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      Spelling compound words

      Lesson details

      Learning outcome

      I can spell compound words.

      Key learning points

      1. Compound words are two or more words joined together.
      2. In a compound word, the spelling of the original words stays the same.
      3. 'Football', 'notebook', 'inside' and 'sometimes' are all compound words.

      Keywords

      • Compound word - two or more words joined together

      • Polysyllabic - a word that contains more than one sound or beat

      • Syllable - a single sound or beat in a word that contains a vowel sound

      Common misconception

      Children might confuse pairs of words against compound words. e.g. bus stop.

      Give examples of both and model mistakes. e.g. write butterfly as butter fly and discuss.

      Teacher tip

      Use images to support with thinking about what each part of the compound word means.

      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.
      What is the missing word in the following sentence? 'A __________ is a letter or group of letters at the end of a word which creates another word.'

      prefix
      Correct answer: suffix
      syllable

      Q2.
      What are the missing words in the following sentence? 'A prefix is a letter or group of letters added to __________ of a word to change its meaning.'

      the middle
      the end
      Correct answer: the start

      Q3.
      Match the words with the number of syllables they contain.

      Correct Answer:fly,1

      1

      Correct Answer:hopping,2

      2

      Correct Answer:butterfly,3

      3

      Q4.
      Match the word pairs.

      Correct Answer:bus,stop

      stop

      Correct Answer:fish ,tank

      tank

      Correct Answer:bed,time

      time

      Q5.
      Choose the correct spelling of the word in bold in the following sentence: 'I thought the decision was unnfare.'

      unnfair
      unfayre
      Correct answer: unfair
      unfaire

      Q6.
      Correct the spelling of the word in bold in the following sentence: 'I do not like to eat unhelfy food.'

      Correct Answer: unhealthy

      6 Questions

      Q1.
      What are compound words?

      words that sound the same but are spelt differently
      the beat in words that contain vowel sounds
      something added to the beginning of a word
      Correct answer: two words combined to form a new word

      Q2.
      Select the compound words.

      Correct answer: blackberry
      car park
      fly
      Correct answer: butterfly
      butter

      Q3.
      Match the pairs of words that could be joined together to create compound words.

      Correct Answer:after,noon

      noon

      Correct Answer:bath,room

      room

      Correct Answer:rain,bow

      bow

      Correct Answer:some,times

      times

      Q4.
      Choose the correct spelling of the missing compound word to complete the following sentence: 'We had to spend lunch __________ because it was raining.'

      innside
      in side
      Correct answer: inside
      sidein

      Q5.
      Correct the spelling of the word in bold in the following sentence: 'When it rained, I saw a beautiful rain bow.'

      Correct Answer: rainbow

      Q6.
      Correct the spelling of the word in bold in the following sentence: 'I enjoyed my lazy aftanoon in the sunshine.'

      Correct Answer: afternoon

      To help you plan your 2 English lesson on: Spelling compound words, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...