"oo" vs. "u"

[Lots of boys]

I am terrible at spelling and so am really enjoying working through AAS with my ds. We are on level 2 and are workingon step 10 and 11 where they discuss (again) the addition of a silent e which makes the vowel before the consonant long. My son gets this pretty well but is having problems with works like "tune" or "June" vs. "toon" or "soon" (he tends to want to spell everything with this sounds with double oo's - like "Joon"). Is this just a memorization issue or is there a rule to remember when to use the "une" verses the "oon" ?

[KristenR]

:lurk5:

[Tigger]

The use and rules of "oo" isn't in level 2....are you adding to the material?

[boscopup]

I think you just have to remember it. For AAS, just remind him that you haven't done "oo" yet, so none of the words you encounter right now will have that spelling.

[Lots of boys]

No, I'm not adding anything to the material but we went over the silent e rules and then I dictated some words to him. When I got to tune and June he spelled them toon and joon. I think he has seen the word cartoon a lot and so is making that connection and using it to try to figure out how to spell other words that sounds similar. He asked me how can he tell if a word uses oo or u (soon verse sune, June verses Joon, loon verses lune etc. ) and I wasn't sure - so was just wondering if there is a way (other than just remember which is which for each word) or a rule that explained this down the road.

[Agamemnonsmom]

We're on level 2 also. I just remind him we haven't learned that vowel team yet. He would use "oo" for a few times but after reminding him, he doesn't anymore. Same thing with "ea" instead of "ee". When we got to the "ee" step, I had to remind him we haven't learned the "ea" vowel team yet for spelling. I'm not sure what will happen when we do learn the additional vowel teams though.:tongue_smilie:

[Tigger]

No, I'm not adding anything to the material but we went over the silent e rules and then I dictated some words to him. When I got to tune and June he spelled them toon and joon. I think he has seen the word cartoon a lot and so is making that connection and using it to try to figure out how to spell other words that sounds similar. He asked me how can he tell if a word uses oo or u (soon verse sune, June verses Joon, loon verses lune etc. ) and I wasn't sure - so was just wondering if there is a way (other than just remember which is which for each word) or a rule that explained this down the road.

 

I think I'd remind him that we're learning "u_e" in the lesson, so none of the words you're working on will be spelled with a "oo". I'd try to keep it simple and not delve into the more complicated at this point with him since it is level 2 and the basics he's learning now will help him differentiate the more complicated in higher levels.

 

I'd caution against trying to differentiate between foreign used words he'll be unlikely to use anytime soon (joon) and English words he'll use often (June)....between words like Lune and loon which you learn to spell based on meaning when heard in a sentence.....and potentially mispronouncing a word like sune (pronounced soo-nee), which is again learned based on definition, not phonetic sound. I'd continue to remind him we'll get to those types of interesting words later, but let's focus and learn these words we'll be using more now!

[Ellie]

I am terrible at spelling and so am really enjoying working through AAS with my ds. We are on level 2 and are workingon step 10 and 11 where they discuss (again) the addition of a silent e which makes the vowel before the consonant long. My son gets this pretty well but is having problems with works like "tune" or "June" vs. "toon" or "soon" (he tends to want to spell everything with this sounds with double oo's - like "Joon"). Is this just a memorization issue or is there a rule to remember when to use the "une" verses the "oon" ?

 

There's no rule for oo vs u-e.

 

There is a difference in pronunciation, which most of us in the U.S. don't hear or say. The correct pronunciation of the second (long) sound of u actually has sort of a y sound. Think of "unicorn." Then try to say "tune" with that same sort of sound. That's the correct pronunciation. Dr. Raymond Moore used to talk about this, how we U.S. peeps mispronounce it; he was quite distraught, lol.

 

IOW, "toon" and "tune" are NOT pronounced the same. Well, they're not supposed to be, anyway. :D

 

So, no, there isn't a rule. Y'all will have to discuss it and do whatever analyzation AAS has you do, and eventually your ds will recognize words which use whichever spelling.

