I NEW PATTERN. We are going to learn the ch digraph spelling pattern with
the |ch| sound. This sound is found at the beginning of syllables and words, as in chop.

II LEARN the tch trigraph that makes the sound of |ch|, as in match and itch.
Most short-vowel words ending in the |ch| sound are spelled with the silent letter t [tch] and are pronounced the same as the simple digraph ch, as in stitch. Only a few short-vowel words and syllables ending with the |ch| sound are spelled without the silent t. Roman numeral II lists three of the exceptions: much, rich, and such.

Other exceptions are which (Lesson 27) and touch (Lesson 67). These five words may be the only exceptions to this short-vowel pattern.

III NEW PATTERN. Here we will learn the nch spelling pattern with the |nch| sound, as in inch. This is a trigraph (consists of three letters constituting one sound). This would be an opportune time to use a dictionary to look up at least some of the lesson words. Students will benefit if they get in the habit of consulting a dictionary.

REVIEW the slight sound change that occurs in short vowels i and e when these letters are followed by the consonant n, as in inch and bench.

IV LEARN the ch spelling pattern with the |ch| sound found at the end of syllables or words, as in much. As mentioned above, there are very few words spelled this way.

Review: ch nch tch

V & VI REVIEW the ch, tch, and nch spelling patterns for the |ch| and |nch|
sounds, respectively.

The Sound for “ch” Is Quick

Vowels have a “continuous” sound because their sound can continue for as long as the speaker has breath and time. In contrast, the ch (|ch|) is a “quick” or “stop” sound. Telling your student about the “quick” sound of |ch| may help him pronounce it. To illustrate, ask your student to say |ch|, opening his mouth and dropping his tongue from the roof of the mouth and releasing a puff of air, fast. This motion will stop the sound.