Foxton's Common Exception Words Flash Cards
These cards cover the most common exception words. Together with a meaningful sentence and an engaging picture explanation, each card builds familiarity and aids memory retention. With our lovable character, Foxton, and his friends, children will develop a unique and successful bond with these cards that doesn’t come from looking at the words alone.
The words and sentences are clearly printed on the cards using a font that has a cursive style of script. This font is also used within the National Literacy Strategy document as part of handwriting policies for Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1.
● The first 45 words are printed in blue, with the recommendation that children learn these by the end of Year 1
● The remaining 64 words are printed in red, with the recommendation that children learn these by the end of Year 2.
What are Common Exception Words?
Phonics teaching methods emphasise segmenting and blending letter sounds in order to decode unfamiliar words. Children are taught to recognise the sounds made by letters and combinations of letters to help them read fluently and spell words accurately.
Common exception words are words that do not adhere to rules that can be applied by common spelling patterns found in words. You might have already come across common exception words under the heading of ‘tricky words’, and some common exception words will also be high-frequency words. Children are encouraged to learn to read common exception words by sight as they are not easily decoded using phonics methods.
For example, the word said is a high-frequency word that children will often find in the books they read. It is also a common exception word because it is an exception to a general rule that is commonly applied when the letters a and i combine to make the digraph* ai — found in words like rain, tail, faith and paint.
* The combination of two letters into a single speech sound is called a ‘digraph’.
Foxton's Common Exception Words Flash Cards
