Wordy Wednesday: Rime Time (-AIL, -AIN, -AN, -IGHT)

Wordy Wednesday is back!
Today we are focusing on words that end with the letters -AIL. How many words can you think of that end with -AIL?

PAIL
FAIL
SNAIL
BAIL....

How about -AIN?
Or -AN?
Or the ever popular -IGHT?

So, what's the RIME?

ONSET and RIME are terms used to describe the phonological units of words. In order to help young (and not so young) students with reading and spelling, many teachers will use spelling patterns that break down the ONSET and RIME.

The ONSET is the part of the syllable that includes the initial consonant or consonant blend. The RIME is the syllable that consists of the vowel sound and any final consonants, like -AIL. I posted the ONSET "BR-" back in September when the weather first started to turn cold. My daughter and I spent about an hour writing out all the words we could think of that began with BR-. She was able to write out a total of 43 words! 

We've been playing these games for years with the kids, but I think my husband and I have as much if not more fun than the kids trying to think of words to add to the list. I've even posted the RIME -TION on a Facebook Group for my colleagues in academia (real professors!) and they kept posting new words to the list. It's addictive and a great way to entertain the kids or warm up for a writing session. Writing the words out is a great way to reinforce spelling and to exercise our vocabulary skills. The most important thing is to have fun with writing! Enjoy!