1. Spelling for Older Students
SOS
Lesson 27 Yy and Xx
Created for SPELD SA by Jan Polkinghorne

2. Sounds in a word y-ar-n 4 y-e-l-oe 4
Say the names of these pictures. Use your fingers to count how many sounds in each word. NOTE that is sounds not letters.
Click for answers
y-ar-n y-e-l-oe 4

3. Rhyming words. Find words to rhyme with each of these.6
six
fix
mix
sticks
licks
kicks
picks
ticks
yellow
bellow
fellow
mellow

4. What is the same about all these pictures? Say the words aloud.6
Yellow box have x in them:- mix, fix , exam, fox, fax, exit, box, x-ray, six.
Blue box start with y: yoyo, yellow, yell, yak, yawn, yogurt, yacht.
Click the box for the answer.

5. Sort all of your bottle top letters into vowels and consonants.
X is a consonant. All letters in our alphabet belong to one of two groups
s and z are formed the same way except that z is voiced while s is unvoiced.
yoyo y = consonant
Y can be a vowel or a consonant depending on its position in a word or syllable and the sound it makes.
When it is at the beginning of a word or syllable as in yoyo it is a consonant.
When it is on the end of a word or syllable and sounds like ie or ee it is a vowel:- my, cherry. Except words ending in ay will sound like y on the end day, play, say.
Sort all of your bottle top letters into vowels and consonants.
We need to know whether a letter is a vowel or consonant to help us apply spelling rules.

6. Use your ears and listen carefully.
Complete the requirements for the next screen before proceeding. See Instructions.
Use your ears and listen carefully.

7. It is lunchtime, and Yasmin, Ron and Yamal are having something to eat
It is lunchtime, and Yasmin, Ron and Yamal are having something to eat. Yamal eats his sandwiches quickly so that he can play with his yo-yo. Yasmin’s mum has given her some yogurt. “That looks nice,” says Ron. “Yes, it is,” says Yasmin. “I chose it when we went shopping on Saturday. It’s a banana yogurt. I love yellow.” “Can I try some?” asks Ron. “Yes,” says Yasmin. “That’s nice,” says Ron, “a yummy, yellow yogurt!”
Note the y on the end of Saturday sounds like y but most times when y is on the end it sounds like ie or ee.

8. Note cks, kes and ks also sound like x.
Max and Ti are playing. They are pretending to be spacemen. Max, the alien, chases Ti, the astronaut, up a tree. Ti falls out of the tree and breaks his arm. His Dad takes him and Max to hospital, where Ti has an x-ray. Ti has to keep his arm very still while they take six x-rays The nurse plasters his arm so that he cannot move it and the bones will fix properly.
Note cks, kes and ks also sound like x.

9. How to write the letters ‘v V’
Linked script is far better to write than printing. It is faster, easier, more comfortable to write for long periods and your brain learns the words better if they are linked. 2 1
Y y X x
X-ray 1

10. Sort these words into three groups:- y sounds like y , y sounds like ie, y sounds like ee
my yoyo yellow cherry berry fly yogurt try sky merry very by yes every yawn funny shy sty silly cry why yak sunny spy yell
y = y
y sounds like ie
y sounds like ee
yellow
my cry
cherry sunny
yogurt
fly why
berry
yes
try spy
merry
yoyo
sky
very
yell by
every
yawn
shy
silly
yak
sty
funny
Click for the answers

11. How many words can you make using these letters
How many words can you make using these letters? l, s, c, y, k, n, v, e, a, x, i You may use a letter as many times as you like in a word. What is the longest word you can make?
You might be able to apply the doubling rule if you think of longer words.

12. Tricky Words – non phonetic
Click to reveal the word
Tricky Words – non phonetic
Click to reveal the word
could
should
Click to reveal the word
would

13. Time to revise set 27 Tricky Words
Revision
Time to revise set 27 Tricky Words

14. Instructions.
Slide 2 counting sounds in a word. The answer is frequently not the same as the number of letters in the word.
Slide 3 Rhyming words
Slide 4 Hearing x and y sound.
Slide 5– knowing vowels and consonants is vital for learning spelling rules. Multisensory learning (feeling the formation of a sound) is useful for many students. Rule 1: If the short vowel pronunciation doesn’t work to make a word try the long vowel. Y can be a vowel or a consonant depending on the sound it makes. Y as in yes is a consonant. Y sounds like ie or ee on the end of words or syllables are vowels.
Slide 6 , 7 . Read the stories for x and y aloud. Ask each student to keep a tally of how many x and y sounds they hear in each story. Compare results. They need to use ears not eyes. Hand each student a copy of the story. Read it aloud again and have students mark each ‘y and x’ sound as they go.
Slide 8–writing x and y and linking. Handwriting I have used Sego Script because it is freely available on most computers . Research is now showing that linked script is more ergonomic and helps with retention of spelling. Many prospective employers are expecting job applications to be handwritten and many exams have to be handwritten. It is still a necessary skill.
Slide 9- Listening activity to work out the three sounds of y.
Slides 10 How many words can students make?
Slide 11 and 12 Tricky words. These words are high frequency, often non phonetic and have to be learnt by rote for both spelling and reading. Spell with alphabet names. Do not sound.