Year 6 - English
Spelling words with the 'ee' sound spelt 'ie'
Letter strings, etymology and curriculum words
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This pupil-friendly study guide includes a unit summary, clear notes, common mistakes, and quick questions with answers.
Unit Summary
In this unit, pupils review and learn a wide range of Year 6 spellings, including letter strings, words with the suffixes -ant, -ance, -ent, -ence, -able and -ible, silent letters, French and Greek origin words, curriculum words and words that use the hyphen in two ways.
Lesson Summary
You will learn to spell words with the 'ee' sound spelt 'ie'.
Key Notes
- There are many ways to spell the 'ee' sound. 'ee', 'ea' and 'e-e' are the most common.
- Most words follow the rule: 'i' before 'e' except after 'c' where the sound is 'ee'.
- The 'ie' spelling can also break other learnt rules or be used when the sound is not 'ee'.
- The letter string 'ie' can represent a range of different sounds.
- How to spell the curriculum words: sufficient, variety and achieve.
Vocabulary To Learn
- phoneme: the smallest unit of sound that can change a word's meaning
- grapheme: the letter or group of letters that represent a sound (the spelling)
- letter string: a group of letters that are written together in a word
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- Some children may think a letter string can only represent one sound.
3 Quick Questions (With Answers)
1. Explain this English learning goal in two key points.
There are many ways to spell the 'ee' sound. 'ee', 'ea' and 'e-e' are the most common. Most words follow the rule: 'i' before 'e' except after 'c' where the sound is 'ee'.
2. Define this language term and use it in a sentence. 'phoneme'
the smallest unit of sound that can change a word's meaning.
3. Correct this common English misunderstanding.
Mistake: Some children may think a letter string can only represent one sound. Correction: Remind pupils of the key phonics principles: a sound can be represented by more than one letter, one sound can be represented by more than one spelling and one spelling can represent more than one sound. It is why the English language is so hard!
More Lessons In This Unit
- Recognising the different sounds made by the letter strings 'ough' and 'au' Study Guide
- Recognising the different sounds made by the letter strings "ou", "ear" and "ice" Study Guide
- Spelling key curriculum words Study Guide
- Spelling words from the Y5/6 curriculum list Study Guide
- Spelling words with French etymology Study Guide
- Spelling words with Greek and Latin etymology Study Guide
- Spelling words with the -able suffix Study Guide
- Spelling words with the -ible suffix Study Guide
- Spelling words with the 'ee' sound spelt 'ei' Study Guide
- Spelling words with the silent letters 'b', 'k', 'g', 'w' and 't' Study Guide
- Spelling words with the silent letters 'h', 'p', 'n', 'l' and 's' Study Guide
- Spelling words with the suffixes -ant and -ance Study Guide
- Spelling words with the suffixes -ent and -ence Study Guide
- Using hyphens to create adjectives Study Guide
- Using hyphens to join prefixes to root words Study Guide
Browse all guides in the Year 6 English guide library.