Word study: cemetery to controversy

1 · Learn

Practise a small number of words over several days. First explain the meaning, then inspect the spelling. Look for a familiar root, a changed ending or letters that are hard to hear. Cover the model, write from memory and check. Use the word in your own writing so it is more than a memorised list.

cemetery: a place where people are buried. Cemetery uses e in each of its first three vowel positions and ends ery. Read: 'The historian studied an old map of the cemetery.'

committee: a group chosen to organise or decide something. Committee has double m, double t and double e. Read: 'The reading committee discussed suggestions for new books.'

communicate: to share information or ideas. Communicate has double m and ends icate. Read: 'A clear diagram can communicate an idea without a long paragraph.'

community: people connected by a place or shared interest. Community has double m and ends ity. Read: 'The community helped create a quiet garden.'

competition: an event in which people or groups try to do best. Competition has one m and ends ition; compare compete. Read: 'Each entry in the model competition followed the same rules.'

conscience: your sense of whether an action is right or wrong. Conscience contains con followed by science; it ends ence, unlike conscious. Read: 'Her conscience told her to return the notebook she had found.'

conscious: awake and aware, or aware of something. Conscious ends scious; distinguish it from conscience, a sense of right and wrong. Read: 'The narrator was conscious of the audience waiting quietly.'

controversy: a disagreement that causes public discussion. Controversy keeps o in contro and ends versy. Read: 'The invented proposal caused controversy among the story's residents.'

2 · Worked example

To learn cemetery, I connect its meaning, a place where people are buried, with this spelling detail: Cemetery uses e in each of its first three vowel positions and ends ery. I write it from memory, compare it and identify exactly which letters need attention. I then use it in a new sentence and check whether the meaning fits.

3 · Your turn

Without looking, write the studied word meaning 'a group chosen to organise or decide something'. Check it against the model. Write your own sentence using committee and explain the spelling feature you needed to remember.

4 · Apply your learning

Choose two words for a personal practice list. Ask a partner or adult to dictate one supplied sentence after you have discussed its meaning. Proofread the result, then try a new sentence of your own. Revisit the words after a delay and note whether you can use them accurately without the model.