3.1 Prepare for Instruction on Prefixes

Before you teach, you'll need to do a few things to get ready:

Review the Explicitly Teaching section with sample lesson plans in this skill explainer so that you'll feel comfortable teaching prefixes and their meaning to your students.

Word selection is key! As you prepare for instruction, it's important to be intentional about the words you choose to teach. You'll need to use base words that include phonics skills that you've already taught. For example, don't use the base word born for teaching '-re' (reborn) if you haven't yet taught r-controlled vowels. 

In the case that you do use a word that has a pattern that you haven't yet taught, read the word aloud to students and have them repeat it back to you before adding the prefix to the new word. 

Our free Reading Universe prefixes word lists below can help you plan what words to use in your lessons:

Additional Word Lists

• Prefix 'non-' List of Words, Phrases, and Sentences for Lesson Planning (opens in new window)
• Prefix 'dis-' List of Words, Phrases, and Sentences for Lesson Planning (opens in new window)
• Prefix 'pre-' List of Words, Phrases, and Sentences for Lesson Planning (opens in new window)
• Prefix 'mis-' List of Words, Phrases, and Sentences for Lesson Planning (opens in new window)

Print the free prefix flash cards below to use in your teaching. We recommend using them to introduce each prefix to your students. Write the pronunciation, meaning, and example words on the back of your prefix flash card(s) so that you have that information handy during your lessons. 

After you've introduced a prefix, then you'll add them into your flash card deck for reviewing and practicing at the beginning of each lesson, during your flash card warm-up.

Daily dictation can help students with listening skills, auditory memory, reading and spelling skills, language, and handwriting. Print the free pages below to help your student practice spelling, writing, and reading their prefixes.

Go to the Resource Hub for a complete collection of word lists, read sheets, and decodables for practicing reading and writing words with prefixes.