R-Controlled Vowels — Answer Key
Part A: Multiple Choice
Circle the best answer for each question.
1. How many syllables are in the word hamburger?
A) two
B) three
C) four
D) one
Hamburger splits into ham-bur-ger, which is three syllables with UR and ER.
2. Which r-controlled sound is heard twice in supermarket?
A) /ar/
B) /er/
C) /or/
D) /ir/
Supermarket has ER in 'per' and AR in 'mar'; ER appears once but the /er/ like sound shows up clearly. Actually ER makes /er/ here.
3. Which word has ER in the MIDDLE syllable?
A) butterfly
B) yesterday
C) hamburger
D) supermarket
Yesterday splits into yes-ter-day, with ER in the middle syllable.
4. How do you split butterfly into syllables?
A) but-ter-fly
B) butt-er-fly
C) but-terf-ly
D) bu-tter-fly
Butterfly splits into but-ter-fly, with ER in the middle syllable making /er/.
Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the correct answer on each line.
1. I ordered a cheese hamburger with fries for lunch.
Hamburger has UR and ER; breaking it into three syllables helps Grade 2 readers decode it.
2. Mom pushed the cart through the busy supermarket aisles.
Supermarket has ER and AR across four syllables, showing multiple r-controlled patterns.
3. A colorful butterfly landed softly on the yellow flower.
Butterfly has ER in the middle syllable: but-ter-fly.
4. We went swimming at the lake yesterday afternoon.
Yesterday has ER in the middle syllable, making /er/.
5. The butterfly flapped its wings and flew up high.
Butterfly uses ER in its middle syllable: but-ter-fly.