compound words

The word flashlight is a compound word.

Compound words are two whole words which can be separated and used on their own. What two words are in flashlight?  Flash and light.

The difference between a contraction and a compound word is that when two words join for a contraction, one or more letters have been dropped. An apostrophe shows us that letters have been dropped. 

In the contraction she's, the apostrophe shows us the word is has dropped a letter. She's = she is. Do you see the funny little mark in the air before the letter 's? That mark is called an apostrophe, say a pos tra fe.

If you separate she's, you could use the word she in a sentence. You could not use 's in a sentence because it is not a whole word anymore.

You can take compound words apart and use the words separately because they are whole words, like flashlight or doorknob. The words in a contraction are no longer whole words so they cannot be used separately, as with, she's. 

Ask your child to tell you the two whole words in these compound words. To help your child learn the word, use it in sentences. When you finish with all the words, play the game, I spy. You start by saying, I spy the word doorknob, can you point to it? Then let your child take a turn to say, I spy - a word - and you must point to it.

into     onto    inside    indoors   outdoors    outside  

doorknob    doorbell     raincoat     rainstorm    raindrop

itself   myself     yourself    themselves    ourselves  

anymore     anyone     anywhere     anytime

sometime    someone    somewhere    something

everybody   everyone   everywhere    nowhere      nothing

daytime   daylight    nighttime    nightlight     starlight    sunlight   flashlight
   
whatever   whenever   eyebrow   eyeball   snowflake 

baseball     basketball     bathtub     bathroom     within      without   withhold

About a suffix: notice words like painful are not compound words; ful is only a part of the whole word, full. The word, pain, has an ending added to it. This kind of ending is called a suffix, meaning something fixed onto the end of a word. Suffixes you see often are ing, ed, s, er, ful, able, ly, and ment.

A prefix is fixed onto the start of a word, like unlock and uncover. Ask your child why the words unlock and uncover cannot be compound words?  Answer: lock is a whole word, but un is not a whole word; un cannot be used by itself in a sentence.  Can it? Make a sentence with un.     Cover is a whole word, but un is not a whole word. Can you make a sentence using un?  No. Un can be hooked onto the front of a word; un changes the meaning of a word. Un is important but it is not a whole word by itself.  Talking about these ideas, asking your child to talk through these kinds of ideas, helps your child get a more clear understanding.

Lots of words have both a prefix and a suffix added to them, like unhelpful, unharmed, unlocking, uncovering, uncovered, unlocks, and unlockable.

You may like to look at the list of lessons on the right side of this blog. Also, you might like to look at the books I have to help you strengthen your child's skills. All of my books teach a special comprehension method proven to rapidly help your child be a powerful reader. I use eBay as my website. Search Instant Reading Help all my books will pop up. All are brand new and include my contact info; email or call for help.

You want to be sure your child is ready for the challenge of the upper grades. Most children do not get enough practice with skills at school to really use their skills in challenging work.

Write with questions. Have a great day, Mary Maisner