Spelling Patterns — Answer Key
Part A: Multiple Choice
Circle the best answer for each question.
1. Which word correctly doubles the consonant before adding -ing?
A) runing
B) running
C) runnning
D) runeing
"Run" has a short u vowel followed by one consonant, so you double the n before adding -ing to spell "running" and keep the vowel short.
2. Which word has a silent "w" at the beginning?
A) water
B) winter
C) wreck
D) window
"Wreck" begins with a silent w in the wr- pattern, so it sounds like "reck" but the w must always be included in the spelling.
3. Which vowel team word is spelled correctly?
A) peice
B) piece
C) peece
D) piese
"Piece" uses the vowel team ie to make the long e sound, and it follows the rule "i before e except after c" -- here the ie comes after p, so i goes first.
4. What happens when you add -ed to the word "clap"?
A) claped
B) clappd
C) clapped
D) clapeed
"Clap" has a short a vowel and ends in one consonant, so you double the p before adding -ed to get "clapped" and keep the vowel short.
Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the correct answer on each line.
1. The squirrel snapped the nut and ran up the tree. (snap → double p + -ed)
"Snap" ends with one consonant after a short vowel, so you double the p before adding -ed to spell "snapped" correctly.
2. We heard a loud crash of thunder during the storm. (consonant blend cr-)
"Crash" starts with the consonant blend cr-, where the c and r sounds blend together, and ends with the digraph sh.
3. The baker needed to knead the dough for ten minutes. (silent k word: kn-)
"Knead" has a silent k at the start and uses the vowel team ea for the long e sound -- it sounds like "need" but means to press and fold dough.
4. A group of students lined up in a straight row. (vowel team ai word: str-)
"Straight" combines the consonant blend str- with the vowel team ai and a silent gh, making it a tricky word where several letters are not heard.
5. The car stopped suddenly when the light turned red. (stop → double p + -ed)
"Stop" has a short o vowel followed by one consonant, so you double the p before adding -ed to spell "stopped" and keep the vowel short.