Tricky Words

Some words in English don’t “follow the rules” — their spelling and pronunciation don’t match perfectly. This standard asks students to identify and read those tricky words correctly, rather than trying to sound them out using regular phonics rules.

📚 Examples

Common examples include:

• said (the “ai” doesn’t sound like /ā/)
  
  

• was (the “a” doesn’t sound like /ă/)
  
  

• give (the “e” doesn’t make the first vowel long)
  
  

• gone (the “o” doesn’t sound like /ō/)
  
  

• head (the “ea” doesn’t sound like /ē/)
  
  

• build (the “ui” doesn’t sound like /ū/)
  
  

🧠 What Students Are Learning

Students learn that:

• English has patterns that are irregular but predictable once they’ve seen them a few times.
  
  

• Some words require memorization and visual recognition rather than decoding sound by sound.
  
  

• These words are often called “irregular words” or “rule-breakers.”