Cap.. carp…mat…mart…con…corn…
There are plenty of examples in English where a sneaky ‘r’ creeps in and changes the sound of the vowel. Presenting the rule of r-controlled verbs to your students can be done in a really fun way with an anchor chart.
In this post, you’ll learn what to look out for in a good r-controlled anchor chart, as well as see some examples you can work from to create your own.
Table of Contents
- Elements of a good R controlled anchor chart
- Teaching R controlled vowels in different ways
- Anchor charts from elsewhere
- Resources from Teach Simple
- Final thoughts
Elements of a good R controlled anchor chart
Just like any good anchor chart, one that deals with R-controlled vowels should attract the students in some way. This means using bright colors effectively.
A good R controlled anchor chart will be well organized. This means presenting the information and examples in a way that will help the students follow the main points. Using color is a great way to do this. You can also divide the chart into squares or columns to organize the content.
From the examples in this post, you’ll see that a few of the R-controlled charts turn the ‘R’ into a character, mostly known as ‘Bossy R’. This becomes a character on the charts, responsible for changing the sound of vowels. Using the character is an excellent way of helping the students to relate to the letter and how it functions in words.
A good R controlled anchor chart will give the students some very clear examples. Don’t overcrowd the chart, though. Keep the examples to the minimum. Rather create a worksheet to accompany the anchor chart that the students can work on.
Because there are five vowels, most of the R controlled anchor charts use all of them with ‘bossy R’ to illustrate how it works. This makes the charts a solid reference for the students when they work on exercises with R-controlled vowels.
Teaching R controlled vowels in different ways
The most popular approach to teaching R controlled vowels is to use the idea of a ‘naughty’ character called ‘bossy R’, who changes the way the vowels sound. Sometimes, the character is given the quality of allowing the vowel to go first. This is usually illustrated and then examples are given.
In one of the charts I’ve included in the post, you’ll see that there is a different approach. The chart takes a phonics approach, beginning with the phoneme associated with ‘er’, ‘ur’ and ‘ir’. It uses these sounds in words to show the role of the ‘r’ in the phonemes. This is a different and interesting way to teach the R-controlled vowels. It begins with what the students know and approaches the new point from a different angle.
Anchor charts from elsewhere
R Controlled Posters By Literacy Life
The pages in this R-controlled Posters and Word List Set can be used effectively as part of an anchor chart. The illustration and use of color turns the ‘r’ into the villain who affects the vowel. You can adapt the posters to create a series of anchor charts. Alternatively, you can use the ideas featured in the posters as inspiration for your own anchor chart/s.
Beware of the Bossy R by Sweet Tooth Teaching
This anchor chart advises your students to Beware of Bossy r, which is a cute way to understand how r-controlled vowels work in words. The chart is very straightforward, using folio paper and handwriting. The colors are used effectively to highlight the important aspects of the work. This chart is an efficient picture of how r works with all vowels and would make a great reference in your class.
Bossy R By English Safari
This anchor chart is a Bossy R words list focusing on the way the ‘r’ works with all five vowels. It is a colorful resource which uses creative graphics to make learning fun for students. The colors have been used carefully to organize the content for the learners. This would make a great reference chart for your classroom.
Pirate R By Emily Education
The idea of the Bossy Pirate “r” in this anchor chart is a cute and effective way of approaching r-controlled vowels. The students will respond to the idea of the character. The use of color makes the chart bright and cheerful. I like the idea of using sticky notes to indicate the position of the ‘r’ and how it affects the vowel. You can use this to make sure the students us this as an interactive anchor chart.
All About R-Controlled Vowels By Literacy Learn
You can use this chart as the basis of a great activity with the class. It can also be used as the focus of an inter-group quiz activity in class. You can display the chart on the board and ask students to come up and fill in a word that features one of the vowel-r combinations.
Bossy Triplets By Smitten With First
This is a very cute and clever way of turning around the way the students encounter r-controlled vowels. By beginning with the particular sound ‘er / ir / ur’, the three Bossy R Triplets. Here, understanding the function of the ‘r’ begins with what the students know, as they will have learned the particular phoneme. The characters and colors make this an attractive anchor chart. Using the sticky notes to give relevant examples is clever, because you can task the students with putting them under the correct ‘triplet’. You can also add examples as you wish.
Another Bossy R By The Classroom Creative
This anchor chart is another warning to Beware of Bossy r! The chart looks as though it could have been created in a student’s notebook, which makes it accessible to students. They will also relate to the pictures, which are illustrative of the words, but simple and cute. The use of color also helps to direct the students’ attention. I think it’s the character of the ‘r’, though that stands out. You can use it effectively in teaching the relevant sounds.
Resources from Teach Simple
R-Controlled Vowels By Have Fun Teaching
The ideas on a worksheet on Using r-controlled Vowels like this one can be adapted to use as an anchor chart. You may need to adapt the size of the font and the length of the sentences for the anchor chart. Follow the same pattern and principle of the worksheet to create the chart. Work on this with the students to give them an example reference. Then, they can complete the worksheet, following the same pattern and principles.
R Controlled Vowels Worksheet By Have Fun Teaching
This is another worksheet on r-controlled Vowels that can be adapted into an interactive anchor chart. I suggest using this as the chart to be displayed. Invite students to come up in pairs. One of them can fill in the correct word. The second can underline the vowel and controlling ‘r’. This then becomes the reference for the students’ individual work on worksheets.
Final thoughts
Creating an anchor chart for r-controlled vowels should put emphasis on the ‘r’ and how it affects the vowel sound in a word. This can be done using color, size of print, or creating a character, such as ‘Bossy R’.
