WORD STUDY VOCABULARY
In Third Grade, you will participate in Word Study every week. Word Study is a way to study the way words are put together. You will learn about the patterns and sounds that make up words, and be able to apply those same patterns and sounds to new words. You will need to know some special vocabulary that will be used this year. Here is a list:
V - ‘V’ stands for ‘vowel’ – a,e,i,o,u, sometimes y
C – ‘C’ stands for ‘consonant’ – all letters that are not vowels
The V and C are combined to refer to the pattern found within a word. For example, CVC means ‘consonant, vowel, consonant’ like in the word CAT or BUS. CVCe means ‘consonant, vowel, consonant, e’ like the word cake or size
Syllable – a single unit of speech, containing only one vowel sound
Syllable Juncture – the place in a word where two syllables meet; a word that is divided into syllables is divided at the juncture
Accent – in a multi-syllable word, one syllable is stressed more than the other – this is referred to as being “accented.”
// - when this symbol is around a letter or pattern, it means to focus on the sound that letter makes, not the letter itself.
Sorting – organizing words into groups based on similarities in their patterns or sounds
Oddball – words that do not follow the same pattern or sound
Types of sorts: You will sort your words nightly. Here are the different types of sorts you can do:
- Speed Sort - Using a stopwatch, student times themselves as they sort their words under the headers. Parent checks sort for correctness. The student repeats the timed sort several times trying to beat their own time. Repeated timed speed sorts help students internalize spelling patterns and become automatic in recognizing them.
- Blind Sort - Headers are laid down and students work with a partner or parent in a buddy sort. The parent calls out the word without showing it. The student indicates where the word should go. Then they look at the word card to check its spelling against the header.