Name: ___________________________________
Word Study: Words to Know
Vowel – a, e, i, o, u (sometimes y)
o Every word, in fact every syllable, needs a vowel.

Long vowels say their name:
o
o
o
o
o
A says “aye” like alien.
E says “e” like equal.
I says “eye” like ice.
O says “oh” like ocean.
U says “u” like unicycle.
 Short vowels do NOT say their name:
o
o
o
o
o
A says “aaah” like apple.
E says “eh” like elephant.
I says “ih” like igloo.
O says “ah” like olive.
U says “uh” like umbrella.
Consonant – All letters that are NOT vowels are consonants.
Consonants can be found
anywhere in a word.
Syllable – One or more letters that make up a spoken sound.

You can break a word into syllables by clapping along with the sounds as you say them.
You can also put your hand under your jaw and feel how many times your lower jaw
drops when you are saying the word. This is a VERY general way to break syllables!!
There are more specific rules, but will do for now.

Let’s try:
o Turtle – tur-tle (2 syllables)
o Fantastic – fan-tas-tic (3 syllables)
Schwa – This is a sound that ANY vowel can make.

It is the sound found in the unstressed
syllable of a word and it sounds like “uh”.
Examples:
o A in about.
o E in enemy.
o I in pencil.
o O in gallop.
o U in focus.
K. Feulner 2011
Syllable Types
There are six common syllable types. We will learn these throughout our word study
units this year. They are all defined here to help you as you work on each word study list. This
list will be particularly helpful for your Day 2 homework.
Syllable Type
Closed
CVC
Open
CV
VowelConsonant-e
VCe
Rule
-
This syllable has ONE vowel followed by
one or more consonants.
-
Vowel sound – SHORT
-
This syllable ends in a single (only one)
vowel.
There can be a consonant before the vowel.
-
Vowel sound – LONG
-
This syllable has ONE vowel, followed by
a consonant, with an “e” on the end.
This is syllable looks like a closed syllable
with an “e” on the end, but the “e” changes
to vowel sound.
-
Vowel sound – LONG
-
A group of two or three vowel OR a
vowel-consonant team that make their own
sound.
Sometimes two vowels together can make
the long sound of one of the vowels.
RAIN
PIE
TOY
A syllable with er, ir, or, ar, or ur.
This vowel-r team can also be followed by
an “e”.
The vowel makes a different sound than
usual before the “r”.
CAR
DEER
AIR
Vowel Team
-
-
Vowel-r
-
Consonant-le
C-le
Examples
-
This syllable ends with an “le”.
The “e” is silent.
-
IF there is a vowel in this syllable:
o Vowel sound – SCHWA
CAT
SOCK
BACKPACK
I
NO
SHE
SPY
BITE
MADE
HOPE
INCREDIBLE
GIGGLE
PUZZLE
K. Feulner 2011