Meet Bossy 'R' (er, ir, ur)
Basics on the topic Meet Bossy 'R' (er, ir, ur)
Hop on the soccer field with Dee and Kala as they meet bossy R: ER, IR, UR with a little help from Coach R.
Transcript Meet Bossy 'R' (er, ir, ur)
Dee and Kala are late for their first day of soccer. When they arrive, the /ER/ team has already started drills! Coach R is on the megaphone telling E, I and U what to do. Dee and Kala wonder why the coach is being so controlling. Let's see what they learn as they “Meet Bossy R: ER, IR, UR”. Remember, syllables are words or word parts that have one vowel sound and take one puff of air to say. There are different types of syllables, like this one called R controlled or Bossy R. It has one vowel followed by the letter R. Bossy means to take control or tell someone what to do. The same thing happens with bossy R syllables! The letter R takes control of the vowel and tells it what to say. Even though the vowel speaks, the R takes charge of the sound. When the bossy R comes after E, I, or U, they all say /er/. Let's look at E R first. E R is a very common way to spell /er/. Often times, E R can be found saying /er/ at the END of two syllable words, as in letter, water, and cover. Let's say it together: E R, letter, /er/. Next, there is I R, IR is a less common way to spell /er/ inside of a word. Often times, we use the I R spelling when one of these sounds comes after it, /an/, /d/, /m/, /t/, or /th/ like in the words bird, birth, or shirt. Finally, there is U R, the last one on the /er/ team. It's the least common way to spell the /er/ sound in a word. But, it can still be found saying /er/ in the beginning, middle, and end of words like in urchin, surf, or blur. Let's say it together: U R, surf, /er/ Now let's practice by picking which bossy R pair is making the sound in each of the following words. Shirt. Which bossy R says /er/ in shirt? ER, IR, or UR? I R because the /er/ sound is inside 'shirt' and it's followed by the /t/ sound. What about the word: burn? Which bossy R says /er/? ER, IR, or UR? U R, the /er/ sound is inside of the word burn. How about the word: tiger? Which pair do we use? ER, IR, or UR? E R because the /er/ sound is at the end of the two syllable word tiger. Before soccer practice ends, let's remember! Today we met bossy R. This is a special type of syllable where the letter R takes control of the vowel before it! Even though the vowel talks, the R takes control of the sound. When E, I, and U are followed by R, they each say /er/. "Well that was fun, Kala!" "I agree, Dee, except we should probably ask them to fix our names on the back of these jerseys."
Meet Bossy 'R' (er, ir, ur) exercise
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Find the words with Bossy "R".
HintsThere are three words that include Bossy R.
Words with Bossy R include er, ir, or ur, which we read as /er/.
SolutionThere are three words with Bossy "R":
- tiger
- shirt
- blur
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Listen and spell the words.
HintsStart by finding Bossy "R" syllable: er, ir, or ur.
Then, put the rest of the letters and the Bossy "R" in the correct order.
See example: LIGR
Start by finding Bossy "R" syllable: IR.
Then, put the rest of the letters and the Bossy "R" in the correct order: GIRL
- er is often found at the end of words: mother, letter.
- ir is usually found inside the word, before an, d, m, t, th: birth, shirt.
- ur can be found either at the beginning or in the middle of the word: urchin, burn.
SolutionSURF
- This word includes a syllable with Bossy "R" in the middle: ur
- This word includes a syllable with Bossy "R" in the middle: ir
- This word includes a syllable with Bossy "R" at the end: er
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Which words include Bossy "R"?
HintsThere are four words with Bossy "R".
Bossy "R" has a vowel followed by the letter R. For example: turn.
When the Bossy "R" comes after E, I, or U in er, ir, and ur, they all say /er/.
Some examples of words with Bossy "R" are: girl, driver, and curl.
SolutionWords with Bossy "R":
- stir
- fir
- cover
- turkey
Words without Bossy "R":
- crown
- rose
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What is missing?
HintsER is usually found at the end of words: driver, matter.
IR and UR are usually found in the middle of words: shirt, burn.
We often use IR when one of these sounds comes after it: an, d, m, t, th.
Listen to the correct pronunciation of the words.
SolutionListen to the audio for correct pronunciation of the words with Bossy "R".
Words with ER:
- tiger
- baker
- shirt
- bird
- burn
- nurse
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Match the audios to the words with Bossy "R".
HintsStart by sounding out the words yourself. Pay attention to Bossy "R": when it comes after e, i, or u, they all say /er/.
Syllables with Bossy "R" that say /er/ can come at the beginning of the word, the middle, or the end. Make sure to sound them correctly.
SolutionListen to the audio to hear the correct pronunciation of the words:
- burn
- after
- bird
- urgent
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Fill in the gaps.
HintsER is usually found at the end of the words: weather, matter.
We often use IR when one of these sounds comes after it: an, d, m, t, th: bird, girl.
UR is a less common way to spell the /er/ sound in the middle of a word: burst, turn.
Solution- hurt
- teacher
- dirt
- birthday
- otter
