20 words, shortest first. Level 1 has the most common words.
aiming
asking
basing
belong
biting
buying
coding
coming
dating
during
eating
ending
filing
fixing
flying
giving
having
hiding
hoping
liking
The spelling pattern
Every word on this list contains ng (sing). Seeing the same letters in many words helps children spot the pattern and spell new words that follow it. Level 2 adds longer and less frequent words.
Ways to practise
Read the list aloud, then cover each word and write it from memory.
Use the fill-in sheet below: the pattern letters are blanked out.
Sort the words by length or by where the pattern appears (start, middle or end).
Where the pattern appears
At the end (20): aiming, asking, basing, belong, biting, buying, coding, coming, dating, during, eating, ending, filing, fixing, flying, giving, having, hiding, hoping, liking.
Sorting the words like this is a good first activity: children say each word, find the ng (sing) letters and decide which group it belongs to. It shows that the same letters keep the same sound wherever they appear in a word.
Running a spelling test with this list
Read each word aloud, use it in a short sentence, then read it once more. Children write the word without looking. Mark the test with the list above and practise any misspelled words again the next day. Five or ten words at a time is plenty for younger children.
Practice sheet: fill in the missing letters
aimi__
aski__
basi__
belo__
biti__
buyi__
codi__
comi__
dati__
duri__
eati__
endi__
fili__
fixi__
flyi__
givi__
havi__
hidi__
hopi__
liki__
Questions
How many words are on this list?
20 words, all containing ng (sing). The shortest has 6 letters and the longest, aiming, has 6.
What does level 2 mean?
Levels sort the ng (sing) words by how common and how long they are. Level 1 has the shortest, most frequent words; higher levels add longer and rarer ones.
What should come next?
When this list is secure, move on to level 3 of the same pattern.