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      Applying the spellings 'ee', 'ea' and 'e-e' in familiar words

      Lesson details

      Learning outcome

      I can spell words containing the three most common representations of the 'ee' phoneme: 'ee', 'ea' and 'e-e'.

      Key learning points

      1. 'ee' and 'ea' are common spellings of the 'ee' phoneme.
      2. e-e' is a representation of the 'ee' phoneme that is often found 'last but one'.
      3. Some words do not follow the rule, meaning they are an exception, such as 'even'.
      4. How to spell the common exception words: door, floor and poor.

      Keywords

      • Phoneme - the smallest unit of sound

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

      • Common - a spelling that appears very often

      • Homophone - words that sound the same but have different meanings and spellings

      • Exception - a spelling that does not follow the usual or expected rule or pattern

      Common misconception

      Even is an exception to the rule when looking at generalisations for the e-e split digraph.

      Explicitly refer to this during teaching and ensure practise is given to spelling exception words.

      Teacher tip

      Say the words in a simple sentence when you introduce them to ensure that the class understand their meaning. Use images and contexts when teaching homophones.

      Licence

      This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), 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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      Prior knowledge starter quiz

      6 Questions

      Q1.
      Match each word to the number of phonemes it contains.

      Correct Answer:delete,5

      5

      Correct Answer:see,2

      2

      Correct Answer:cheat,3

      3

      Q2.
      Select the correct word to complete the sentence so it makes sense. 'I would never __________ a cookie from the cookie jar.'

      Correct answer: steal
      steel
      stele

      Q3.
      Choose two more spellings that can also represent the sound 'ee' like in tree.

      Correct answer: e-e
      Correct answer: ea
      oe
      i
      ay

      Q4.
      Choose two words that rhyme with the word steam.

      keep
      Correct answer: team
      steal
      Correct answer: dream
      freeze

      Q5.
      Choose the correct spelling of the word to complete this sentence. 'The __________ finished the race in a record time.'

      athleet
      Correct answer: athlete
      afleat

      Q6.
      Choose the correct spelling of the word to complete this sentence. 'My younger brother is __________ years old.'

      Correct answer: three
      free
      threa

      6 Questions

      Q1.
      Select the correct spelling to match the sentence. 'The __________ opened behind me.'

      dore
      Correct answer: door
      dor

      Q2.
      Select the word which is an exception to our 'e-e' spelling rule.

      Correct answer: even
      delete
      these
      serene

      Q3.
      Match the homophones.

      Correct Answer:sea,see

      see

      Correct Answer:weak,week

      week

      Correct Answer:meat,meet

      meet

      Correct Answer:feat,feet

      feet

      Q4.
      Correct the spelling in bold in the following sentence. Your garden is looking very grean this year.

      Correct Answer: green

      Q5.
      Correct the spelling in bold in the following sentence. They defended the goal well and didn't conceed a single goal.

      Correct Answer: concede

      Q6.
      Correct the spelling in bold in the following sentence. I cannot wait to 'eet' my lunch.

      Correct Answer: eat

      To help you plan your 2 English lesson on: Applying the spellings 'ee', 'ea' and 'e-e' in familiar words, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...