Vowels

Long vowels and silent e

Silent e is the first spelling pattern that changes a word a child already reads: cap becomes cape, kit becomes kite. The e at the end makes no sound of its own and reaches back over one consonant to make the vowel say its own name.

Often called magic e or bossy e. Teaching it alongside the matching short vowel word, as a pair, is what makes the rule visible rather than memorised.

Patterns and example words

Every word below is from the word list Cody generates from, not a hand-picked sample. The count is how many words in that list carry the pattern.

long a

9,947 words

say saying sayings made make makes making take

long e

4,806 words

be being beings he we these me she

long i

9,503 words

i my by like liked likes liking time

long o

10,800 words

those go going so more no also over

long u

1,616 words

use used include includes issue issued issues continue

1 syllable silent e

1,536 words

are were have those these gone there more

Curricula that teach this

Cody generates material against the scope and sequence you already teach. This skill appears in Cody Curriculum, Custom Pattern Selection, UFLI Inspired.

Common questions

Why is it called silent e?

Because the e makes no sound itself. Its whole job is changing the vowel before it from short to long, as in hop and hope.

Make a decodable story for this skill

Cody generates stories, word lists and worksheets constrained to the patterns a student has already been taught, so practice on long vowels and silent e does not smuggle in something they have not met yet.