Teaching The Pronunciation of C and G

Teaching The Pronunciation of C and G

LaurieGardner
by LaurieGardner 17,979 views


In English, there are letters that represent more than just one sound. Two  examples of this are the letters C and G. Both of these letters represent two  sounds that can be referred to as hard and soft.

 

         Letter                  Hard Sound                  Soft Sound       
C /k/ /s/
G /g/ /d3/

 

 

Because of the fact that these letters can be pronounced differently, here are  some pronunciation rules to help teach your students when to use what sound. 
The basic rules can be explained as followed: 
If C/G is followed by A, O, or U, then it makes the hard sound. 
If C/G is followed by E, L, or Y, then it makes the soft sound.  
Here are some examples of each rule: 
C + A → candy, cake, arcade 
G + A → game, gap, gate 
Because of the fact that these letters can be pronounced differently, here are  some pronunciation rules to help teach your students when to use what sound. 
The basic rules can be explained as followed: 

If C/G is followed by A, O, or U, then it makes the hard sound. 
If C/G is followed by E, L, or Y, then it makes the soft sound.  

Here are some examples of each rule: 
C + A → candy, cake, arcade 
G + A → game, gap, gate 
C + O → con, cop, become 
G + O → got, gone, good 
C + U → cuddle, cube, cub 
G + U → guy, gulp, guilty 
C + E → cell, celebrate, center 
G + E → gem, angel, gentle 
C + I → circle, cinnamon, decide 
G + I → ginger, giant, engine 
C + Y → cyber, recycle, bicycle 
G + Y → gym, apology, gypsy 

Here are some great resources from BusyTeacher.org to help you with teaching this: 

 

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