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Skill Explainer

10. Resource Hub: Teaching Suffixes

Suffixes Skill Explainer

Videos

Video thumbnail for Quick Look: Suffix '-s' and Suffix '-ing'
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Taurra Dorsey: Let's do this one.

Students: Suffix 'ing'.

Taurra Dorsey: What does suffix '-ing' ... what does that do? What does that mean when we add that? Go. Sophia?

Sophia: Makes it ... makes it happening now.

Taurra Dorsey: Happening now. Okay. Do we agree?

Students: Yes.

Taurra Dorsey: Yes. Let's go back to suffix 's'. So let me tell you about suffix 's'. Suffix 's' makes the noun more than one. Is suffix 's' a part of the base word?

Students: No.

Taurra Dorsey: We add it on just like we add on suffix '-ing'. Suffix '-s'..

Students: Suffix '-s' ...

Taurra Dorsey: makes the noun ...

Students: makes the noun ...

Taurra Dorsey: more than one.

Students: more than one.

Taurra Dorsey: Suffix 'ing' ...

Students: Suffix '-ing' ...

Taurra Dorsey: means happening now.

Students: means happening now.

Taurra Dorsey: Awesome job. Awesome job. Everybody. Kiss your brain.

Video thumbnail for Quick Look: A Chant for the Suffix '-es' Rule
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Carla Miller: And I have a little cheer for us. You ready for a little cheer?

Students: Yes!

Carla Miller: Okay. Here we go. Okay, so the cheer goes like this, 'sh', 'ch', 'x', 's', 'z', add '-es' and you'll please me! We're going to do the first part first and then the second part. Let me hear you say ...

Together: 'sh', 'ch', 'x', 's', 'z', add '-es' and you'll please me!

Video thumbnail for Teaching Suffix '-s' and Suffix '-es'
Video thumbnail for Warming Up with Suffixes
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Khadija Williams: All right, now we have our suffixes. Okay.

Narrator: Warming up with flashcards is a fast, easy way for students to review their letter-sound correspondences. It helps them develop automaticity and gets their brains ready for new content. Watch as Khadija Williams leads her second graders through a deck on suffixes.

Khadija Williams: '-er', /er/.

Students: '-er', /er/.

Khadija Williams: Someone.

Students: Someone, something, or more.

Khadija Williams: Very good. Teacher.

Students: Teacher. Marker.

Khadija Williams: Bigger.

Students: Bigger.

Khadija Williams: Very good.

Narrator: Notice how Ms. Williams uses the same routine for each suffix. She spells it, says it, defines it, and gives examples.

Khadija Williams: Suffix '-ing'.

Students: Suffix '-ing'.

Khadija Williams: /ing/. Happening now.

Students: Happening now.

Khadija Williams: Running.

Students: Running.

Khadija Williams: Jumping.

Students: Jumping.

Khadija Williams: Very good. Suffix '-ed'.

Students: Suffix '-ed'.

Khadija Williams: /d/, /t/, /ĭd/.

Students: /d/, /t/, /ĭd/.

Khadija Williams: In the past.

Students: In the past.

Khadija Williams: Very good. Cleaned.

Students: Cleaned.

Khadija Williams: Danced.

Students: Danced.

Khadija Williams: Very good. Suffix '-ful', /ful/.

Students: Suffix '-ful', /ful/.

Khadija Williams: Full of.

Students: Full of.

Khadija Williams: Very good. Helpful.

Students: Helpful.

Khadija Williams: Thoughtful.

Students: Thoughtful.

Khadija Williams: Wishful.

Students: Wishful.

Khadija Williams: Very good. Suffix '-s'.

Students: Suffix 's'.

Khadija Williams: /s/ or /z/.

Students: /s/ or /z/.

Khadija Williams: Plural, more than one.

Students: Plural, more than one.

Khadija Williams: Teachers.

Students: Teachers.

Khadija Williams: Girls.

Students: Girls.

Khadija Williams: Chairs.

Students: Chairs.

Khadija Williams: Very good. Suffix '-less'.

Students: Suffix '-less'.

Khadija Williams: /lĭs/.

Students: /lĭs/.

Khadija Williams: Without.

Students: Without.

Khadija Williams: Thoughtless.

Students: Thoughtless.

Khadija Williams: Harmless.

Students: Harmless.

Khadija Williams: Hopeless.

Students: Hopeless.

Narrator: Building a consistent flashcard routine like this one helps students focus less on the process and more on mastering their suffixes.

Khadija Williams: Very good. Awesome.

Narrator: Reading Universe is made possible by generous support from Jim and Donna Barksdale, the Hastings/Quillin Fund, an advised fund of the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, the AFT, the Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation, and anonymous donors. Special thanks to Hope Hill Elementary, Reading Is Essential For All People, and Atlanta Public Schools. If you enjoyed this video, please subscribe to our YouTube channel @RUteaching. Reading Universe is a service of WETA, Washington D.C., the Barksdale Reading Institute, and First Book.

Khadija Williams: My name is Khadija Williams, and this is Reading Universe.

Student Practice Activities

Student Read Sheets

Decodable Texts

Lesson Planning Materials

List of Words, Phrases, and Sentences for Lesson Planning

Assessments

Planning a Phonics Lesson

Reading Universe is made possible by generous support from Jim & Donna Barksdale; the Hastings/Quillin Fund, an advised fund of the Silicon Valley Community Foundation (opens in new window); the AFT (opens in new window); the Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation (opens in new window); and three anonymous donors.