New
New
Year 2

Silent letters: the 'gn' spelling

I can spell words with 'gn' representing the 'n' phoneme.

New
New
Year 2

Silent letters: the 'gn' spelling

I can spell words with 'gn' representing the 'n' phoneme.

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. 'gn' can be a representation of the 'n' phoneme.
  2. The representation 'gn' is usually found at the start or end of a word.
  3. How to spell the common exception word: school.
  4. Words connected in word families often have similar spellings, such as sign and signal.

Common misconception

The 'gn' digraph does not always use the 'g' as a silent letter.

Expose children to words with 'gn' where the 'g' is both silent and not silent.

Keywords

  • Phoneme - the smallest unit of sound that make up words

  • Grapheme - the letter or group of letters that represent a sound

  • Word families - a group of words common in feature, pattern or meaning

  • Etymology - the study of the origin of words and the ways their meanings have changed over time

When learning a new representation of a sound, it can help to briefly remind the pupils of what they already know about other representations of this sound (this will depend on the phonics scheme used) and supplement the slides with visuals.
Teacher tip

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Loading...

6 Questions

Q1.
Match each word to the number of phonemes it contains.
Correct Answer:acorn,4

4

Correct Answer:an,2

2

Correct Answer:annoy,3

3

Q2.
How many syllables are in the word groaning?
1
Correct answer: 2
5
6
Q3.
Choose two more spellings that can also represent the sound 'n', like in grin.
Correct answer: nn
m
mb
Correct answer: kn
mm
Q4.
Choose the correct word and spelling to complete this sentence: I __________ your attention.
knead
Correct answer: need
nede
Q5.
Choose the correct word and spelling to complete this sentence: I tied a __________ with my shoe laces.
not
Correct answer: knot
Q6.
Match the word to its definition.
Correct Answer:Homophone,words that sound the same with different spellings

words that sound the same with different spellings

Correct Answer:Silent letter,letters in a word that are not pronounced

letters in a word that are not pronounced

Correct Answer:Phoneme,the smallest unit of sound in a word

the smallest unit of sound in a word

6 Questions

Q1.
Choose the correct word and spelling to complete this sentence: I hope you have a good day at...
skool.
scool.
Correct answer: school.
Q2.
Which words contain the 'gn' spelling of the 'n' sound.
signal
Correct answer: gnat
Correct answer: gnome
running
Q3.
Choose the representation of the 'n' sound that matches the words.
Correct Answer:foreign,gn

gn

Correct Answer:need,n

n

Correct Answer:knight,kn

kn

Correct Answer:winner,nn

nn

Q4.
Choose the correct spelling for the word in bold in the following sentence: The tree was ancient and narled.
Correct Answer: gnarled, Gnarled, Gnarled., gnarled.
Q5.
Where are the two places the 'gn' spelling is usually found in a word?
Correct answer: the beginning
the middle
Correct answer: the end
Q6.
Choose the correct spelling for the word in bold in the following sentence: What a wonderful desine that is!
Correct Answer: design, Design

Additional material

Download additional material
We're sorry, but preview is not currently available. Download to see additional material.