Ages 8 to 9 · P5 in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Year 4 spellings: what your child is learning, and how to help
Year 4 is the second year of the Year 3 and 4 programme. Children spell the "shun" endings (-tion, -sion, -ssion, -cian), endings such as -sure and -ture, and more of the statutory words. Here's what they're learning, and sets your child can practise now.
What Year 4 children learn in spelling
Year 4 is about endings that sound alike but are spelt differently. The trick is to look at the root word: "invent" becomes "invention", "extend" becomes "extension", and "music" becomes "musician". Children also finish the Year 3 and 4 statutory list.
Each pattern below has its words, and a page to play them and download their worksheets.
The suffix -ation
5 wordsAdding -ation to a verb makes a noun, as in inform and information.
- information
- adoration
- sensation
- preparation
- admiration
Words with endings sounding like zhuh or chuh
9 wordsThe zhuh ending is always spelt -sure (measure); the chuh ending is often -ture (picture), unless the root ends in ch, as in teacher.
- measure
- treasure
- pleasure
- enclosure
- creature
- furniture
- picture
- nature
- adventure
Endings which sound like zhun
6 wordsWhen the ending sounds like zhun, it is spelt -sion, as in television and decision.
- division
- invasion
- confusion
- decision
- collision
- television
-tion, -sion, -ssion and -cian
19 wordsLook at the root word: -tion after t or te, -ssion after ss or mit, -sion after d or se, and -cian after c or cs.
Set 1
10 words- invention
- injection
- action
- hesitation
- completion
- expression
- discussion
- confession
- permission
- admission
Set 2
9 words- expansion
- extension
- comprehension
- tension
- musician
- electrician
- magician
- politician
- mathematician
The sh sound spelt ch (mostly French in origin)
4 wordsIn some words that come from French, the sh sound is spelt ch, as in chef and machine.
- chef
- chalet
- machine
- brochure
The g sound spelt -gue and the k sound spelt -que (French in origin)
4 wordsSome words from French end in -gue for a g sound or -que for a k sound, as in league and unique.
- league
- tongue
- antique
- unique
The s sound spelt sc (Latin in origin)
5 wordsIn some words that come from Latin, the s sound is spelt sc, as in science and scene.
- science
- scene
- discipline
- fascinate
- crescent
The ay sound spelt ei, eigh or ey
6 wordsThe ay sound can be spelt ei, eigh or ey, as in vein, eight and they.
- vein
- weigh
- eight
- neighbour
- they
- obey
Possessive apostrophe with plural words
3 wordsIf a plural ends in s, the apostrophe goes after the s (girls'); if not, add 's (children's).
- children's
- men's
- mice's
The Year 3 and 4 programme also covers Adding suffixes beginning with vowel letters to words of more than one syllable, The i sound spelt y elsewhere than at the end of words, The u sound spelt ou, More prefixes and more. They're on the Year 3 spellings page.
The Year 3 and 4 statutory list
Across Years 3 and 4, children learn the statutory word list. Here are the first ten words.
- accident
- accidentally
- actual
- actually
- address
- answer
- appear
- arrive
- believe
- bicycle
See every word on the Year 3 and 4 statutory list, in weekly sets
How to help your Year 4 child with spellings
- For the "shun" endings, start with the root word and decide the ending from how it ends.
- Say the word as it's spelt ("Feb-ru-ary", "Wed-nes-day") to remember the silent bits.
- Practise from memory, not by copying. Getting it wrong and checking is how it sticks.
- Come back to last week's words for a minute or two: that's what stops them slipping.
Are there tests in Year 4?
There's no spelling test in Year 4. The national test this year is the multiplication tables check in June. The key stage 2 spelling test comes at the end of Year 6.
Year 4 in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
Year 4 is P5 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.
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