I & II LEARN the accented y spelling and pronunciation pattern that is pronounced |ī|. When a syllable ending in y is accented, the y is pronounced with the long-vowel i sound, |ī|, as in reply |rē • plī ′| and myself |mī ′ • sĕlf|. Note: English words usually do not end with a dotted letter. The dotted letter i at the end of a word is often changed to y. The reverse is true for initial (beginning) or medial (middle) positions of the i; in these initial and medial cases, the y usually is changed to an i. A single-syllable word can be assumed to be an accented word if the pronunciation of y is |ī|, as in try.

III & IV LEARN the unaccented y spelling and pronunciation pattern, as in lady. When a syllable ending in y is not the accented syllable, the y is pronounced with a sound close to the long-vowel e sound |ē|, as in lady |lā′ • dē| and messy |mĕs′ • ē|.

Review: y

V & VI REVIEW the spelling and pronunciation patterns for y, both accented and unaccented. Accented y is pronounced like the long-vowel i, |ī′|, as in try (|trī|) and reply (|rē • plī′|). Unaccented y is pronounced like the long-vowel e, |ē|, as in penny (|pĕn′ • ē|) and gravy (|grā′ • vē|).

A Better Way of Reading

Some students have spent years memorizing and guessing at words. They may at times revert to the old ingrained guess habit. Our goal is to help them acquire a new, better way of reading—one based on recognizing patterns.

Be sure your student masters each lesson. Review any lesson or pattern that has not been solidly learned.

During summer vacation, two fifth-grade students read and spelled through to Lesson 81 of 90 lessons. The following summer, these two young men were willing to start again, this time at Lesson 18, and work all the way through to the 90th lesson (including the assignment found in “Now that the Lessons Are Complete, What’s Next?”). The results for these boys were nothing short of remarkable.

In another instance, an adult had successfully read and spelled through to Lesson 15. At this point, she was still struggling to accurately read and spell the words, especially the vowel sounds in the words. She was comfortable reading and spelling most of the consonants. When I suggested that we return to and begin again with Lesson 1, she was actually relieved and quite agreeable. We spent time reviewing the lessons on vowels until she read every single word with confidence. For years, she had believed that she was incapable of learning to read and spell well. Her 50-year-old ingrained habit of educated guessing was difficult to break. Her determination and her willingness to work hard ended up bringing her much joy and success. Starting over is often a very good decision for some students.