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5th grade · English Language Arts · Unit 11 of 11

Spelling Smarts

Suffixes and words to know

What your child practices

Children practice US spelling of words with suffixes (-ful, -ly, -ous, -ment, -able, -ible), doubling rules, i before e and commonly misspelled words.

Alabama Course of Study content standard: 5.4; 5.40 · spelling words correctly using suffix rules and spelling patterns

How we explain it

Children can open this short lesson before they practice.

  1. Usually just add the suffix: comfort + able = comfortable, govern + ment = government.
  2. Drop a silent e before a vowel suffix (fame → famous), but some words change anyway (argue → argument).
  3. Use “i before e except after c” as a guide, then check the word.

Example: Add -ment to “argue.” Which spelling is correct? “Argue” ends in e. This word drops the e even before -ment. Answer: argument

Spelling Smarts in Alabama

In the Alabama Course of Study, this is unit 11 of 11 in 5th grade English Language Arts, after Research Ready.

Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.

Source: Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE)

Sample questions

A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.

  1. Question 1

    Add -ion to “educate.” Which spelling is correct?

    • edjucation
    • educatoin
    • educasion
    • education

  2. Question 2

    Add -ful to “beauty.” Which spelling is correct?

    • beautifull
    • beautyful
    • beautiefull
    • beautiful

  3. Question 3

    Which word is spelled correctly?

    • famus
    • fameous
    • famouse
    • famous

  4. Question 4

    Add -ous to “danger.” Which spelling is correct?

    • dangerous
    • dangerouse
    • dangerious
    • dangerus

  5. Question 5

    Add -ed to “admit.” Which spelling is correct?

    • admmitted
    • admittid
    • admited
    • admitted

  6. Question 6

    Which word is spelled correctly?

    • rhythem
    • rythm
    • rhytm
    • rhythm

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