Year 5 Spelling

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By the time children reach Year 5, they’re expected to use a combination of strategies to spell correctly. They should use their knowledge of spelling patterns, word families, position-based spellings, syllable patterns, ending rules, meaningful word parts, and homophones to write and check their spelling. Dictionaries and other reference materials should be used where appropriate. To begin, you can download our Year 5 spelling word lists here!

Here are some examples of spellings and strategies your child will learn in Year 5:

Spelling patterns

In order to correctly identify common Year 5 spelling patterns, children must continue to put their knowledge of phonics to good use. Here is a word list including some common spelling patterns your child will come across:

• ou words: cloud, sprout, mountain, rounded, cousin
• who- words: wholehearted, whole, wholesale
• Silent Letters: lamb, tomb, plumbing

Practice tip

Try this silent letter spelling challenge on Night Zookeeper to help your child develop their spelling skills!

Word families

Word families are groups of words that have the same root word, but use different prefixes and suffixes to change their meanings. Here are some word lists for different word families:

• Help, helpful, helpless, helplessness, helpfulness, unhelpful
• Photo, photograph, photography, photogenic

Position-based spellings

Here are some important position-based spellings your child should master in Year 5:

• i before e except after c: receive, deceive, conceive
• y making the /i/ sound in the middle of words: syllable, syrup, rhythm, type, oxygen, crystal

Syllable patterns

It’s important that your child knows the correct syllable division rules in Year 5. Here are some word lists you can share to help your child consolidate their knowledge:

• Multi-syllable compound words: notebook, sunset, suitcase, teaspoon, newspaper, daytime
• Consonant-l-e words: jungle, puzzle, possible

Ending rules

By Year 5, your child should understand various word ending rules. Below are two word lists on different ending rules to share with your young learner:

• -ed: happened, finished, continued, appointed, climbed, decided, agreed, stretched, spoiled, prepared
• -ing: beginning, interesting, stopping, rising

Meaningful word parts

Prefixes

A prefix can be added at the beginning of a word in order to change its meaning. Here is a prefix spelling list that you can use when going over this topic with your child:

• re- remove, repay, represent
• dis-: disappoint,
• un-:unknown
• pre-: prepare, prewash, pregame

Suffixes

On the other hand, a suffix can be added to the end of a word. Here’s a helpful suffix spelling list to add to your spelling resources:

• -tion: action, condition, addition, attention, election, equation, intention, protection, information, direction, station
• -ful: wonderful, thoughtful, graceful,
• -ly: probably, quickly, quietly, usually, sincerely, rarely, happily, finally, carefully, actually,
• -ment: enjoyment, amendment, government, instrument, amusement, payment, treatment,
• -able: replaceable, washable, noticeable, changeable, knowledgeable

Homophones

Homophones are words that sound the same but are spelt differently and have different meanings. Here’s a short Year 5 spelling word list your child can use:

• allowed/aloud
• capitol/capital
• ascent/assent
• descent/dissent
• isle/aisle

How Night Zookeeper can help

Night Zookeeper is a reading & writing program that makes learning fantastically fun for children in Years 1 to 6. You can use Night Zookeeper to keep your child engaged, focused, entertained, and excited about learning!

Our online program is perfect for Year 5 students to improve their spelling skills. Our award-winning content has been developed by education experts and whether or not your child is a reluctant learner, we’re sure they’ll love the activities available! These include:

• Spelling games focused on specific topics, such as sight words and phonics
• Spelling challenges covering spelling patterns, prefixes, suffixes, and much more
• Interactive reading comprehension lesson series to teach context and relevance
• Printable spelling worksheets for offline learning
• A LOT more!

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