The Elementary Spelling Book, being an Improvement on the American Spelling Book · No. 150 · Part 11: Rules for spelling, numbers and marks
127. Rules for adding -ed and -ing: when to double
Goal: Your child knows when to double the last consonant before adding -ed or -ing.
You'll need
- The book, open to this table
- A slate, small whiteboard, or paper and pencil
What's in the book
No. 150 begins a set of numbered rules for spelling words made from other words. The first rules explain that regular verbs take ed for the past and ing for the present participle, and when the last consonant is doubled: in words of one syllable ending in a single consonant after a single vowel, and in longer words accented on the last syllable; but not after a digraph or long vowel, not when the word ends in two consonants, and not when the last syllable is unaccented. This page could not be fetched on its own when these guides were made; the rules here come from the book's text, and the word lists are on the page.
The lesson, step by step
The idea
SayWhen we add -ed or -ing to a verb, sometimes we double the last letter (hop, hopped) and sometimes we don't (help, helped). The book gives rules so we never have to guess.
Rule: double it
A short word that ends in one consonant after one vowel doubles that consonant: hop, hopped, hopping; plan, planned. Longer words do the same if the accent is on the last syllable: re-GRET, regretted.
Rule: don't double
No doubling when there are two vowels before the last consonant (rain, rained), when the word already ends in two consonants (help, helped), or when the last syllable is not accented (VIS-it, visited).
Read the lists
Read the book's lists for each rule together. For each word, your child says the rule that fits: "one vowel, one consonant, so double".
Practice
You say a verb, your child writes it with -ing: run, sit, rain, jump, begin, open. Check against the rules.
Wrap up
Your child explains the doubling rule in their own words.
Tip
This rule is used every day in writing. It is worth a week of short practice with real verbs.