Lesson video

Hello and welcome to today's spelling lesson.

I'm Mr. Moss.

I love spelling and I'm really looking forward to teaching you today.

With you today, you'll need to bring your looking eyes, your listening ears, and your thinking brains, obviously, as well as something to write with and write on, which will be really, really helpful and useful.

Right, let's not waste any more time and let's get into today's spelling lesson.

In this spelling lesson, we're going to be spelling words with the 'ee' sound spelt EI.

The outcome will be, "I can spell words with the 'ee' sound spell EI." Here are the keywords for today's learning.

My turn.

Your turn.

Phoneme.

Grapheme.

Letter string.

Exception.

So what do these words mean then? Well, a phoneme is a smallest unit of sound that can change a word's meaning.

And our focus phoneme today alongside others is going to be 'ee'.

A grapheme is a letter or group of letters that represent a sound.

You may have heard this referred to as the spelling.

A letter string is a group of letters that are written together in a word, and our focus letter string and spelling for today is EI.

And an exception is a case or situation that does not follow the usual or expected rule or pattern.

So here's the outline for today's learning.

We're spelling words with the 'ee' sound spelt EI, that 'ee' phoneme.

We're gonna begin by using both IE or EI and reviewing some rules.

And then we're going to look at other sounds represented by EI.

And we're gonna finally finish out the lesson with a very short section on spelling some curriculum words.

Let's get on then with using the IE or EI spellings.

So let's read these words.

Employee.

Dream.

Complete.

We.

Money.

Funnily.

Mischief.

Conceive.

So all of these words contain that 'ee' sound.

The 'ee' sound or phoneme can be represented with a variety of spellings or graphemes.

The spellings EE, EA, and E split E are the most common representations of this phoneme, this 'ee' sound.

However, we can see some other ones here, an E on its own, a Y, our IE, and our EI that we're gonna be focusing on in this learning cycle.

Our pronunciation of some words might vary based upon our accents.

For instance, how do you say mischief? Yeah, I say mischief, but you might say mischief.

And then it wouldn't have that 'ee' phoneme, would it? So with that in mind and with those graphemes and phonemes, for that phoneme 'ee' that we just looked at, can you match the spellings to the representation of the 'ee' sound it contains? Read the words and match them.

Off you go.

Brilliant job.

So peach I can see has 'ee' spelled EA.

Money, I can see at the end of the word has that 'ee' and it's spelled EY.

Chief has our IE, doesn't it? Receive, after the C there has a EI.

And funny has our Y at the end there.

Brilliant.

So the saying, "I before E except after C," which I just alluded to a moment ago, can help us to decide whether using IE or EI as it can be really difficult to choose between these spellings when you hear that 'ee' sound.

So knowing which spelling can be really difficult.

So here are some examples of some I before E words.

Piece, so it's IE because it's coming after a P.

Retrieve, it's IE because it's coming after an R.

Priest, IE because it's coming after an r again.

Thief, after an H.

And then we have some words that follow this rule and come after a C, so it's our EI spelling.

Receipt, that you might get from a shop.

Deceive, to trick someone.

Perceive, being aware of something.

Ceiling, up there.

So the spelling IE is used unless that 'ee' phoneme comes after a C when the EI spelling is used.

However, there are some exceptions to this rule, from that keyword we looked at, exceptions.

Spellings that don't follow our patterns and rules.

Here we have the word seize.

Notice it's EI, but it's not coming after a C.

Protein, again, EI, but not after a C.

Weird, EI, but not after a C.

And either, which is coming at the beginning there.

Now depending on pronunciation, this might be either or it could be either.

So it's either making 'ee' or an 'igh' sound there.

So these words all have that 'ee' sound.

Remember either depending on pronunciation, but don't follow the rule I before E except after C.

We just have to learn these.

So let's put them into our brains now.

Seize, protein, weird, either, all EI spellings that don't follow our rule.

So as a little check, I'd like you to sort the words below into the table by their spelling.

Only place the words where the letters represent the 'ee' phoneme.

So you continue to say the words and listen out for that 'ee' phoneme.

I maybe put something there to trip you up.

Is it following the I before E? Is it following after C, or is it an exception? And if it's not got a 'ee' sound, don't put it in the table.

