Understanding syllables helps us to spell and read. All words are made up of syllables.

Some have only one syllable, for example - cat.

Some have several syllables, for example - caterpillar has four syllables... cat - er -pill - ar.

Every syllable has a vowel sound which might be spelt with a single vowel letter, such as the 'a' in cat, or with two or more vowel letters, such as the 'ai' in rain.

As a warm up to using syllables for spelling, visit the Phonological Awareness section of this site for information and activities.

When moving on to use syllables for spelling

- work within the range of sounds/ letters your learner is confident with

- remind them of the vowel sounds,  the links below take you to some short movies to help with this.

The subsection to the right takes you to movies showing activities using syllables to support spelling.

Short Vowels

Long Vowels