Morphology is a powerful tool for teaching older students both decoding longer words and understanding new vocabulary words. We use the suffix -ing in multiple ways. For example, it can turn a verb into a noun:
I like to read.
Reading is my favorite activity.
In this lesson, we will focus on using the suffix -ing to create progressive verb tenses. Depending on the age of your students, you may or may not want to use the progressive verb tense vocabulary.
Progressive verb tenses tell us that an action is continuous. Progressive verb tenses need helping verbs to tell us when the action happens.
I was walking. (past progressive)
I am walking. (present progressive)
I will be walking. (future progressive)
In this lesson, you will teach students many things.
- suffixes come at the end of words
- suffixes change the meaning of a word
- suffixes are not words, but they are units of meaning
- we use the suffix -ing to show that an action is continuous
- sometimes we have to change the spelling at the end of the base word to add the -ing suffix
It is helpful for students to know the parts of speech as they work on morphology. If your students need to work on parts of speech, I highly recommend this writing program. It teaches writing complete sentences based on parts of speech, and it has lessons on helping verbs and simple verb tenses. If you need to, you can even use these two programs at the same time.
Teaching the Suffix -ING
To teach your students about the suffix -ing, display the presentation below. You can access the presentation from this website for free. You can also purchase the slideshow for use at school.
This lesson teaches the function of the suffix, but it focuses on spelling because there are so many spelling rules for adding suffixes that begin with a vowel. At the beginning of each lesson, you will share the slide with the basic information and the chart that shows the different spelling patterns. Then, students will practice the spelling patterns using this routine:
- You display a verb from the presentation.
- Students write the verb with the -ing suffix in their writing notebooks or on a whiteboard.
- You display the verb with the suffix -ing from the presentation (the next slide).
- Students check their work and get immediate feedback.
This is a spiral review lesson. Each day, you will teach students one spelling pattern for the suffix -ing. Students will practice that pattern and review any past patterns. The complete lesson will take ten days. You also get mixed review for practice later in the year to keep your students fresh.
The Presentation on the Suffix -ING
Morphology: ING by Cate O’DonnellA video example of the presentation is coming soon!
More Morphology Practice
Do you love this lesson? You can access all of the morphology lessons for FREE on this website! You can also purchase the presentations!
[…] The Suffix -ING […]