[go_go_gadget]

:iagree: It's a pronunciation issue, not a spelling rule. The long e is making u say its name, not "oo".

[RootAnn]

IOW, "toon" and "tune" are NOT pronounced the same. Well, they're not supposed to be, anyway. :D

 

:iagree: I thought to myself, "Why would these two words sound the same??"

 

Then, I :D because I'm one that can't hear the difference between "w" and "wh."

 

And, apparently, I say "train" so badly that my dd#2 thinks it starts with a /ch/ sound. :tongue_smilie:

 

So, I'd emphasize the /U/ sound when I say "tUne" vs. "cartoon."

 

I run into this with "picture" vs. "pitcher." I normally say them both the same. Also, I have to make a special effort to pronounce for spelling with words that I SAY wrong normally. A carton of milk, for example, I would normally say "car-tun" vs. the proper "car-ton."

[mrs.m]

I think I'd remind him that we're learning "u_e" in the lesson, so none of the words you're working on will be spelled with a "oo". I'd try to keep it simple and not delve into the more complicated at this point with him since it is level 2 and the basics he's learning now will help him differentiate the more complicated in higher levels.

 

I'd caution against trying to differentiate between foreign used words he'll be unlikely to use anytime soon (joon) and English words he'll use often (June)....between words like Lune and loon which you learn to spell based on meaning when heard in a sentence.....and potentially mispronouncing a word like sune (pronounced soo-nee), which is again learned based on definition, not phonetic sound. I'd continue to remind him we'll get to those types of interesting words later, but let's focus and learn these words we'll be using more now!

 

:iagree: I would explain that tune and toon are homophones though (since he asked about it) and add to our homophone list we are working on. I would have him draw a silly face using the /oo/ in toon to increase visual memory for the difference. The other words are not used all that often so I'd save that for later. They will teach soon, moon and other /oo/ later.

 

I understand the technical difference in the pronunciation but I can't pronounce it that way so we have to work with what we can. ;)

[serendipitous journey]

There's no rule for oo vs u-e.

 

 

The correct pronunciation of the second (long) sound of u actually has sort of a y sound. Think of "unicorn." Then try to say "tune" with that same sort of sound. That's the correct pronunciation.

 

I suspected this myself!!! :lol:

thanks!

[mrs.m]

I run into this with "picture" vs. "pitcher." I normally say them both the same. Also, I have to make a special effort to pronounce for spelling with words that I SAY wrong normally. A carton of milk, for example, I would normally say "car-tun" vs. the proper "car-ton."

 

You aren't saying carton incorrectly. It's the schwa sound that is often used on an unstressed sylable.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/carton

[MerryAtHope]

I agree that I'd keep it simple for now and let him know you haven't yet learned "oo" words. And unfortunately there's not a rule to differentiate between them, that's one of the things that makes English difficult. One thing you can do is use the word cards like a word bank, and let him read them daily for a few days to build up a visual memory for them. When he reads them, ask him how the /oo/ sound is spelled, and have him notice that it's "u_e."

 

AAS is gradually teaching 4 main spelling strategies, you might enjoy this article.

 

HTH! Merry :-)

[happyhomemaker]

There's no rule for oo vs u-e.

 

There is a difference in pronunciation, which most of us in the U.S. don't hear or say. The correct pronunciation of the second (long) sound of u actually has sort of a y sound. Think of "unicorn." Then try to say "tune" with that same sort of sound. That's the correct pronunciation. Dr. Raymond Moore used to talk about this, how we U.S. peeps mispronounce it; he was quite distraught, lol.

 

IOW, "toon" and "tune" are NOT pronounced the same. Well, they're not supposed to be, anyway. :D

 

So, no, there isn't a rule. Y'all will have to discuss it and do whatever analyzation AAS has you do, and eventually your ds will recognize words which use whichever spelling.

 

:iagree: Pronouncing these sounds the same way is a pet peeve of my dh so that's how I first learned they are different. I practice "We think to spell 'tUne,' ,but we say 'tOOn'" with the kids. It helps them remember to pronounce words a little differently sometimes when thinking of how to spell them.