Read the words, sort them now.

Off you go.

Great job, team.

Super impressed.

Let's read the words first of all.

Received.

Well, I have an 'ee' sound there.

Seize, I have an 'ee' sound there.

Diet.

Hmm.

It's an IE spelling, but it is not making 'ee' sound.

Hygiene, I have an 'ee' sound.

Deceiving, an 'ee' sound.

Height, as in your height.

Hmm, I have an EI spelling, but it's making an 'igh' sound.

Either.

Brilliant.

Briefcase, I have an 'ee' sound.

So I'm hoping that you've not sorted diet and height because they don't have that 'ee' sound, but these words should have been sorted like this.

Hygiene and briefcase are both I before E words.

Received and deceiving are words that follow a pattern of after C, and seize and either are words that are exceptions.

So sometimes just looking at a word can help us to know if it is spelled correctly.

I'm going to compare two spellings and decide which is the correct spelling.

So I have yield here.

A yield is something you might gather or collect, like the yield from a crop.

Hmm, to me, it looks like, it will be my IE spelling there that looks correct.

The EI doesn't look right.

Also, it's following our rule.

Deceitful.

Again, I know our rule, but also by looking at both of these, I can see that it's my EI spelling that looks right.

You're going to compare two spellings and decide which is the correct spelling, both by applying our rules, but looking out for exceptions, and also by thinking which ones look correct.

Remember, there are some exceptions to the rule I before E except after C.

So here are the words that I'd like you to look at.

We have thieves, protein, and perceive.

Which one looks right to you? Remember our rules, but also watch out for exceptions.

Select the correct spellings now.

Off you go.

Great job, team.

So thieves, well, that is I before E.

Protein, this was one of our exceptions, wasn't it? Perceive as well, where it's a C, so it's gonna be my EI spelling.

So what I'd like us to do now is to practise spelling some words, some of the words we've already looked at today.

Remember to sound it out.

Think of the spelling rules that we've looked at, I before E except after C, after C words, but also remember those exceptions we've looked at and read the word and check.

Often by looking back at it, we can see whether we think it looks right.

Remember that practise strategy we just looked at for seeing whether spellings were spelled correctly or not.

So the first word is receipt.

I bought an item from the shop and received a receipt.

Number two, deceiving.

Number three, hygiene.

Personal hygiene is very important.

Number four, seize.

Seize the day.

And number five, either.

Either one will be fine.

So receipt, deceiving, hygiene, seize, either.

Pause the video now and have a go writing those words.

Off you go.

Excellent job, team.

I'm super impressed.

Really great job, team.

This can be quite tricky as they sound very similar and choosing the right spelling isn't always so obvious, but following the rules we have and looking carefully at spellings helps us.

So let's see how you've done.

The first one we're looking at is receipt.

Now, there's a C before that 'ee' sound, isn't there? So I know it's going to be my EI spelling.

It's not an exception.

Watch out here too for the P, which is silent here.

So the correct spelling is R-E-C-E-I-P-T.

It follows our rule, I before E except after C.

It's an after C.

Here we have deceiving.

Again, it's that soft C, so it's gonna be my EI spelling.

My root word is deceive, which ends in that VE.

I remove the E and then add my ING suffix.

Deceiving, E-I-V-I-N-G.

Then we had hygiene.

Watch out here.

It's HY and then G and it's not following a C.

It's not after a C, so it's going to be my IE spelling and then my NE.

And seize.

Now look at which one looks correct here.

Seize.

This is one of those words, which is an exception.

It's EI, but it's not following a C.

Also watch out for that is ZE at the end.

And then we have either or either if you prefer, but this is a word that is also an exception.

It's not following a C, it's at the beginning of the word, so it's EI.

It just looks right, doesn't it? So either is an exception along with seize.

How did you do there, team? Check your learning, make any corrections now.

Onto our next learning cycle then, which is other sounds represented by EI.

So the EI letter string can be found in a variety of other words, making a different sound to that 'ee' phoneme.

Can you think of any? Pause the video and have a think.

Brilliant.

So here are some that I've thought of.

Rein.

Vein.

Eight.

Beige, the colour.

Reign, another rein, homophone alert.

Deity.

Foreign.

Forfeit, which means you give up.

