Open Syllables

Dee and Kala want to take in the view from the top floor of Syllable Tower. So, they head to the lobby elevator to ride it to the tippy top! But as the doors begin to close, someone else tries to catch the elevator. Dee presses the open button to keep the doors from closing, but instead of keeping the doors open, something magical happens! They zoom off to a special floor, the floor of "Open Syllables"! Syllables are words, or word parts, that have one vowel sound and take one puff of air to say. But, did you know that there are six different types of syllables that each have their own rules? In kindergarten, we learn about the open syllable! An open syllable only has one vowel, at the end of the syllable, which makes a long vowel sound. The vowel always makes a long sound in an open syllable because it is open at the end. There is no consonant closing it in. In an open syllable, there can be consonants before the vowel, but never after. A vowel can be all by itself in an open syllable too, just like in the words A or I! To show that the vowel makes a long sound in an open syllable, we can mark it with a macron, a little line above the vowel. Let's mark the open syllable, hi, as an example! We draw a macron over the I, like this, to show that the I is making a long sound. Next, we draw a curved line underneath the letters to show they belong to one syllable. Finally, we write O, for open, to label the syllable type. Now, that we've learned all about open syllables, let's help Dee and Kala pick out the open syllable on the screen! Remember, open syllables only have one vowel at the end of the syllable, which makes a long vowel sound. Can you spot the open syllable: flub, met, or she? The open syllable is she! The E is the only vowel, and it is the last letter in the syllable. The letter E also makes the long E sound! Which one is the open syllable here: u, bed, ip? The open syllable is U! The U is the only vowel AND only letter in the syllable, so it is also the last letter. The letter U makes the long U sound too! While Dee and Kala walk back to the magic elevator, let's remember! Today we learned about open syllables! An open syllable only has one vowel, at the end of the syllable, which makes a long vowel sound. We mark an open syllable with a macron above the vowel, a scoop below the syllable, and an O underneath it all. "How interesting, Kala!" "Oh my Dee, did you press the close button? Here we go again!"