How to Teach the Suffix ed
The suffix <ed> spells three sounds: /Id, t, d/. In this lesson, you’ll find a learning video, spelling exercises, a sample word list, and decodable passage. It will take a few days to get through this one!
First, teach students to read words that end in the suffix <ed>.
When I teach the suffix <ed>, I teach one sound at a time. If we are studying the suffix <ed> that sounds like /Id/ after a t or a d, we start with reading a few words with that ending sound. I introduce the sound with the video, model how to read, and then allow the student to practice.
After the student reads a few words, you can create a chart with three columns for spelling practice. Your students can quickly jot the chart down in their student journals. You can also practice spelling with word matrices such as the ones in step 2.
After the introduction of the video, the individual practice in decoding, and the spelling exercises is the decodable story that is shared below. You will find that it primarily contains words with short-vowel sounds because up to this point, that is what the student has learned. We take our time building solid skills in reading short-vowel words before moving on to long-vowels.
1. Practice Reading
- Play the video with audio.
- Instruct the student to listen and repeat.
- Restart the video from the beginning and mute the audio.
- Instruct the student to practice reading.
- Provide support as needed.
All words in the video contain one short vowel sound and the <ed> suffix. Mute the audio if you would rather be the one to model the reading.
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2. Teach Students How to Spell Words With the Suffix <ed>
Walk the student through setting up the matrix like the ones shown below. Then take the base word and add one suffix at a time to teach the spelling rules. It may take you more than 1 session to complete the matrices. In our Viva Phonics curriculum, we have already introduced the suffix <s> and <ing> so we include these in our word matrices.
Double the Consonant Flowchart
Do not double <w, x, y>.
Explained in the video – If the last two letters of the base are 1 vowel and 1 consonant, double the last consonant. This protects the short-vowel sound in the base word. If there are already two consonants that follow the vowel, you do not need to double. Do not double w, x, or y.
If you don’t feel comfortable using matrices for spelling you can follow this routine:
Say the word, “stopped.”
What is the base? The student says, “stop.”
Spell the base. The student spells the base.
Add the suffix. The student adds the suffix to the base.
How do you spell “stopped?” The student spells the word out loud.
Some students do not need each step while others appreciate the step-by-step spelling cues.
Matrix 1
melt + s → melts
melt + ing → melting
melt + ed → melted
Matrix 2
jog + s → jog
jog + ing → jogging
jog + ed → jogged
Matrix 3
jump + s → jumps
jump + ing → jumping
jump + ed → jumped
One of the issues I was having when kids were faced with a word such as “hopping” and “hoping” was that they were unsure of what vowel sound applied. So now, I teach the suffix <ed> and spelling rule sooner. The spelling rule with short-vowel sounds is complex. The consonant is doubled in words where you have one vowel and one consonant letter in the final position. We learn this rule now because once we get to words that end in Silent e we have to learn a new spelling rule. That’s where we drop the final <e> before adding a new suffix if the suffix begins with a vowel. Sorting the rules in this way has reduced information overload and greatly improved reading and spelling for my students.
3. Practice With Suffix ed Word Lists
/Id/
acted
landed
rested
ended
melted
/d/
smelled
begged
planned
pinned
lived
/t/
hopped
jumped
skipped
kicked
flipped
4. Read a Short Passage
Tom Missed the Bus
Tom asked his mom for a bus pass.
He planned to get on and go to class.
But when the bus stopped, Tom jumped up.
And when Tom jumped, he dropped his cup!
It landed with a thud and crunched as it fell.
The cup was busted as far as Tom could tell.
The bus went on as he picked up the glass.
Tom missed the bus, so he skipped to class.
Introduce the passage and allow the student to read as many times as necessary to achieve smooth reading.
Fluency Tip
Read the passage aloud first. This allows the student to hear the new vocabulary, facilitating the reading of unfamiliar words.
Calculate accuracy
1. When the student is reading, keep track of the number of errors. You can either use tally marks or write the actual words. Writing the words will be useful in reviewing.
2. Subtract the errors from the total and record the number of words read correctly.
correct number of words/total number of words x 100 = accuracy percentage
Until next time, patience and practice! Angelica