Syllable types
Last updated
Syllable types are the six common patterns of English syllables, each signaling how the vowel is likely to sound.
Topic: Reading and writing instruction
In plain terms
The six types are closed (cat, short vowel), open (go, long vowel), silent-e (make), vowel team (rain), r-controlled (car) and consonant-le (ta-ble). Knowing them helps students read longer words by dividing them into syllables and predicting the vowel sound in each part. The same knowledge supports spelling, such as knowing when to double a consonant before adding an ending.
How it shows up in an IEP
Goals for multisyllable decoding often target specific syllable types: "will read 2-syllable words with closed and open syllables with 90% accuracy." Probes can mix real and nonsense words.
Example
A sixth grader divides "napkin" into "nap" and "kin," two closed syllables with short vowels, and reads it correctly.
Related terms
- PhonicsPhonics is instruction that teaches how letters and letter patterns represent the sounds of spoken language, so students can decode and spell words.
- DecodingDecoding is using knowledge of letter-sound patterns to read a printed word by turning letters into sounds and blending them.
- MorphologyMorphology is the study of morphemes, the smallest units of meaning in words, such as roots, prefixes and suffixes.
- Structured literacyStructured literacy is an approach to reading instruction that teaches language systems explicitly and systematically, from sounds to meaning.
On IEP Atlas
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