Parent guide · Grade 2 Phonics & Reading: Syllables and Stories · Unit 2
Lesson 2.3 Silent-e Syllables
Written for the parent. Read the Say this lines aloud as they are, or in your own words. Answers for you are marked Listen for.
At a glance
- Time
- 5 sessions of 15–20 minutes
- Goal
- I can tap and blend words such as inside , cupcake , sunshine . I can read the heart words beautiful and say which part is learned by heart. I can read “Jonah and the Vine” and tell it back.
- You need
- A few cups
- Heart-word cards (printables pack)
- Primary-ruled paper and a pencil
- A King James Bible
- the lesson page (it also has an explainer to read aloud (about 9 minutes))
Steps
Do this: A silent-e syllable has a vowel, a consonant and an e: in-side, cup-cake, sun-shine. Split, then read each part.
Do this: Tap and blend. For each word your child touches each letter (or letter team) and says its sound, then sweeps a finger under the whole word and says it smoothly. Never guess from the first letter or a picture. If a word is misread, point to the part that was missed and blend again from the start.
Do this: Spell it. Say a word. Your child says it back, taps the sounds on his or her fingers, then writes one letter (or letter team) for each sound. Check together, sound by sound.
Do this: Heart words. A heart word is mostly regular. We tap it like any other word, and draw a heart over the one part that does not follow the rules we know yet. Practise the heart words on cards every day this week (see the table below).
Do this: The week at a glance. Day 1: warm-up, new sound, handwriting. Day 2: card review, word lists, spelling. Day 3: second new sound or more words, heart words. Day 4: read the story, talk about it. Day 5: reread the story for fluency, play the game, quick check (10 words, 1 sentence, 5 spelling words). Read the read-aloud at another time of day.
Show: Blend inside.
Say this: “Touch and say: /i/ /n/ /s/ /i_e/ /d/.”
Say this: “Sweep your finger under the word and say the sounds again, faster, without stopping between them.”
Say this: “Say the word: inside . Use it in a sentence.”
Answer: inside
Show: Blend cupcake.
Say this: “Touch and say: /c/ /u/ /p/ /c/ /a_e/ /k/.”
Say this: “Sweep your finger under the word and say the sounds again, faster, without stopping between them.”
Say this: “Say the word: cupcake . Use it in a sentence.”
Answer: cupcake
Do this: Your child does these with you. Let them try first; help only after a real try.
Ask: Read: inside · cupcake · sunshine · reptile
Listen for: inside = i | n | s | i_e | d; cupcake = c | u | p | c | a_e | k; sunshine = s | u | n | sh | i_e | n; reptile = r | e | p | t | i_e | l
Ask: Read: mistake · compete · costume · bedtime
Listen for: mistake = m | i | s | t | a_e | k; compete = c | o | m | p | e_e | t; costume = c | o | s | t | u_e | m; bedtime = b | e | d | t | i_e | m
Ask: Read: explode · stampede
Listen for: explode = e | x | p | l | o_e | d; stampede = s | t | a | m | p | e_e | d
4 more practice items on the lesson page.
- Trying to read a long word all at once. Find the vowels, split the word into syllables, read each part, then put it together.
- Guessing from the first letter or the picture. Cover the picture and ask the child to tap every sound.
- Copy: God is gracious and merciful.
- Use the ball-and-stick lines: tall letters touch the top line, short letters touch the middle line, tails go below the base line.
Copywork: Write each word once, saying the sounds as you write: inside, cupcake, sunshine, reptile, mistake, compete.
Word Sounds Heart part beautiful /b/ /ū/ /t/ /ĭ/ /f/ /ŭl/ ♥ eau says /ū/ Jonah and the Vine
Jonah went to Nineveh at last and told the people, "God will destroy this city!" The people were sorry for their sins. They prayed, and God had mercy on them.
But Jonah was upset. He did not want God to save Nineveh. He went outside the city and made a little hut and sat in its shade to see what would happen.
God made a vine grow up beside Jonah to shade him from the sunshine. Jonah was glad of the vine. But at sunrise the next day, God sent a worm, and the vine died. The hot sun beat on Jonah’s head.
"You were sad about a vine," said God, "which you did not make or plant. Should I not have mercy on Nineveh, a great city full of people?" God has mercy on sinners who turn to Him.
Retold from Jonah 3–4. Before reading, show your child these story words and read them together: Jonah, Nineveh, city, vine, worm, eastside.
Every word in this story uses only the sounds and heart words taught so far (checked by the School Launch decodability checker). Read a page a day on Days 3 and 4, and the whole story on Day 5.
- What did the people of Nineveh do?
Answer
They repented and prayed.
- Why was Jonah upset?
Answer
He did not want God to save Nineveh.
- What happened to the vine?
Answer
A worm ate it and it died.
- What did God teach Jonah?
Answer
God cares for people and has mercy on sinners who repent.
Then ask your child to tell the whole story back in his or her own words (narration).
- What did the people of Nineveh do?
Jonah 3–4. Read aloud.
The read-aloud is for listening, not decoding. Read it to your child at another time of day.
Cards for in, side, cup, cake, sun, shine, bed, time. Join two to make a word and read it.
Say this: “Tell me the new sounds you learned this week, and read me one word.”
Listen for: I can tap and blend words such as inside , cupcake , sunshine .; I can read the heart words beautiful and say which part is learned by heart.; I can read “Jonah and the Vine” and tell it back.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
This week: Big voice. Speak so a person at the back of the room hears every word. Big, not shouting: fill the room, do not scream.
- Day 1: The teacher says it twice; the child echoes it one line at a time.
- Days 2–4: Say it together each morning; drop one line of help each day.
- Day 5: Say the reference, then the verse, then the reference again. Stand up and say it alone for the family.
for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil.
God is gracious and merciful.
Spread over the week
5 sessions of 15–20 minutes. Stop while it is still going well.
- Session 1. Warm-up, then teach the new idea (steps 1 and 2).
- Session 2. Warm-up again, then show how with the examples.
- Session 3. Practice together, then play the game.
- Session 4. More practice, handwriting and reading, and the daily habit.
- Session 5. Quick check: narration and a few practice items. Move on when it is mostly right.
For you
For families. Keep each session short and cheerful: 15 to 20 minutes, then stop. If your child is tired or frustrated, stop and finish tomorrow. A lesson can take more than a week; move on when the quick check on Day 5 is mostly “Got it.”