"English is hard!" This is a statement we probably have often heard and even used ourselves. "It's spelled that way just because...agh...English is so difficult!" The truth is that this is a misconception - a lie even - that has been passed around because, unlike your children, we weren't taught how English really works. There are guidelines for spellings and historical stories for why we spell words the way that we do. Actually, when it comes to being difficult, only 4% of English words are truly irregular. The English language itself isn't hard if you've been shown the why's.
I recently shared the story for "people." I'll tell you the expanded version, but know that I usually break this into parts for younger children, and often spiral back to part as it is relevant to different lessons.
The word "people" comes from the Latin word "populus." Other words similar to this Latin root may come to mind: population, popular. Years after the Romans ruled England, the French took over in the 1066 Normandy Conquest (Note of interest: the Normans were Norse people who settled in France). From this point, the French ruled for 300 years. During this time, the ruling class spoke French, while the peasant class spoke Old English. This brought an influx of French words into our collective English vocabulary, especially words relating to government, cuisine, and the military. Going back to the word "people," the Normans used the words "pople" and "peupel" which come from Old French/Anglo-French. The Old English equivalent for "people" is "folcs," which is now spelled "folks." Eventually, "people" won out as the 'better' word to use because of its connection to the language of the ruling class. It helped you sound more "educated" and could help elevate your social status. Sound familiar? This is still true today with the use of "academic language." What are the roots of this "academic language" though? Hmmm... But, back to "people."
Today, the word "people" is the favored word to describe a group of individuals. The /o/ is silent, but is part of the spelling as a historical marker to its roots, "populus." There is a silent, final /e/ in its second syllable. "People" has two syllables and in English, every syllable usually has a vowel sound or marker. This second syllable type is called a consonant-le syllable. This syllable type can be found in other words such as table, turtle, muggle and twinkle.
Next time you and your child come across a word with an "interesting" spelling. Ask your child: What do you notice? What letters represent their usual sounds? Which ones don't? Are there silent letters? Do you see smaller words you know? There could be a story to explain its spelling. Try looking the word up on https://www.etymonline.com/ or encourage your child to bring their spelling questions to class.
Interested in learning more?
Join us for our Parent Education Discussion on Early Literacy on November 18th, 6:30-8:30pm,