Reception English and phonics: Mixed practice: all the tricky words
Part of the Reception English and phonics common tricky words chapter. Chapter overview · whole chapter on one page
Mixed practice: all the tricky words
Now you know the tricky words: the, to, I, no, go, into, he, she, we, me, be, was, my, you, her, they, all, are.
Read each word on sight. Use the sentence to check it makes sense.
Key ideas
- There are eighteen tricky words in this chapter.
- Learn each word by its look.
- Read a sentence to check the word fits.
Method. A tricky word does not follow the sounds, so learn how it looks.
- Look at the whole word. Learn the shape of the word.they
- Say the word. Say it the same way each time.they
- Find it again. Compare each word in the list with the word you are looking for.they is the word.
Check. Read the word again. It is they. ✓
Watch out. Tricky words cannot be sounded out in the usual way, so look at the whole word.
Method. Read the whole sentence first. Then find the tricky word that fits the gap.
- Read the sentence. Read it all the way to the gap.Sam and Ann ___ going to the park.
- Find the tricky word. Read the word on sight, from the whole word.are
- Read the full sentence. Check that the sentence reads correctly.Sam and Ann are going to the park.
Check. Read the sentence again: Sam and Ann are going to the park.. ✓
Watch out. Tricky words are learned by their look, not by their sounds.
Method. Read the whole sentence first. Then find the tricky word that fits the gap.
- Read the sentence. Read it all the way to the gap.The dog ran ___ the pond.
- Find the tricky word. Read the word on sight, from the whole word.into
- Read the full sentence. Check that the sentence reads correctly.The dog ran into the pond.
Check. Read the sentence again: The dog ran into the pond.. ✓
Watch out. Tricky words are learned by their look, not by their sounds.
Watch out
Watch out: many tricky words look alike, such as he and she, or was and saw. Look at the whole word.
Exam tip
Grown-up tip. Make a set of cards with all eighteen words. Play a game: say a word, and the child finds it on a card.
Exercise 8E Mixed tricky words
Method. A tricky word does not follow the sounds, so learn how it looks.
- Look at the whole word. Learn the shape of the word.into
- Say the word. Say it the same way each time.into
- Find it again. Compare each word in the list with the word you are looking for.into is the word.
Check. Read the word again. It is into. ✓
Watch out. Tricky words cannot be sounded out in the usual way, so look at the whole word.
Method. A tricky word does not follow the sounds, so learn how it looks.
- Look at the whole word. Learn the shape of the word.you
- Say the word. Say it the same way each time.you
- Find it again. Compare each word in the list with the word you are looking for.you is the word.
Check. Read the word again. It is you. ✓
Watch out. Tricky words cannot be sounded out in the usual way, so look at the whole word.
Method. A tricky word does not follow the sounds, so learn how it looks.
- Look at the whole word. Learn the shape of the word.all
- Say the word. Say it the same way each time.all
- Find it again. Compare each word in the list with the word you are looking for.all is the word.
Check. Read the word again. It is all. ✓
Watch out. Tricky words cannot be sounded out in the usual way, so look at the whole word.
Method. A tricky word does not follow the sounds, so learn how it looks.
- Look at the whole word. Learn the shape of the word.are
- Say the word. Say it the same way each time.are
- Find it again. Compare each word in the list with the word you are looking for.are is the word.
Check. Read the word again. It is are. ✓
Watch out. Tricky words cannot be sounded out in the usual way, so look at the whole word.
Method. Read the whole sentence first. Then find the tricky word that fits the gap.
- Read the sentence. Read it all the way to the gap.Look at ___ hat.
- Find the tricky word. Read the word on sight, from the whole word.my
- Read the full sentence. Check that the sentence reads correctly.Look at my hat.
Check. Read the sentence again: Look at my hat.. ✓
Watch out. Tricky words are learned by their look, not by their sounds.
Method. Read the whole sentence first. Then find the tricky word that fits the gap.
- Read the sentence. Read it all the way to the gap.We ___ going to the shop.
- Find the tricky word. Read the word on sight, from the whole word.are
- Read the full sentence. Check that the sentence reads correctly.We are going to the shop.
Check. Read the sentence again: We are going to the shop.. ✓
Watch out. Tricky words are learned by their look, not by their sounds.
Method. Read the whole sentence first. Then find the tricky word that fits the gap.
- Read the sentence. Read it all the way to the gap.Can you ___ me?
- Find the tricky word. Read the word on sight, from the whole word.see
- Read the full sentence. Check that the sentence reads correctly.Can you see me?
Check. Read the sentence again: Can you see me?. ✓
Watch out. Tricky words are learned by their look, not by their sounds.
Method. Read the sentence. Pick the word that fits.
- Read the sentence. Read it all the way to the gap.Mia said ___ is her friend.
- Think about who. Mia is a girl, so pick she.she
- Read the full sentence. Check that it reads correctly.Mia said she is her friend.
Check. Read the sentence again. ✓
Watch out. Pick the tricky word that fits the meaning.
Method. Say the word, sound by sound. Then write one letter, or one group of letters, in each box.
- Say the name of the picture. A grown-up says the word slowly.they
- Say each sound in order. Each sound is written as one box.th - ey
- Write the letters in order. The letters go in the same order as the sounds.th-ey
Check. Read the letters back: th-ey. They spell they. ✓
Watch out. Write the sounds from left to right, and leave no box out.
Method. Look at the whole word, then count the letters.
- Look at the word. Read the whole word.they
- Count the letters. Count each letter once.t, h, e, y
- Write the answer. 4 letters.
Check. Count again: t, h, e, y. There are 4. ✓
Watch out. Count letters, not sounds.
Method. Read the sentence, then write the tricky words in order.
- Read the sentence. Read each word in order.We - can - go - into - the - pond
- Find the tricky words. We, go, into and the are tricky words.We, go, into, the
- Write the answer. We, go, into, the
Check. Four tricky words in order. ✓
Watch out. Check each word against the list.
Method. Read each choice.
- Read one. one is not a tricky word in this chapter.one
- Read no. no is a tricky word in this chapter.no
- Write the answer. no
Check. no is the tricky word in this chapter. ✓
Watch out. Read each word on sight.
Method. Look at the word that Ben wrote, then write the right tricky word.
- Look at goo. It has an extra o.goo
- Look at the right word. go has two letters: g and o.g - o
- Write the answer. go
Check. go has two letters. ✓
Watch out. Learn the look of the whole word.
Method. Look at be.
- Read the letters. b and e are the two letters.b, e
- Say the sounds. The sounds are /b/ and /ee/./b/ /ee/
- Give your answer. Say whether Priya is right.Accept any answer that says yes: be has two letters and two sounds, b and e.
Check. be has two letters and two sounds. ✓
Watch out. Learn the look of the word.
Method. Write a short sentence with a tricky word in it.
- Think of a short sentence. Use one of the tricky words.The cat sat.
- Check the tricky word. the is a tricky word from this chapter.the
- Write the answer. Accept any sentence with a tricky word from this chapter in it, such as The cat sat.
Check. The sentence has a tricky word in it. ✓
Watch out. Read the sentence back to check it.