oppose opposition

Part 4– Silent Letters. Add the letters necessary to make the silent letter make its sound.

Write the WHOLE word in the sentence

sign 1. The morning alarm is a signal to get up.

crumb 2. A cliff will crumble over hundreds of years of weather.

design 3. Will you designate someone to lead us to art class?

bomb 4. A young child will bombard you with questions.

muscle 5. Walking makes your legs more muscular.

Part 5 – ei and ie

Use the “clue” letters to help you. Write the WHOLE new word in the blank.

1. r_____ns reins 6. perc____ve perceive

2. h____ght height 7. counterf____t counterfeit

3. p____ce piece 8. d____sel diesel

4. br____f brief 9. cash____r cashier

5. rec____ve receive 10. w____gh weigh

Spelling Mechanics Homeschool Word Study - Webs gh-Grade 6-1.… · letter. These words are the...

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