Clip the Magic e and Flip the Magic e are two of my favorite activities for introducing the VCe syllable pattern (aka Magic e). The rule for this pattern is when an “e” is found at the end of a base word, the vowel makes its long sound and the “e” is silent. Often we introduce this pattern to students by saying that when the “e” is found at the end of the base word, it has magical powers to jump over the single consonant making the vowel say its name. It then returns to its spot and doesn’t say a sound. It’s helpful to introduce this concept with words where the rule applies and does not apply. For example, the vowel in the word “cub” is short, however, if the “e” is found at the end of the word, the vowel then becomes long and word is now “cube”.
The Clip the Magic e activity contains 16 cards with picture cues and 12 cards without the picture cue. Students simply “clip” the clothespin to the end of the word to indicate that the word needs the “e” to make the vowel long.
The Clip the Magic e can be found in my online Teachers Pay Teachers store.
A companion activity to Clip the Magic e is Flip the Magic e. Once the cards are printed and cut, the “e” is folded back. Students first read the word without the “e”, flips the “e” and then reads the word with the long vowel sound.
There are 15 pictured cards and 13 word only cards in this activity.
The Flip the Magic e activity can also be found in my TpT store.
Both the Clip and Flip the Magic e activities are ideal for introducing the concept of the VCe syllable pattern. Once students have a beginning idea of the syllable pattern, word sorts can be helpful. The Magic e Word Sort bundle includes word sorts for all 5 vowels. These templates can be glued onto file folders. Once laminated they last for years!
Magic e Word Sort Bundle can also be found in my TpT store.
Be sure to visit my online Teachers Pay Teachers store and click Phonics- Magic e under the categories for more activities designed to teach and practice the VCe syllable pattern.
Enjoy!
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