English lesson plan · 4th grade (Year 5 in England) · 30 minutes
Adding -ation: inform → information, admire → admiration
Spelling
CCSS L.4.2.DCCSS RF.4.3.AEngland: Y3/4 Spelling (suffix -ation)
Objective and success criteria
Students will: Adding -ation: inform → information, admire → admiration.
- I can answer questions on today's skill on my own, without help.
- I can explain each step and say why it works.
- I can check my answer and spot a mistake.
Before and after
Needs first: Adding -ly: happily, gently, basically; Suffix rules: doubling, drop the e, y to i
Leads to: -ant or -ent? -ance or -ence? (observant, innocent)
Materials: Word cards, Look-say-cover-write-check sheets, Mini whiteboards, Mini whiteboards, A short model text on the board, Printed student sheet (below).
Warm-up · 4 min
- Quick retrieval from earlier learning (Adding -ly: happily, gently, basically; Suffix rules: doubling, drop the e, y to i). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
- Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.
- Add -ly to "happy" to make an adverb. Type the new word. → happilyPrompt: Look at the last letters of the word: -y, -le, -ic, or something else?
- Which is the correct way to add -ly to "happy"? (happyly / happily / happly / happyally) → happilyPrompt: Check how the root word ends.
- Which rule do you use to add -ly to "simple"? (just add -ly / change y to i, then add -ly / change -le to -ly / add -ally) → change -le to -lyPrompt: Look at the last two letters of the word.
Hook · 3 min
- Show a word spelled two ways and ask which looks right, then why.
- Share the objective: Adding -ation: inform → information, admire → admiration. Read the success criteria together.
I do: model it · 7 min
- Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
- Example: Add -ation to the verb "explore" to make a noun. Type it.
- Step 1: -ation turns a verb into a noun. Drop a final e first (admire → admiration).
- Step 2: "explore" ends in e, so drop it: explor + ation.
- Step 3: So the answer is: exploration
- Answer: exploration
- Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.
We do: guided practice · 6 min
- Do these together. Students try each step on whiteboards before you reveal it.
- Use the hints as prompts rather than giving the answer.
- Add -ation to the verb "present" to make a noun. Type it. → presentationPrompt: Does the verb end in e?
- Which spelling is correct? (observasion / obsevation / observation) → observationPrompt: Say the word slowly and listen for the tricky part.
You do: independent practice · 7 min
- Students work on the student sheet. Circulate and check the first two answers of every student early.
- Students who finish: write a question of their own for a partner, with the answer.
The 6 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.
Exit ticket · 3 min
- Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.
- Add -ation to the verb "consider" to make a noun. Type it. → considerationPrompt: Does the verb end in e?
- Which spelling is correct? (admiration / admiratin / admirasion) → admirationPrompt: Say the word slowly and listen for the tricky part.
Watch out for
- Spelling every word exactly as it sounds.
- Learning a list for a test but not using the words in writing.
Support and stretch
Support
- Review first: Adding -ly: happily, gently, basically.
- Use concrete materials: word cards.
- Give the first step of each question, or a partly worked example to finish.
- Pair with a confident partner for the guided practice.
Stretch
- Move on to: -ant or -ent? -ance or -ence? (observant, innocent).
- Explain a common mistake in writing and how to fix it.
- Write a word problem that uses today's skill, then solve a partner's.
Homework and more practice
Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/english/grade-4.
Free lesson plan from eurekami.com/lesson-plan-builder