Feisty.

Seismic, like seismic activity of an earthquake.

So feisty means determined or spirited, and deity is a god or goddess, just in case you didn't know.

So there are some other words that contain our EI letter string, but that make different sounds to that 'ee' phoneme we looked at in the previous learning cycle.

EI is one way to represent the phoneme 'ay', that 'ay' sound, and it's a rare representation, so we don't see it that commonly.

Here are some other examples of 'ay' graphemes, AY, AI, A split E, which are very common, A, EIGH, EY, EA, and then our rare EI letter string there in rein and vein.

The spellings AY, AI, and A split E then are the most common representations of that 'ay' phoneme.

What do you notice about the EI spelling of the 'ay' phoneme? We have vein, reign veil like a bride might wear, and beige.

Do you notice anything interesting about where it comes in the word? Any letters it particularly likes? Pause the video and have a think.

Brilliant.

Well, I've noticed the EI spelling likes to come before an N or a GN.

I also have noticed the EI spelling likes words beginning with a V, vein and veil.

The EI spelling is found in the middle of words.

That's key for us to remember as well when it's making that 'ay' sound.

So the EI spelling of that 'ay' phoneme, that 'ay' sound, is usually found? Select the correct answer now.

Brilliant, it's a great test to see whether you've been paying attention or not.

It come likes to come in the middle.

Fantastic.

So some of these words with our EI are homophones.

Homophones are words that sound the same as other words, but are spelled differently and have very different meanings.

They can sometimes trip us up in our spelling.

So here we have the words vein and rein, vein spelled like that is a vein in your body.

Rein spelled like that is something used to control a horse.

So here are some other spellings of the words vein.

We have vain, V-A-I-N, as in really, really caring about how you look or how you appear, and vane as in a weather vein, V-A-N-E.

We have rain can fall from the sky and we also have reign, R-E-I-G-N, like the reign of a ruler, how long they reigned for or in power for.

So I have veins in my body, our V-E-I-N-S spelling.

I can see a weather vane on that house, our V-A-N-E spelling.

My friend is vain and always looking in the mirror, so someone who worries too much about their appearance.

A horse may have reins, our EI spelling we've been looking at.

I will get wet in the rain, and the king reigns over the country.

So homophones, I will select the correct spelling based on the context of the sentence and then you're gonna practise some in a second.

Her vein was blue.

I know it's going to be the vein in the body, not the vain where someone's worried about how they look.

That wouldn't make sense.

Can you select the correct spellings? Read the sentences.

Select the correct spelling of rain for each sentence.

Consider the context.

Off you go.

Brilliant job.

So the king's reign lasted a long time.

I know that's my GN, reign.

It's not gonna be rain that falls from the sky.

The horse was held by its reins, but it's not gonna be the reign, a king or queen ruling.

It's going to be reins that you control the horse with.

And it started to rain.

Well, it, whatever it is, might start to be in power, but I find that highly unlikely.

It's not going to be controlled by the reins like on a horse.

It's going to be the rain falling from the sky.

The context is really important to helping us know which spelling to use of the homophone.

So the EI letter string can represent sounds other than 'ee'.

It represents the 'igh' sound like in feisty.

It can represent the 'ay' sound in the middle of words like in rein or vein.

And it makes the 'i' sound like in the word forfeit.

It means to give up.

It represents two sounds in the word deity, 'ay' and 'i', deity.

So what I want you to do for me is I want you to sort these words into the correct column.

Read them.

Are they EI making an 'ee' sound, EI making the 'ay' sound, EI making the 'i' sound, or EI making a different sound or sounds.

Read the words, put them in the correct columns.

Off you go.

Brilliant, so let's see how you've done then.

We have received and seize for the EI words making that 'ee' sound.

Remember seize is one of those exceptions to our rule.

Okay, I before E except after C.

Making that 'ay' sound, we have rein and veins, veins running through your body.

Remember watch out for homophones and that EI spelling likes to come in the middle.

We have EI making the 'i' sound for fit.

And then we have EI making different sound or sounds, deity.

So it's making an 'ay' and an 'i' sound there.

And feisty, it's making an 'igh' sound.

With that in mind, we're gonna have a go at spelling some words now that contain a variety of these phonemes.

