Year 3 Spelling
In Year 3, students must keep developing their spelling and phonics skills. As they grow up, they will be learning more complex spellings, making use of dictionaries to check words they don’t know.
Table of Contents
Year 3 Spelling on the National Curriculum
Years 3 and 4 share the same spelling words, according to the national curriculum. Therefore, students should be supported in areas they may find challenging.
What Year 3 focuses on
Besides covering the phonics they have previously learnt, students will continue to work on their spelling and phonetic knowledge.
More suffixes
Beginning with vowel letters to words that are more than one syllable
More prefixes
As we know, prefixes go at the beginning of words. Students will focus on prefixes such as un-, dis– and mis– to create negative meanings.
Disappoint, misbehave and inactive.
Possessive apostrophes
This also includes plural words. If you would like more info on apostrophes, click here.
Re-visiting homophones
Homophones are tricky words that sound the same but have completely different meanings, and sometimes, different spellings.
Want to know more? Click here.
Dictionaries
Learning to use the dictionary is something Year 3 and 4 students can expect as they come closer to finishing KS1. Dictionaries are ideal to check their spelling. Additionally, students will have to use the dictionary in KS2, therefore it is important to get students ready.
How spelling is taught
In Year 3, students share the same statutory requirements as Year 4 students for their spelling. Teachers use various methods to help their Year 3 class learn their spellings, from word searches to classic worksheets.
Students will also be expected to do out-of-school learning where they revise their spelling words for the week. Most students have a small notebook to practise spelling, however, online interactive games are also used for homework.
Activities
Finding the right resources for your classroom can sometimes be a bit of a “hit ‘Nd miss”, but, it is important to keep trying different things in the classroom. After all, we are all different, including our way of learning. What might work for one student, might be challenging for the other.
That’s why engaging and fun activities are a great suggestion for when learning new things.
Working with Plurals
This worksheet focuses on the suffixes of some words. The goal is that students understand “-s” and “-es” suffixes, and what happens when we add them to the end of words.
Silent Letter Worksheets
Silent letters in the English language are those that are not pronounced. For example Gnome, Knight, Knowledge. However, that does not mean we can spell them incorrectly. Students in Year 3 must be aware of these letters to spell tricky words. We have created a worksheet for your classroom to complete.
Emile “look, say, cover, write and check” Worksheets
Worksheets are a classic way of helping students spell better. Following the “look, say, cover, spell, and check” method, students can fully learn the required words given by the government on the National Curriculum.
These worksheets are for Year 3 and Year 3 and 4, following the appendix on the National Curriculum. Download them for free below!
Interactive Games
A good way to engage your students with spelling is by using interactive games. Learning with Emile has been designed by teachers for teachers and students. Learning with Emile has tons of resources, especially for spelling and phonics.
If you haven’t tried Learning with Emile, why not request your free demo today!
10-minute challenge
Choose 10 words from your Year 3 spelling word list. The game is simple, you simply say the word aloud and ask students to spend a minute illustrating that word. First, they must spell it on a piece of paper, or in their notebook, then they can draw the word, write it again in different colours – the choice is theirs.
This activity ensures that students spend at least ten minutes of their day learning their spelling words for the week. Students shouldn’t feel like they are competing with their classmates, but instead to compete with themselves. By challenging ourselves, we are able to develop new skills, learn new information and gain confidence!
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