edsanders.com - Phonics Rules

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In the following table, the letters of the alphabet are divided into three classes, or kinds, viz: vocals, sub-vocals, and aspirates.

These are all the classes necessary for practical purposes; and any further division or classification, it is believed, would only tend to confuse and perplex the learner, and thus render the study of the exercise tedious and irksome to young pupils, if it did not, indeed, place it entirely beyond their comprehension. In accordance, therefore, with this simple and natural division, the letters are conveniently arranged on one page, and afford the pupil an interesting and intelligible exercise in enunciating the elementary sounds which they severally represent. The pupil should be drilled upon this table until he can not only readily distinguish the peculiarity of each sound when given by others, but can also enunciate it with perfect ease and clearness himself.

Sanders' Compendium Home Page and Index.

Table of Elementary Sounds.

Note. - Let the class, either individually or in concert, first pronounce the word containing the element, and then the element by itself, varying the intensity of the voice as the teacher may think proper ; thus, ale, a, arm, a, all, a, etc.

Vocals

Name Power	Name Power	Name Power	Name Power	Name Power
1 A Ale	2 A Arm	3 A All	4 A At	5 E Eat
6 E Bet	7 I Ice	8 I It	9 O Ode	10 O Do
11 O Ox	12 U Sue	13 U Up	14 U Full	15 Ou Out

Sub-Vocals

Name Power	Name Power	Name Power	Name Power	Name Power
16 B Ebb	17 D Odd	18 G Egg	19 J, G Jet	20 L Ill
21 M Him	22 N Run	23 R Bur	24 V Ev	25 W Woe
26 Y Yet	27 Z, S Buzz	28 Z Azure	29 Th Thy	30 Ng Sing

Aspirates

Name Power	Name Power	Name Power	Name Power	Name Power
31 P Up	32 T It	33 K, C Ark	34 Ch Much	35 H He
36 F If	37 Wh When	38 S, C Sin	39 Sh Fish	40 Th Thin

Note.-In this table, each vocal element is combined in words with all the sub-vocals and aspirates which is known to combine in the language. The class may be required to pronounce these words in an explosive and forcible utterance, both individually and in concert, until the highlighted letters can be easily and perfectly articulated in combination.

1. The sound of a long; as in bate, date, fate, gate, hate, jane, kale, lade, mate, nape, pate, rate, sate, tame, vane, wave, yate, gaze, chain, thane, lathe, shape, whale.	2. a flat, or Italian; as in bar, dark, garb, hark, jar, car, lark, mar, nard, par, raft, salve, tar, vast, waft, yarn, czar, char, lath, father, sharp.	At the time this was written there were conflicts between Webster and Worchester, both of which were in the dictionary business. (Ed Sanders' Note)
(Worchester regards the sound of a in the words raft, vast, waft, lath, intermediate between that of a in fat and a in far. But the sound of a in this class of words, though not quite so much prolonged, is considered by Dr. Webster to be radically the same as it is in far, daunt, etc.; and hence we have put all such words in the same class here.)	3. a broad as; in ball, dawn, fall, gall, haw, jaw, kaw, law, mall, gnaw, pall, raw, saw, tall, vault, wall, yawl, gauze, chalk, thaw, shawl, wharf.	4. a short; as in bat, dash, fat, gat, hat, jam, cat, lad, mat, nap, pat, rat, sat, tan, van, wax, yam, azoth, chap, sang, thank, that, shall, whack.
5. e long; as in be, deep, feet, geese, he, jeer, key, lee, need, peat, reel, see, teem, veer, we, yee, zeal, cheer, theme, thee, she, wheel.	6. e short; as in bet, den, fen, get, hen, jet, ken, let, met, net, pet, rest, set, ten, vex, wet, yet, zed, check, theft, then, shed, when.	7. i long; as in bite, dine, fine, guide, hive, gibe, kite, line, mine, nine, pine, ripe, site, tine, vine, size, chime, thigh, thine, shine, white.
8. i short; as in bit, din, fin, gimp, hit, jib, kit, lid, mix, nit, pin, rio, sit, tin, vill, wit, zinc, chin, sing, thin, with, shin, whit.	9. o long; as in bolt, dome, foe, go, hole, joke, coke, lone, mote, note, pole, rope, sole, tone, vote, wove, joke, zone, choke, thole, those, shoal.	10. o middle; as in boot, do, food, goom, hoot, coop, lose, move, noose, pool, roost, soup, too, woo, ooze, cartouch, tooth, shoe.
11. o short; as in bot, dot, fox, got, hot, jot, cot, lot, mop, not, pop, rot, sot, top, novel, wot, yon, zocco, chop, ssong, thong, pother, shot, whop.	12. u long; as in bugle, due, fume, hue, june, cue, lute, mute, nude, pule, rule, sue, tune, yule, zumie, truth, sure.	(In the words rule, truth, sure, Worchester sounds the u like o in move. But the best speakers, in Dr. Webster's view, give only a slight softening between the vocal and sub-vocal or aspirate, pronouncing the u, in all this class of words, in a less broad and open manner than the o in move, thus giving the letter its distinctive elementary sound.)
13. u short; as in but, dust, fun, gun, hut, just, cull, lull, must, nut, pun, sup, tun, vulgar, yucca, buzz, shub, sung, thumb, thus, shut, whur.	14. u middle; as in bush, pudding, full, sugar, could, bull, pull, put, would, butcher, should.	15. ow and ou; as in bow, down, fowl, gout, how, jounce, cow, loud, mount, noun, pout, rout, south, town, vouch, wound, mouth, thou, shout.

Note.- This table embraces a great variety of the combinations of the sub-vocals and aspirates; and it is recommended that the class be frequently exercised in the pronounciation of them, both individually and in concert. The letters before the colon and dash indicate the sound to be given to the combinations underlined, whose elements are to be clearly and distinctly uttered.

1. Bd:- sobbed, robed.	Bl:- blood, blind, able, feeble.	Bld:- fabled, dabbled, trembled, tumbled.
Blz:- rambles, pebbles, rumbles, bubbles.	Br:- brain, brown, bright, brick.	Bz:- describes, cubs, clubs.
2. Ch:- pitch, much, chimney.	3. Dl:- cradle, idle, middle.	Dld:- kindled, fondled, huddled.
Dlz:- candles, paddles, riddles.	Dn:- sadden, ridden, golden.	Dr:- dream, dress, drive, drew.
Dst:- coveredst, amidst.	Dz:- trades, weeds, sleds, sides.	4. Fl:- flame, fling, baffle, trifle.
Flz:- baffles, trifles.	Fn:- often, soften.	Fr:- frame, frank, friend.
Fs:- laughs, griefs.	Ft:- abaft, left, lift, soft.	Fth:- fifth.
Fts:- gifts, lifts, drifts.	5. Gd:- gragged, begged.	Gl:- gleams, glide, glory, struggle.
Gld:- tangled, mingled, struggled.	Glz:- eagles, jungles, struggles.	Gr:- grown, grand, agreed, regret.
Gz:- rags, eggs, trigs, exert.	6. Jd:- engaged, discouraged, obliged, hedged, dodged, lodged.	7. Kl:- clad, clean, club, circle, sparkle.
Klz:- sparkles, articles, spectacles.	Kn:- taken, forsaken, broken.	Kr:- creep, creek, crying.
Ks:- sacks, cheeks, necks, bricks, looks.	Kt:- expect, looked, locked, picked.	Kts:- acts, facts, insects.
Kst:- next, fixed, mixed.	Ksth:- sixth.	8. Lb:- bulb, bulbous.
Ld:- failed, crawled, told, child.	Ldz:- fiele.P