Spelling Patterns — Answer Key
Part A: Fix the Sentence
Each sentence has an error. Rewrite it correctly on the line.
1. Fix the sentence:
The littel kitten was siting on the softest pilow.
Corrected: The little kitten was sitting on the softest pillow.
"Littel" needs double t in the right spot to spell "little," "siting" needs double t to spell "sitting" (double the consonant before -ing), and "pilow" needs double l to spell "pillow."
2. Fix the sentence:
We swam in the streme and climed the steep hill.
Corrected: We swam in the stream and climbed the steep hill.
"Streme" should be "stream" because the vowel team ea makes the long e sound, and "climed" should be "climbed" because climb has a silent b at the end.
3. Fix the sentence:
My cuzin brot a beutiful painting to the art show.
Corrected: My cousin brought a beautiful painting to the art show.
"Cuzin" should be "cousin" (the ou vowel pattern makes the short u sound), "brot" should be "brought" (with the silent gh), and "beutiful" should be "beautiful" (eau is the correct vowel pattern).
Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the missing word or number on each line.
1. The rabbit hopped across the garden very fast. (hop → double p + -ed)
When adding -ed to "hop," you double the final p because hop is a short-vowel word ending in one consonant, giving you "hopped."
2. We saw a flock of birds flying south for winter. (consonant blend fl-)
"Flock" starts with the consonant blend fl-, where the f and l sounds blend together smoothly at the beginning of the word.
3. The bread was still warm and steaming from the oven. (vowel team ea word)
"Steaming" uses the vowel team ea to make the long e sound, and you do not double any consonant because "steam" already ends in two consonants.
4. She threw the ball to her partner during the game. (throw → past tense with silent letters)
"Threw" is the past tense of "throw" and contains a silent w after the r -- you hear "thru" but spell it with the ew vowel team.
Part C: True or False?
Read each statement. Circle True or False.
1. When you add -ing to "swim," you double the m and write "swimming."
True False
True. "Swim" ends with one consonant after a short vowel, so you double the m before adding -ing to get "swimming."
2. The consonant blend "str" appears at the start of the word "strong."
True False
True. In "strong," the three consonants s, t, and r blend together at the start, and you can hear each letter's sound when you say the word slowly.
3. In the word "thumb," the letter b makes a sound.
True False
False. The b in "thumb" is silent -- you only hear "thum," just like the silent b in "climb" and "lamb."