1. Open and Closed Syllable Patterns
Lesson 11

2. favor Listen to me read this word aloud.
How many syllables do you hear in this word? Hold up the number of fingers that show how many syllables you hear.
Where should the word be divided?
fa/vor- notice that this word breaks after the vowel and before the 2nd consonant
Everyone-Read aloud the 1st syllable- /fā/
When a syllable ends with a vowel sound, the syllable is usually pronounced with a long vowel sound. This is called an open syllable pattern.
Point out to students that it is called an open syllable because when we make vowel sounds our mouths are open- the sound is not being stopped by our teeth, lips, throat or tongue. Also, teachers might point out to students that the mark over the letter a in the syllable /fa/ - ā- is called a macron and means that the sound is long. Sometimes students will see these marks in texts and need to know what they mean.

3. visit Listen to me read this word aloud.
How many syllables do you hear in this word? Hold up the number of fingers that show how many syllables you hear.
Where should the word be divided?
vis/it- notice that this word breaks after the 2nd consonant and the syllable /vĭs/ has a short sound
Everyone-Read aloud the 1st syllable- /vĭs/
When a syllable ends with a consonant, the syllable is usually pronounced with a short vowel sound. This is called a closed syllable pattern.
Point out to students that this is called a closed syllable because the sound is being closed off somewhere (throat, tongue, teeth, lips). Teachers should also point out that the mark over the letter i- /ĭ / is called a breve and indicates that the vowel sound is short.

4. Remember…
If you are unsure how to pronounce a word, think about what you have learned about where to break a word into syllables.
Then, look at where the syllable breaks and try to determine if the syllable is open or closed.
If you are still unsure, try pronouncing the word with both a long and short sound and listen for a word you know.

5. Let’s try it together
Look at the words below. With your partner divide them into syllables. Decide whether each syllable is open or closed and whether the vowel sound is long or short.
fam i ly
family
recesses
cess es re
Harcourt leaves out an essential detail in regard to open syllables. While it is true that a syllable that ends in a vowel sound is an open syllable, the syllable usually only has a long sound if it is the syllable that receives the stress. An open unaccented (or unstressed syllable) will usually have a schwa sound rather than a long sound. Which is why in some of the above examples- like the word decorations- the letter o in the 2nd syllable is not pronounced with a long sound but has a schwa sound. The same thing applies to the 2nd syllable of family and navigation.
decorations
dec ra
tions o
nav
tion
navigation i ga

6. Try it on your own
With a partner look in your science or social studies book for four more multisyllabic words.
With your partner list the words you find and note whether the syllables follow the open or closed syllable pattern.
Exchange lists with another pair of partners and take turns reading aloud the words on the list.