When students learn to read, they create a psychological connection between the sounds of words and the sounds represented by letters.
Phonetic awareness teaches spelling patterns and spelling rules. It teaches a part of the word called a syllable. Learning a universal syllable pattern can help people become better readers and spellers.
Here are 14 rules for pronunciation in English.
Vowels in syllables
In English, syllables will consist of at least one vowel. Vowels can be fixed in syllables alone as in u•nit and a•i•mal. It can also be surrounded by consonants such as jets, nap•kin and fan•tas•tic.
Short vowel
Sound vowels make their position dependent on their position. For example, is there a consonant after a vowel? This helps determine whether the vowel sound is short or long: Go vs.
- When there is only one vowel in a syllable and followed by at least one consonant, the vowel usually makes a brief sound. Examples include On, Itching, MAS•COT, and WIS•CON•sin. This mode is called “closed syllables” because the consonant “turns off” the short vowel sound.
- When there is only one vowel and is at the end of the syllable, the vowel sounds are very long, such as He and Ban•Jo. This pattern is called “open syllable”.
The silent “e”
When “e” is the last letter in the word, and there is only another vowel in that syllable, the first vowel in that syllable is usually long, while E remains silent, such as Sales and •send. This syllable pattern is called “Vowel Homophonic-E”.
Some teachers call it the “silent E” rule. Some people call it the “Magic E” rule. E gives all its power to another vowel and makes that vowel use its long voice (“say the name”).
Consonant mixing and mining
Digraph is an AA word used in English, meaning there are two letters representing a sound. The consonant mining diagram is composed of two consonants that together form new sounds. Examples include Chap, Ship, Thin, Whiz, and Photo. Consonant mixtures are different. These two or more consonants work together. However, unlike Digraphs, their personal voices can still be heard when they are mixed together. Examples include clams, grips, and scrubs.
Vowel mining
In vowel mining, two vowels are adjacent to each other. The first vowel is long and has a name. The second vowel is silent, such as boats, paints and beaches.
Sometimes, two vowels form new sounds together. This is called Diphthong. Examples include clouds and boiling.
R controls vowel
When a syllable has a vowel, followed by “R”, the vowel will be “controlled” by R and make a new sound. Examples include cars, birds, bacteria, forms and injuries. This rule is sometimes called “Bossy R” because the R “Bossy” vowel makes a new sound.
“schwa” sound
Any vowel can make the sound of schwa; it sounds like a weak UH or IH. There are schwa sounds like and the last word. Some words have more than one schwa sound like apartments and bananas. This is the most common sound in English.
Soft C and hard C, soft G and hard G
A soft sound is usually made when the letter C is followed by the vowel E, I or Y. Examples of these are Cent, Circus, and Cyclone. In other vowels, the letter C makes a strong sound like a cat and a crib.
Similarly, a soft sound is usually made when the letter G is followed by the vowel E, I or Y. Examples of these are gels, giants and gyms. In other vowels, the letter G makes a strong sound, such as in gas, gorillas and yogurt.
“FSZL” (FIZZLE) rules
The letters F, S, Z and L are usually doubled at the end of a monosyllable word immediately after a short vowel. Examples include things, grass, fluff and shells. Exceptions include quizzes and buses.
Ending in k or ck
When a monosyllable word ends with /k/sound immediately after a short vowel, it is usually spelled with ck, such as ducks and tricks. /k/sound follows consonants, long vowel sounds or diphthong, usually spelled in k such as tasks, cakes, soaks and eagles.
/j/sound and /ch/sound
With a syllable word, when a/j/sound immediately follows a brief vowel, it is spelled as dge, such as badges, hedges, bridges, dodges and smudges. (D “Protect” vowel from the “Magic E” rule.)
With a syllable word, when a/ch/sound immediately follows a short vowel, it is usually spelled as tch, such as capture, obtain, stitch, spots and clutch. The exception to this rule is so, rich and which one.
Use -ing to put down E
When the word ends with a silent “e”, put “E” before adding -ing. Examples: Biking/biking, giving/donating and dodging/dodging. This rule also applies to other suffixes starting with vowels like -ED, -er, -able, and -ous. Examples: sad/sad, excitement/excitement and hope/hope.
double
In a word of a word, such as “win”, a short vowel is followed by a consonant, doubles the consonant, and then adds a suffix that begins with a vowel. Example: Winner, win, can win.
plural
For most words, add s to make it plural, such as in cat/cat. However, when a word ends in s, sh, ch, x, or z, add it to make its plural form, such as in class, brush, and fox.
y rules
To make the plural end with a vowel, then y, just add s, just like in a toy/toy. When y follows the consonant immediately, change y to i and add es. Examples: Family/Family, Pony/Pony and Treaty/Treaty.
The suffix follows a similar Y rule. When there is a vowel before y, leave y and add a suffix. Examples include play/play and annoying/annoying.
When a word ends with a consonant, then immediately change y to i, then add suffixes such as -ED and -est. Examples include carrying/carrying, happy/happiest.
However, when the suffix starts at i, keep y and add suffixes such as fly/fly and baby/childish.
Hopefully this helps to understand Phonic rules. Thank you for reading.
You may want to read: Logic of English pronunciation, Kinjo of roblox parents and teaching of humor
