Phonics: vowel teams, long vowels, prefixes and suffixes (grade 2) · lesson

Long and short vowels

💡 A long vowel says its name, and a short vowel makes its quick sound.

Rain has a long a. Ran has a short a.

Two vowels together often make a long sound.

🧠 How to think about it

Look for a vowel team or a silent e. If you see one, try the long sound.

🏡 Try it at home

Write ran and rain, red and read. Read each pair and listen for the change.

💡 Teams like ow, ou, oi, and oy make special sounds.

Ow in cow and ou in house say the same sound.

Oi in coin and oy in boy say the same sound.

🧠 How to think about it

Spot the team. Say its sound. Then read the whole word.

🏡 Try it at home

Hunt for words with ow, ou, oi, or oy on signs and boxes.

💡 Split a long word into parts, then read each part.

Rock-et has two parts. Ti-ger has two parts.

When a part ends in a vowel, the vowel often says its name.

🧠 How to think about it

Find the vowels. Split the word. Read each part, then blend.

🏡 Try it at home

Clap and read two-part words like robot, music, and basket.

💡 Parts added to the start or end of a word change its meaning.

Un means not. Re means again.

Ful means full of. Less means without. Ly tells how.

🧠 How to think about it

Cover the added part. Read the base word. Then add the meaning of the part.

🏡 Try it at home

Make new words from help: helpful, helpless, helper. Talk about each meaning.

💡 Some letter teams can make two sounds, so try both.

Ea is long in bead but short in bread.

Ow is long o in snow, but ow in cow.

🧠 How to think about it

Try one sound. If it is not a real word, try the other sound.

🏡 Try it at home

Sort words on cards: snow, grow, cow, now. Which pile does each go in?