Year 4 Spelling

23 February 2018

Focus : words we have learnt

This week for spelling, please practise the following list of words using the activities at the back of your book.

These are all words we have learnt in spelling lessons and in work throughout the year so far.

1. recent
2. surprise
3. special
4. decided
5. February
6. certainly
7. addition
8. because
9. caught
10. stopped
11. cries
12. making

02 February 2018

Focus : apostrophes for contraction and omission

A contraction is when two words are ‘squashed’ into one. For example:

• do not – don’t
• would not – wouldn’t

When two words are joined together this is called a contraction. An apostrophe is used to show where a letter has been missed out when the words have been contracted.

Task: Find ten different words which use apostrophes for contraction and use them in sentences. For example:

• I don’t know what to buy for lunch.
• The wizard wouldn’t deliberately kill the dragon.

Extra challenge: Use the three different spellings of there in one sentence.

26 January 2018

Focus : sub- and tele- prefix, -ful and –ness suffix

Pick one of the activities from the spelling table and use it to practise these spellings.
1. telescope
2. telephone
3. submerge
4. television
5. forgetful
6. happiness
7. beautiful
8. tidiness
9. centre
10. certain

19 January 2018

Focus : the –gue and –que letter strings

Task: use a dictionary or thesaurus and find at least ten examples of words which contain the –gue and –que letter strings e.g fatigue.

Speed write each word three times and then use each one in a sentence.

12 January 2018

Focus : Must dos (homophones)

Here’s a list of common homophones that children must spell correctly as well as use correctly.

When practising them at home, ask your child to use them in the correct sentence eg I hear the doorbell and Here – take this.

A spelling activity grid is in the back of your child’s book. Please complete one of the activities to help them learn these important spellings.

• here/hear
• where/were/wear/we’re
• there/their/they’re
• are/our
• to/too/two
• your/you’re
• of/off
• of/have (a common error is I should of instead of I should have – the second one is correct)
• which/witch

05 January 2018

Focus: drop the y for an i (Turn adjectives into adverbs)

Task: Make a list of ten adjectives which end in ‘y’ eg noisy, scary, lazy. Turn them into adverbs eg noisily, scarily, lazily.

Make sure you remember to drop the y for an i!

You may also need to change other parts of the spelling. Dojo points for the most ambitious word choices.

01 December 2017

Focus: -er and -est

This week’s spelling homework will be investigating suffixes and is due on Thursday 07 December.

• Task: Make a list of ten adjectives eg brave, heavy etc.
  Write them out with the –er and –est suffix and then use them in a sentence.
  Do the spellings of the words change at all? Is it possible to use the suffixes with all the adjectives you pick?
• fast, fast, fastest
• brave, braver, bravest
• heavy, heavier, heaviest

24 November 2017

Focus: Homophones

Homophones are some of the trickiest spellings to get right. This week, we’d like your child to create a poster that would help you, or somebody else, remember the difference between:

1. there, their and they’re
2. to, too and two
3. your and you’re

17 November 2017

Focus: homophones -part 2

sail sale
maid made
mail male
plain plane
waist waste
main mane
vein vane

Learn each word and use them in a sentence in the correct context.

e.g the words eight and ate

The eight children ran onto the playground.

Last night, my brother ate a whole bar of chocolate.

10 November 2017

Focus: homophones (same sound, different spelling)

Practise the spelling of these words by writing a line of each, then write one sentence for each word.

Make sure you know which one is which.

• brake / break
• eight / ate
• there / their / there
• grate / great
• weight / wait
• son / sun