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Year 2 - English

New 'or' spellings, including 'ore', 'ough' and 'a'

Alternative GPCS for consonants and homophones

Unit Summary

In this unit, pupils learn to spell homophones, near-homophones and new consonant spellings.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to use three new spellings for the 'or' phoneme: 'ore', 'ough' and 'a'.

Key Notes

  • 'ore' is a representation of the 'or' phoneme that usually comes at the end of a word, such as more.
  • 'ough' and 'a' are alternative spellings of the 'or' phoneme.
  • The 'or' phoneme is usually spelt as 'a' before 'l' or 'll'.
  • Most words using the 'ough' spelling are past tense verbs.
  • How to spell the common exception words: water, always, walk and talk.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • digraph: two letters that represent one sound
  • trigraph: three letters that represent one sound
  • verb: a doing or being word
  • past tense: show the action happened before now

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • Children can mix up the meaning of 'bought' and 'brought'.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

1. Explain this English learning goal in two key points.

'ore' is a representation of the 'or' phoneme that usually comes at the end of a word, such as more. 'ough' and 'a' are alternative spellings of the 'or' phoneme.

2. Define this language term and use it in a sentence. 'digraph'

two letters that represent one sound.

3. Correct this common English misunderstanding.

Mistake: Children can mix up the meaning of 'bought' and 'brought'. Correction: Say the words in sentences several times to establish the meaning, and link to the present tense 'buy' and bring'.

More Lessons In This Unit

Browse all guides in the Year 2 English guide library.