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Year 6

Spelling words with the silent letters 'h', 'p', 'n', 'l' and 's'

I can spell words that contain the silent letters 'h', 'p', 'n', 'l' and 's'.

New
New
Year 6

Spelling words with the silent letters 'h', 'p', 'n', 'l' and 's'

I can spell words that contain the silent letters 'h', 'p', 'n', 'l' and 's'.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. A silent 'h' can be found in different places within a word and next to different letters.
  2. A silent 'p' can be found in different places within a word and next to different letters.
  3. A silent 'n' is generally found at the end of the word after the letter m.
  4. A silent 'l' generally comes after a vowel and often changes the sound of the vowel.
  5. How to spell words with the silent letter 's' and the curriculum words: environment, twelfth and desperate.

Keywords

  • Silent letter - a letter in a word that is not pronounced when the word is spoken

  • Digraph - two letters that represent one sound

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

Common misconception

Pupils may think letters are silent in some digraphs for example, the 'h' in 'ch'.

Discuss difference between silent letters and digraphs. In 'chaos' the letter 'h' is silent but the other letters make a sound. Whereas, in the word 'clench' the 'h' is part of the 'ch' digraph where the two letters together make one sound.

There is lots of new vocabulary in this lesson. Put unfamiliar words into sentences so that pupils have the chance to understand them before being asked to spell them.
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).

Lesson video

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6 Questions

Q1.
Identify the words containing the 'w' sound.
Correct answer: white
wreath
Correct answer: swept
wrinkle
Correct answer: watch
Q2.
Identify the words containing the 'm' sound.
doubt
Correct answer: maze
Correct answer: autumn
handle
Correct answer: comb
Q3.
Identify the words containing a silent letter 't'.
staple
Correct answer: whistle
terrifying
Correct answer: chestnut
seat
Q4.
Choose the correct spelling of the word in bold in the following sentence: 'He put his thumm up to show that he could hear her clearly.'
thum
thubm
thumn
Correct answer: thumb
Q5.
Choose the correct spelling of the word in bold in the following sentence: 'Remember to rite your name at the top of the exam paper.'
right
Correct answer: write
rihgt
wright
Q6.
Choose the correct spelling of the word in bold in the following sentence: 'The nite skidded to a halt and removed his helmet.'
night
knite
Correct answer: knight
knighte

6 Questions

Q1.
Match each word to the silent letter it contains.
Correct Answer:honest,silent 'h'

silent 'h'

Correct Answer:half,silent 'l'

silent 'l'

Correct Answer:solemn,silent 'n'

silent 'n'

Correct Answer:receipt,silent 'p'

silent 'p'

Correct Answer:island,silent 's'

silent 's'

Q2.
Choose the correct spelling of the word in bold in the following sentence: 'Could you go via the kemist and pick up Nan's medication?'
cemist
Correct answer: chemist
chemisst
khemist
Q3.
Choose the correct spelling of the word in bold in the following sentence: 'We spent the day picking fresh rarsberrys outside.'
rasberrys
raspberrys
rasberries
Correct answer: raspberries
Q4.
Choose the correct spelling of the word in bold in the following sentence: 'The ortum leaves rustled like a carpet of fire on the ground.'
Correct answer: autumn
autum
ortumn
awetum
Q5.
Choose the correct spelling of the word in bold in the following sentence: 'As the tiny stone hit the surface, the karm waters rippled and shone.'
kalm
carm
Correct answer: calm
calme
Q6.
Choose the correct spelling of the word in bold in the following sentence: 'After the crash, there was debry all over the road.'
debri
Correct answer: debris
debries
debrys

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