English Spelling Rules, Quarter One

K goes with E, I, Y; C with A, O, U

This rule explains that the letter 'K' is used before the vowels E, I, and Y, while 'C' is used before A, O, and U. This affects the sound produced by the letters.

C says /s/ before E, I, or Y

This rule indicates that the letter 'C' is pronounced as /s/ when followed by the vowels E, I, or Y, resulting in a softer sound.

G may say /j/ before E, I, or Y

A rule that indicates the letter 'G' produces a soft sound like /j/ when it appears before the vowels E, I, or Y.

English base words do not end in I, U, V, or J

This rule states that in English, base words typically do not conclude with the letters I, U, V, or J.

Q is always followed by U and at the beginning of words they say /kw/

This rule states that the letter 'Q' is almost always followed by the letter 'U' in English, and when used at the beginning of a word, it is pronounced as /kw/, as in 'quick'.

Silent E makes the vowel long

The Silent E rule indicates that when an E appears at the end of a word, it generally makes the preceding vowel sound long, as seen in words like 'cake' and 'drive'.

Silent E allows English words to end in V/U

The Silent E rule allows English words to end in the letter E, which in turn enables base words to have a long vowel sound. However, base words cannot end in the letters U or V.

Silent E allows C and G to say /s/ or /j/

The Silent E rule affects the pronunciation of C and G before an E, causing C to be pronounced as /s/ and G as /j/, as in 'dance' and 'change'.