Teaching Affixes - Introducing Students to Prefixes and Suffixes

When students start becoming stronger spellers of multisyllabic words, there becomes more room to take on a targeted focus of meaning and learning new vocabulary.  If your students are ready to start dipping their toes into the world of prefixes and suffixes, take the time to read this blog post before you dive in.

Whether you need a refresher on definitions and examples, want to understand when students are ready to tackle these concepts, need to know common spelling errors to expect, or seek creative and engaging teaching ideas for prefixes and suffixes, this post has got you covered!

What are affixes?

Affixes are morphemes that are added to a root or base word in order to modify its meaning or grammatical function. The two main types of affixes are prefixes and suffixes.

Prefixes are affixes added to the beginning of a word and change the meaning of the word they are added to. For example, in the word "rewrite," the prefix "re-" has been added to the root word “write”. The prefix “re-” means “again” and therefore changes the meaning of the word to “write again”.

Suffixes, on the other hand, are affixes added to the end of a word. They do not change the definition of the word like prefixes do, but instead change the way the word is used in a sentence, turning nouns into adjectives and adjectives into adverbs. For instance, in the word "happily," the suffix "-ly" has been added to the base word “happy”. The addition of the “-ly” changes the adjective "happy" to form an adverb, “happily”.

Which prefixes and suffixes should be taught first?

Because it is important for students to develop a solid understanding of the role that prefixes and suffixes play in language, it is recommended that they are introduced to the most common prefixes and suffixes, ones that they have almost certainly encountered in their reading by now. Additionally, students should be working with root or base words that they are already familiar with and are generally successful at spelling so that their main focus can be on learning the meanings of common prefixes and suffixes and how they impact the words they are affixed to.

In the Syllables and Affixes stage of Words Their Way, students are introduced to the prefixes re-, un-, dis-, mis-, pre-, non-, in-, fore, uni-, bi, tri, oct-, and pent-. They are also introduced to the suffixes -y, -ly, -er, -est, -ness, -ful, and -less. Below are some examples of these prefixes and suffixes applied to root words as well as linked teaching resources for each.

Prefixes (RE-, UN-) - rebuild, retrace, review, unusual, unfair, unable

Prefixes (DIS-, MIS-, PRE-) - disagree, disobey, misspell, misplace, preschool, preview

Prefixes (NON-, IN-, FORE-) - nonprofit, nonfat, insane, income, foresee, forecast

Prefixes (UNI-, BI-, TRI-, and Other Numbers) - unicycle, bisect, triple, octagon, pentagon

Suffixes (-Y, -LY) - foggy, cloudy, clearly, smoothly, lazily, happily

Comparatives (-ER, -EST) - braver, coolest, easier, dirtiest, closer, hottest, happier, easiest

Suffixes (-NESS, -FUL, -LESS) - graceful, hopeless, goodness, helplessness, colorful, harmless

* You can find a bundle of games and activities for Introducing Prefixes and Suffixes here.

What grade level teaches prefixes and suffixes?

Many language art curriculum standards require the introductory study of prefixes and suffixes beginning in second grade. Often at that age, students are expected to read and understand the meanings of the one or two-syllable base words the introductory prefixes and suffixes are affixed to, but not necessarily be able to spell them all successfully due to the various vowel and spelling patterns they have not yet been taught. 

Once students start to become more advanced spellers, typically in grades 3-4, they are able to apply their knowledge of prefixes and suffixes to more multisyllabic words and are expected to spell them accurately. In grades 4-5 students are able to begin working with more prefixes and suffixes as well as challenging and abstract root words (challenging because of their meaning, not necessarily spelling). 

What are some common mistakes to expect when students first start learning about prefixes and suffixes?

Many prefixes are pretty straightforward because they have one meaning, for example “re-” means “again” and “un-” means “not”. However, some prefixes have more than one meaning, causing some confusion when students initially start studying them.

Example →  the prefix “in-” has two distinct meanings; “not”, like in the word inactive, and “in” or “into”, like in the word indoor.

As students are learning how the addition of suffixes like -y and -ly change nouns to adjectives and adjectives to adverbs, they can often forget that rules about e-drop, double the final consonant, do nothing, and change y to i still apply when spelling the new word. The more practice they get at blending these two concepts, the more confident they will become.

Example →  fog → foggy (had to double the final consonant); happy → happily (change y to i); breeze → breezy (e-drop); slow → slowly (do nothing)

What are some engaging ways to teach prefixes and suffixes?

To ensure students’ confidence and mastery, it is important for them to be given sufficient time to practice identifying different prefixes and suffixes, as well as understanding their impact on word meaning and grammatical usage in a sentence.

I like to incorporate a variety of interactive activities including word searches, word study notebook activities, word sorting, and even games to keep students engaged as they are learning about prefixes and suffixes. 

One of my favorites to use with students when they are learning the meanings of various prefixes is Connect 6. Students take turns drawing cards that have definitions of words that contain a prefix they are studying, for example, “not correct” or “does not contain fat”. They then must find the correct root or base word on the game board and pair it with the correct prefix (“incorrect” or “nonfat”), cover the word with a game chip, and write it on a recording sheet in the appropriate column. The first player to cover six consecutive spaces first, wins the game. Students love this game and it really helps them to solidify the meanings of the prefixes they are studying.

In Four In A Row, students spin a spinner, find a word or image of a word that matches the suffix they spun and cover it with a marker/chip. Students then write the word they covered on the recording sheet under the correct column, attempting to spell the word correctly. The goal is to cover four words in a row (vertically, horizontally, or diagonally) to win. The Four In A Row activities can easily be played with a partner or independently.

By engaging in game play and independent activities, students gain valuable exposure to words and concepts, enabling them to practice and reinforce their comprehension of prefixes and suffixes. This practice not only enhances their ability to decode, define, and spell words accurately but also facilitates their reading and writing of more complex words with confidence.

You can find all of the games and activities I suggest for introducing prefixes and suffixes in this Intro to Prefixes and Suffixes BUNDLE.

GO FOR IT!

Affixes play a vital role in language by allowing us to express various meanings and grammatical structures. Taking the time to ensure students can identify and spell prefixes and suffixes, define them, and identify how they impact the words they are affixed to leads to an increased ability to form and decode new words, a more expansive vocabulary, and better accuracy at word analysis. 

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