The Elementary Spelling Book, being an Improvement on the American Spelling Book · No. 122 · Part 7: Long words and common endings
89. Th with its breathy sound: thirteen, thousand, zenith
Goal: Your child reads and spells longer words in which th has its aspirated (breathy) sound.
You'll need
- The book, open to this table
- A slate, small whiteboard, or paper and pencil
What's in the book
No. 122, "Words in which th has its aspirated sound": ether, thorough, athletic, jacinth, thirteen, thesis, thousand, cathartic, zenith, atheism, and more.
The lesson, step by step
The pattern
Back to th from No. 96. In all these words th is breathy, as in "thin": no buzz in the throat. The words are longer now, and th can come anywhere.
Read the table aloud
Read the table aloud together, a column at a time. You say a word, your child says it back while pointing to it. Then your child reads a column alone. Some of the words:
ether, thorough, athletic
thirteen, thesis, thousand
zenith, atheism
Spell aloud by syllables
Spell each word a syllable at a time, the way Webster's pupils did: spell the first syllable and say it, spell the next and say it, then say the whole word.
Sayt, h, o, u, thou; s, a, n, d, sand; thousand.
Saya, t, h, ath; l, e, t, let; i, c, ic; athletic.
Do a column this way while looking, then cover it and spell a few from memory.
Hand on the throat
Your child says each word with a hand on the throat. No buzz on the th? Then it belongs in this table.
Dictation
Say each word, use it in a short sentence of your own, and say it again. Your child writes it. Try these: thorough, athletic, thirteen, thousand, zenith.
Check together against the book. Any word that came out wrong goes on a card for tomorrow.
Review
Finish with the cards from earlier days: your child reads and spells each one. Put a card away after three right days in a row.