I – IV NEW PATTERN. The letter e is the last of the short vowels. This vowel is presented last because it is usually the most difficult to master. At this point in the program, your student will have had at least seven lessons practicing the basic consonant sounds and spellings and the four other short vowels. Perhaps your student will surprise you and handle the letter e with ease.

Note: In some regions of the country, people pronounce the short-vowel e more like the short-vowel letter i, saying |tĭn| for ten. Try to teach the classical pronunciation found in dictionaries.

V NEW PATTERN. Observe that a slight change occurs in the sound of |ĕ| when it appears in syllables or words ending in m or n. Notice this with hem and ten. This effect may be caused in part by how the mouth transitions from the vowel to the consonant. The m and n are somewhat nasal. [This nasal tone is also true with the letter a, as in ham and tan.] Most students will not detect the difference in pronunciation, but a few students will hear it. Commend them for being observant. Regional differences may account for some of what your student is inclined to say and even hear.

VI REVIEW words spelled and pronounced with the short-vowel e sound, |ĕ|, and the (sometimes confusing) consonant letter b. Sample words are bell and ebb.

Your student may notice that some of the words in Lesson 8 rhyme. This is true for bell and sell, less and mess, beg and egg, and pet and met. Roman numeral V has six words that rhyme. Note: It is the sounds in beg and egg, not their spellings, that make them rhyme.

Focus, Focus, Focus!

ARE YOU POINTING with a sharpened pencil to the left side of each word as you go from word to word to help your student develop better eye/brain coordination? Be mindful of your student’s eyes. Are his eyes trained on the word to which you are pointing or is he looking elsewhere? By zeroing in on each letter in proper sequence (from left to right), your student is helping his brain to trust what his eyes see on the page. If your student is outpacing the pencil, you will need to pick up the pencil’s pace. It will be a positive experience for your student if you silently use the pencil to do the “correcting” as much as possible.