‘le’ or ‘al’???
When you hear /l/ at the end of a word with more than one syllable, it is often difficult for children to know whether to write ‘l’, ‘ll’, ‘le’, ‘el’ or ‘al’. However, with some orthographic knowledge it is possible … Continued
The Role of ‘e’ on the End of Words
An ‘e’ on the end of words is there for a number of reasons. Most commonly it is part of a split digraph indicating that the vowel before the consonant will be pronounced as a long vowel sound (rat-rate, pet-Pete, … Continued
Haitch or Aitch?
Which is correct – haitch or aitch? This is a continuous issue of discussion and even the spelling is questionable given that the ‘t’ before ‘ch’ usually only occurs after a short vowel (e.g., batch, stitch, crutch) and ‘ai’ is … Continued
Two Vowels Go Walking Myth
Have you heard this rhyme? When two vowels go out walking, the first one does the talking. True, there are a number of double vowel combinations in which the vowel sound it represents is the same as the ‘name’ of … Continued
5 Quick Tips for Supporting Struggling Students
Tip 1: Teach the written language code. Tip 2: Be empathetic and patient. Tip 3: Celebrate errors and use them as a tool to understand the student’s thought processes. Tip 4: Provide meaningful success. Tip 5: Revise, revise, revise and … Continued