So our first word is beige, the colour beige.

Then we have forfeit.

I forfeit the match.

Then we have veil.

The bride removed her veil.

Then we have feisty, and then we have reign.

Now listen carefully.

The king began his long reign.

Reign.

We're in the homophone there.

So I'll say this one more time.

Beige, forfeit, veil, feisty, reign, as in a king or queen's reign.

Remember also to sound out the word, think of any spelling rules, read the word and check.

Off you go.

Brilliant job, team.

I'm super impressed.

So we have our EI spelling here, don't we? That letter string, making a variety of different sounds.

There's some rules we looked at that help us and some of the words we just had to learn.

The first one was beige, the colour beige.

Now think about which one looks correct here.

It's gonna be my EI and then GE.

Forfeit was our next one.

Again, think about which one looks correct.

It's my EI, isn't it? But making this time an 'i' sound for fit.

Then we had veil.

Again, think about which one looks correct.

Veil.

Now, EI is going to be here.

Brilliant.

Feisty.

Feisty, it's our EI spelling and then our Y.

And then reign.

Now be careful.

Watch out for the homophones here.

It's reign with that GN.

Okay, so how did you do here? We have beige, forfeit, veil, feisty, and reign, that EI letter string making different sounds.

Hoping you managed to sort it into the correct place within the word, and you've gotten your E and your I the right way round.

Pause the video now make any corrections.

Oh, and of course, we have a homophone here, reign.

So onto our final learning cycle then, which is spelling curriculum words.

Let's look at some words then.

We have neighbour.

Oh notice there we have our EI letter string, don't we? Neighbour.

Soldier, we got our IE this time.

Read these words again.

Do you think there's anything maybe tricky about the way that they're spelled compared to how they sound? Or there's anything that might trip you up when learning how to spell them? Pause the video and have a think.

Lovely, some really perceptive and thoughtful conversations going on there.

Well, I'll tell you what I've noticed about them.

We have here the letters, EIGH, which contain our EI, but they're working together to make that 'ay' sound in that word neighbour.

The ending as well.

Neighbour is our OUR.

It's not making 'ur'.

I didn't say neighbaur.

Neighbour, so the OUR is making a sound you might not expect it to make, so watch out for that.

In soldier, the D and the I come together to make 'j' just sound.

So which of these words that we've just read are spelled correctly? Think about what was difficult about those spellings.

Point now to the correct spelling of neighbour, that person who lives next to you.

Brilliant job.

Remember it's that EIGH making that 'ay' and it sounds like neighbour, so it could be any of those endings there, but it's that strange OUR at the end there.

Remember to get that E and the I the right way round too.

Point now to the correct spelling of soldier.

Brilliant, so it is that DI making that 'j' and it's that ER at the end there.

Great job.

So because these are curriculum words and as we've just looked at, they have some quite tricky elements to them, it's really important we just learn them off my heart.

And a really good strategy for us to use with this is look, cover, write, check.

This is where you look carefully at the spelling and consider what's difficult about it.

But I know I've got my EIGH for that 'ay' and that B-O-U-R, O-U-R at the end.

I then cover it up and I put it in my head.

Brilliant.

I have a go at writing in my neatest handwriting.

And then I check back.

So I've done the look, the cover, the write, and now the check.

I got it right.

Just 'cause I got it right first time doesn't mean I only do it once.

I do it a number of times.

I look, cover, write, and check till I've really embedded it into my long-term memory.

I'd like you now to pause the video and have a good at doing that strategy a number of times with neighbour and soldier.

Off you go.

Really great job, team.

Did you manage to spell them correctly? Check now and make any corrections.

Off you go.

Great job in spelling today, team.

We've been spelling words with the 'ee' sound spelt EI.

There are many ways to spell the 'ee' sound, including EE, EA, E split E, E, Y, EY, IE, and EI.

The graphemes EI and IE can also make that 'ee' sound.

The rule I before E except after C can help us to choose between both those IE and the EI spellings when we're spelling that 'ee' phoneme.

The letter string EI can also represent a range of different spellings including 'ay'.

The EI spelling can also break other learnt rules and be used when the sound is not 'ee' and we've looked at a variety of those words today.

Keep an eye out for that letter string in your reading.

I'll see you again soon.