Parent guide · Grade 2 Phonics & Reading: Syllables and Stories · Unit 5
Lesson 5.2 Suffixes: -ful, -less, -ness, -ly, -ment
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 thankful , helpful , hopeless . I can read the heart words eyes and say which part is learned by heart. I can read “Joseph Forgives His Brothers” and tell it back.
- You need
- An inch ruler
- 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 10 minutes))
Steps
Do this: A suffix goes on the end: -ful (full of), -less (without), -ness (being), -ly (in that way), -ment (the act or thing). thankful, helpless, kindness, gladly, payment.
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 thankful.
Say this: “Touch and say: /th/ /a/ /nk/ /f/ /u/ /l/.”
Say this: “Sweep your finger under the word and say the sounds again, faster, without stopping between them.”
Say this: “Say the word: thankful . Use it in a sentence.”
Answer: thankful
Show: Blend helpful.
Say this: “Touch and say: /h/ /e/ /l/ /p/ /f/ /u/ /l/.”
Say this: “Sweep your finger under the word and say the sounds again, faster, without stopping between them.”
Say this: “Say the word: helpful . Use it in a sentence.”
Answer: helpful
Do this: Your child does these with you. Let them try first; help only after a real try.
Ask: Read: thankful · helpful · hopeless · kindness
Listen for: thankful = th | a | nk | f | u | l; helpful = h | e | l | p | f | u | l; hopeless = h | o_e | p | l | e | ss (hope + less; the e of hope is silent); kindness = k | i | n | d | n | e | ss
Ask: Read: sadness · gladly · quickly · payment
Listen for: sadness = s | a | d | n | e | ss; gladly = g | l | a | d | l | y; quickly = qu | i | ck | l | y; payment = p | ay | m | e | n | t
Ask: Read: enjoyment · shipment · sweetness
Listen for: enjoyment = e | n | j | oy | m | e | n | t; shipment = sh | i | p | m | e | n | t; sweetness = s | w | ee | t | n | e | ss
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: Joseph showed kindness.
- 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: thankful, helpful, hopeless, kindness, sadness, gladly.
Word Sounds Heart part eyes /ī/ /z/ ♥ eye says /ī/ Joseph Forgives His Brothers
Long ago, Joseph’s brothers had sold him as a slave. But God was with Joseph, and in Egypt he became the ruler over all the land, second only to Pharaoh.
A famine came. There was no food in Canaan, so Jacob sent his sons to Egypt to buy grain. They bowed down to the ruler. They did not know it was Joseph! But Joseph knew them.
Joseph tested his brothers to see if they had changed. They had! When Benjamin was in trouble, Judah begged to be a slave in his place. Joseph could not hold back from crying. "I am Joseph!" he said.
His brothers were speechless and afraid. But Joseph spoke gently. "Do not be sad or angry with yourselves. God sent me here to save many people." He hugged each brother and wept. Joseph showed kindness instead of getting even. That is the way of God.
Retold from Genesis 42–45. Before reading, show your child these story words and read them together: Joseph, Egypt, Jacob, Benjamin, Canaan, Pharaoh, Judah, brothers, famine, sold, grain.
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.
- Why did the brothers come to Egypt?
Answer
To buy grain during the famine.
- Did they know Joseph?
Answer
No.
- How did Judah show his heart had changed?
Answer
He offered to be a slave in Benjamin’s place.
- What did Joseph say God had done?
Answer
Sent him to Egypt to save lives.
Then ask your child to tell the whole story back in his or her own words (narration).
- Why did the brothers come to Egypt?
Genesis 45:1–15. Read aloud.
The read-aloud is for listening, not decoding. Read it to your child at another time of day.
Make a spinner with -ful, -less, -ness, -ly, -ment. Spin and add the suffix to a base word card. Read it and use it in a sentence.
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 thankful , helpful , hopeless .; I can read the heart words eyes and say which part is learned by heart.; I can read “Joseph Forgives His Brothers” and tell it back.
The Lamplighter (Robert Louis Stevenson)
My tea is nearly ready and the sun has left the sky.
It's time to take the window to see Leerie going by;
For every night at teatime and before you take your seat,
With lantern and with ladder he comes posting up the street.This week: Steady pace. Do not race. Take a breath at the end of each line, then go on.
- 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 title and the poet, then the poem. Stand up and say it alone for the family.
Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life.
God used even evil for good.
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.”