✦A small step for today
Spot a possible word part, suggest a meaning and check it in a sentence.
Start with un- and re-
Compare happy with unhappy, and read with reread. Here un- gives a negative meaning and re- suggests doing something again. Ask your child to make a sentence for each whole word, rather than only name the prefix.
Compare -ful and -less
Careful and careless give a useful contrast. A careful person handles a glass gently; a careless person might knock it over by not paying attention. Helpful and helpless are another pair, but their meanings still need full examples.
Notice changes in word type
Enjoy is a verb, enjoyment a noun, and enjoyable an adjective. Try ‘We enjoy the game’, ‘The game brings enjoyment’ and ‘It is an enjoyable game’. Do not just add an ending mechanically: spelling and natural usage can change.
Know when the clue fails
Not every word beginning with re has the prefix re-. Read does not mean ‘do ad again’. Do not split a word solely because its first letters look familiar. If a proposed meaning sounds wrong in context, check the complete word.
Try this together
Build three word cards: unhappy, reread and careless. Underline the word part you recognise, explain the whole word and make a sentence.
See an example answer
un- + happy: not happy; re- + read: read again; care + -less: not taking enough care. ‘I reread the sentence to understand it.’
Words in action
reread
Meaning
To read something again.
Example
“I will reread the instructions before we begin.”
careless
Meaning
Not giving enough attention or care.
Example
“A careless movement knocked the glass over.”
enjoyable
Meaning
Giving pleasure or enjoyment.
Example
“We had an enjoyable afternoon playing word games.”
Audio uses your device’s English speech voice. Voice availability and pronunciation vary by device.
A quick check
