Ages 5 to 6 · P2 in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Year 1 spellings: what your child is learning, and how to help
Year 1 is the year children move from sounding out to spelling whole words. They learn which letters make which sounds, a first set of words that don't follow the rules, and how adding -s, -ing or -ed changes a word. Here's what that looks like, with sets your child can practise.
What Year 1 children learn in spelling
Most Year 1 spelling grows out of phonics. Children spell words by their sounds, then learn the exceptions: the words that can't be sounded out yet, such as "said" and "the". They also learn the days of the week, and how to add endings without changing the root word.
Each pattern below has its words, and a page to play them and download their worksheets.
ff, ll, ss, zz and ck
5 wordsIn short words, the f, l, s, z and k sounds straight after one vowel are usually spelt ff, ll, ss, zz and ck.
- off
- well
- miss
- buzz
- back
The ng sound spelt n before k
4 wordsBefore a k, the ng sound is spelt with just an n, as in bank and think.
- bank
- think
- honk
- sunk
Dividing words into syllables
5 wordsLonger words are easier to spell one beat (syllable) at a time: pock-et, rab-bit, sun-set.
- rabbit
- carrot
- thunder
- sunset
-tch
5 wordsStraight after one short vowel, the ch sound is usually spelt tch, as in catch and kitchen.
- catch
- fetch
- kitchen
- notch
- hutch
The v sound at the end of words
3 wordsEnglish words hardly ever end in v, so a v sound at the end is spelt ve, as in have and give.
- have
- live
- give
Adding s and es
6 wordsMost words just add -s; when the ending makes an extra beat, it's spelt -es, as in catches.
- cats
- dogs
- spends
- rocks
- thanks
- catches
Adding -ing, -ed and -er to verbs
9 wordsWhen the root word needs no change, -ing, -ed and -er are simply added on, as in jumping, jumped and jumper.
- hunting
- hunted
- hunter
- buzzing
- buzzed
- buzzer
- jumping
- jumped
- jumper
Adding -er and -est to adjectives
6 wordsWhen the root word needs no change, -er and -est are simply added on, as in quicker and quickest.
- grander
- grandest
- fresher
- freshest
- quicker
- quickest
Vowel digraphs and trigraphs
174 wordsTwo or three letters together can spell one vowel sound, such as ai in rain, ee in tree and igh in night.
Words ending -y
5 wordsAt the end of a word, the ee sound is often spelt y, as in happy and family.
- very
- happy
- funny
- party
- family
New consonant spellings ph and wh
9 wordsSome words spell the f sound ph and the w sound wh, as in dolphin and when.
- dolphin
- alphabet
- phonics
- elephant
- when
- where
- which
- wheel
- while
Using k for the k sound
5 wordsBefore e, i and y, the k sound is spelt k rather than c, as in kit and sketch.
- Kent
- sketch
- kit
- skin
- frisky
The prefix un-
5 wordsun- goes on the front of a word without changing the word's spelling, as in unhappy.
- unhappy
- undo
- unload
- unfair
- unlock
Compound words
5 wordsA compound word is two words joined together, and each part keeps its own spelling, as in football.
- football
- playground
- farmyard
- bedroom
- blackberry
The Year 1 common exception words
Alongside the patterns, Year 1 children learn 45 common exception words: words they can't yet spell by sounding out. Here are the first ten.
- the
- a
- do
- to
- today
- of
- said
- says
- are
- were
See every word on the Year 1 common exception words, in weekly sets
How to help your Year 1 child with spellings
- Say the word, then sound it out together before your child writes it. Clapping the beats helps with longer words.
- For the common exception words, look at the tricky bit together: the "ai" in "said" or the "o" in "come".
- Five minutes a day works better than half an hour on Thursday night.
- Let your child spell a word from memory rather than copying it, then check it together.
Are there tests in Year 1?
There's no spelling test in Year 1. In June, children take the phonics screening check: they read 40 words aloud to a teacher, some of them made-up words. It checks reading, not spelling, and schools tell you how your child got on.
Year 1 in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
Year 1 is P2 in Scotland and Northern Ireland. The lists here are from the curriculum in England; Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland don't have a statutory list. If your child's school sends words home, you can make a game from those instead.
Want the words to come back until they stick?
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