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Years 3 and 4 English · Key Stage 2 · Spelling – English Appendix 1

Years 3 and 4 spelling words: interest to potatoes

The Years 3 and 4 statutory spelling list is made up of words children use often and frequently misspell. This page covers the third group of 25 in alphabetical order, from interest to potatoes, including library, knowledge, medicine, opposite and possession. Children learn them by spotting the tricky part, using word families and returning to the same words little and often.

Spelling words: interest to potatoes, explained

The list is statutory, so schools must teach it, but they choose the order, the pace and the method. The words on this page, in alphabetical order, are: interest, island, knowledge, learn, length, library, material, medicine, mention, minute, natural, naughty, notice, occasion and occasionally, often, opposite, ordinary, particular, peculiar, perhaps, popular, position, possess and possession, possible, and potatoes. Your child may meet them in a mixed order across Years 3 and 4.

The curriculum guidance says to link spellings to sounds and letters, even when they are unusual, and to related words. Medicine is a good example: it comes from the same family as medical, which helps children remember the c, even though it says “k” in medical and “s” in medicine. Opposite belongs with oppose, which explains the double p. Knowledge is built from know, so it keeps the silent k. Length is linked to long, and natural is linked to nature. Each connection gives a child a reason for the spelling, not just a pattern to copy.

Several words have silent or ignored letters. The s in island is silent, and the k in knowledge is silent. Many people leave out the t in often, though some do pronounce it, and the first r in library is often skipped in speech, so “libary” is a very common error. Peculiar, particular and popular all end in -ar, and children can find it hard to hear the difference between -ar and -er when the sound is so quick.

Some words have double letters that must be learned: possess and possession have two sets of double s, written poss + ess, and occasion has a double c but a single s. Occasionally adds -ally, as in occasional + ly, which is why it has two l letters at the end. Position has just one s, even though it sounds a little like possession. Potatoes is a plural: the singular ends in o, and for some such nouns the plural is made by adding -es. Children have met plurals before, and this is a chance to look again at the ones ending in o.

Minute is worth a mention because it has two meanings, one said “min-it” and one “my-nyoot”, but the spelling is the same. Teachers use the same techniques as with other lists: say the word in a spelling voice, chunk it, look, cover, write and check, and put words into sentences. Learning four or five words at a time and coming back to them after a few days tends to work better than cramming a long list the night before a test.

Words your child will hear

Statutory
Set down in law. Every school must teach the words on the list.
Word family
Words that are related in meaning and spelling, such as oppose and opposite.
Plural
More than one. The plural of potato is potatoes.
Silent letter
A letter you can’t hear, like the s in island or the k in knowledge.
Double letter
The same letter twice in a row, as in possession.
Chunking
Splitting a long word into small parts to spell one at a time, such as poss-ess-ion.

What the National Curriculum says

In Years 3 and 4, pupils should be taught to:

  • Spell these words from the statutory word list for years 3 and 4: interest, island, knowledge, learn, length, library, material, medicine, mention, minute, natural, naughty, notice
  • Spell these words from the statutory word list for years 3 and 4: occasion(ally), often, opposite, ordinary, particular, peculiar, perhaps, popular, position, possess(ion), possible, potatoes

Objectives from the National Curriculum in England, © Crown copyright, used under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Try it: learning three tricky words

Your child needs to learn “opposite”, “possession” and “potatoes”. How can they work out each spelling?

  1. Opposite: link it to oppose. Both begin with the same letters, op-pos, so the double p comes from the family. Say it as “op-pos-ite” in a spelling voice, then write it.
  2. Possession: chunk it into poss + ess + ion, which gives two double s letters. Say it in a spelling voice, “poss-ess-ion”. It is built from the word possess, so a child who knows possess has most of the spelling already.
  3. Potatoes: look at the singular, potato. It ends in o, and for this word the plural is made by adding -es, not just s. Say it as “po-tay-toes”. Compare it with a word such as photos, which does not follow the same pattern, to see that o endings need checking.
  4. Cover, write and check all three. Then write a short sentence using each, such as “The opposite of empty is full.”

opposite (family of oppose, double p), possession (poss + ess + ion), potatoes (potato + es).

Common mistakes and how to help

Writing “libary” or “libery”

In quick speech the first r is almost lost, so children write what they hear. The ending is also an unstressed sound that can be written several ways.

What helps: Say it slowly as “li-brar-y”, making the first r clear, and write it in chunks: lib + rar + y. Point out that it ends in -ary, and that the middle chunk, rar, holds both r letters.

Spelling possession or occasion with the wrong double letters, such as “posession” or “ocassion”

The sounds give no clue which letters are doubled, so children guess, and possess has two double letters, which is unusual.

What helps: Chunk the words: poss + ess + ion, and oc + ca + sion. Remember that possession has two double s and occasion has a double c and a single s. Check by saying the chunks aloud.

Writing “potatos” or “potatoe”

Most plurals just add s, so children do the same here. Some half-remember that some words ending in o take -es and add an extra e to the singular.

What helps: Say the word with its ending, “potato-es”, and write the singular first. Make a short list of o words that take -es and a list of those that take s to compare.

Leaving out letters you can’t hear, as in “iland”, “noledge” or “ofen”

These words have letters that are silent or lightly spoken, so a child writing by sound will leave them out.

What helps: Say the word in a spelling voice and link it to a relative: know and knowledge, island and isle. Highlight the quiet letter with a colour when practising.

How to help at home

  • Make a word family. Write oppose and opposite, medical and medicine, nature and natural, long and length. Underline the part they share, and say why that helps with the spelling.
  • Chunk the long ones. Write possession, occasionally and particular on strips of paper and cut them into chunks. Ask your child to put them together, say the chunks and then write each word from memory.
  • Plural patrol. In the kitchen, list things you see in more than one, such as potatoes, tomatoes, cups and spoons. Ask your child how each plural is made and which ones need -es.
  • Library visit. At the library, ask your child to find an interesting book and say one thing about it using the words interest, popular, natural or ordinary. Writing the sentence afterwards turns the visit into spelling practice.
  • Spelling voice and test. Say each tricky word with every letter sounded, then cover and write it. Test the same words again the next day and a week later, and swap out the ones that are now secure.

Related topics

Builds on

Leads on to

More on spelling – English Appendix 1

Everything in Years 3 and 4 English

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