Syllables – word parts with a single vowel sound. Until my Masters in Literacy (a Science of Reading based program) all I knew was counting syllables in Kindergarten. I knew vowel types, so I was familiar with those syllable types but unaware of closed and consonant le syllables! But I learned and you can too! The six syllable types and teaching syllable types is easy and important.
What are the Six Syllable Types?
There are six syllable types. Knowing these will help your students read words, especially multisyllabic more quickly increasing their word fluency and overall fluency. Now let’s take a look at each type.
- Closed Syllables
- Open Syllables
- Magic E Syllables
- Bossy R Syllables
- Vowel Team Syllables
- Consonant le Syllables
Now let’s take a closer look at each type.
Closed Syllables
Closed syllables are the most common type with 43% of syllables being closed. They end with a consonant or consonant digraph and the vowel makes its short sound. This is why we start with CVC closed syllables in kindergarten.
Open Syllables
I have found these to be one of the many missing links students have if they do not have a direct explicit systematic phonics program with a scope and sequence including open syllables. It is also what students struggle with the most when switching to a phonics based approach if they have had previous instruction. Open syllables are the second most common type and account for 29% of all syllables and most long vowel sounds. Open syllables end with a vowel and the vowel makes the long sound or says its name. Words like me, go, hi, and she are all open syllables. These are often taught as irregular high frequency words. Y as a vowel at the end of a word like sky and candy are also open syllables.
Magic E Syllables
Magic E syllables are rare and make up only about 6.5% of all syllables in English. They are most often in one syllable words. They follow a vowel, single consonant e pattern (VCe). The vowel sound is long. Magic E can be tricky because there are so many jobs of magic E which you can read more about HERE.
Bossy R Syllables
A Bossy R or R controlled syllable is a vowel followed by the letter R. These count for 10% of all syllables. These can be challenging for students because of the difficulty of pronouncing the r sound along with putting the r after the vowel and remembering which spelling of /er/ the ER, IR, or UR.
Vowel Team Syllables
These are the hardest syllable type in my opinion. They encompass all the long vowel team spellings as well as diphthongs such as au/aw. oy/oi which I refer to as special sound vowel teams. Even with all of these spellings they only make up 9.5% of syllables in our language. While there are some rules to help to know which spelling to use these take lots and lots of practice to master.
Consonant Le Syllables
This was one of the types that I was unaware of when I first started teaching. They account for less than 2% of all syllables and are ONLY in multisyllabic words. These are usually introduced in second grade. They are relatively easy to teach and students tend to pick up on them easily and quickly.
Tips for Teaching Syllable Types
While we start syllable work with closed syllables and counting syllables in kindergarten all they need to know is that syllables are words or parts of words with one vowel sound. This helps us count them as vowels make our mouth open, therefore, helping us count them when our chin drops. In First grade we begin to teach the different syllable types as we teach vowel concepts remember syllable types are linked to the vowels. In First grade, we teach closed, open, Magic E, Bossy R, and Vowel Team syllables. However, I only teach long vowel teams in first grade according to my scope and sequence. In second grade we review syllable types and introduce special vowel teams and consonant LE syllables. We also work on syllable division in second grade. By third grade, students should know the six syllable types and how to divide words into syllables for reading and spelling.
While this adds another layer to your instruction it isn’t one more thing. Teaching syllable types seamlessly integrates with your phonics instruction and is the key for many students especially in second grade to make the transition to reading multisyllabic words which leads to fluent reading.
Pin for Later
