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Year 2 The four joins worksheet

“Our first joins” is free to print, with no account. It is the first sheet in the Year 2 English unit “The four joins”, for children aged 6 to 7, and takes about 20 minutes.

Print it on A4. The child's pages come first; the answers, and what each wrong answer tells you, are on the grown-up page that follows. Weeks 17 to 19 of the year, 10 sheets in the unit.

Free sample · answers on the last page

Our first joins

Name: ____________ · Date: ____________
Year 2 · English · about 20 minutes
Answers are on the grown-up page

Today I can join the letters in, ig, ed and eg without lifting my pencil.

A Look back3 min

  1. 1.

    Circle the letter with a dot above it.

    dotx-height linebaseline
    aei
  2. 2.

    Circle the letter with a tail that goes below the baseline.

    x-height linebaselinebelow the baseline
    cup
  3. 3.

    Circle the letter that reaches higher than the others.

    baselinex-height linetop line
    act

B Watch me, then you4 min

Joined letters are like friends holding hands. Start on the baseline, then travel up to the x-height line in one smooth move.

A tramlined exercise book page on a kitchen table with a pencil lying beside it
Watch me
in

The join starts on the baseline.

Keep your pencil on the page the whole way.

Glide up to the x-height line and then across into the n.

Now you
  1. 1.

    Join the pair ig on your tramlines. Keep the pencil on the page.

    i
  2. 2.

    Now join the pair ed on your tramlines. Keep the pencil on the page.

    e

C Your turn6 min

Write each pair on your tramlines. Keep your pencil on the page for the whole pair.

  1. 1.

    Write i and n joined together on the tramlines.

    i
  2. 2.

    Write the pair ig joined on the tramlines.

    i
  3. 3.

    Write the pair ed joined on the tramlines.

    e
  4. 4.

    Write the pair eg joined on the tramlines.

    e

Say it out loud: Which part of the join stayed the same in every row? What changed each time?

D Spot the mistake3 min

A blank tramlined exercise book page with a pencil lying across it
Kit says: “My pencil must come off the page to make the join.”
  1. 1.

    Is Kit right? Circle one.

    Yes, he is rightNo, he is wrong

E Think deeper3 min

Think about how your pencil moves when you join two letters.

pencil downijoinnpencil up
  1. 1.

    Ella says joined writing is quicker because the pencil stays on the page. Do you agree? Explain why in one or two sentences.

How did it feel?

I can do it Nearly Not yet
StudyDen · Year 2 · English · The four joinsAnswers are on the grown-up page

For the grown-up

Our first joins · 2 minutes to read

Answers, and what a wrong one tells you

A

1. i

2. p

3. t

B

1. Look for: Two letters i and g joined by one smooth line that starts on the baseline and rises to the x-height line.

2. Look for: Two letters e and d joined with one unbroken line, no lift of the pencil.

C

1. Look for: The letters i and n joined with one unbroken line that starts on the baseline and rises to the x-height line.

2. Look for: The letters i and g joined with one unbroken line that starts on the baseline and rises to the x-height line.

3. Look for: The letters e and d joined with one unbroken line that starts on the baseline and rises to the x-height line.

4. Look for: The letters e and g joined with one unbroken line that starts on the baseline and rises to the x-height line.

D

1. No, he is wrong If your child says yes, they still hold the old idea that lifting makes a join. Trace one join with a finger, then with the pencil on the page, and ask which one is smooth.

E

1. Look for: A sensible reason to agree or disagree, such as fewer lifts mean fewer stops.

Words to use

Say“Show me where your join starts on the baseline and where it finishes. Did the pencil stay on the page?”
Instead of“Just copy it out again, it'll be fine.”

After the sheet

Use a ruler to draw two long lines on paper. Write i joined to n, then i joined to g, between them. Keep the pencil down for each join, then swap and check each other's joins.

Tick what your child got right in StudyDen. Anything missed comes back in a later Look back box, so there's no need to redo the sheet.

The rest of this unit

9 more sheets come with a StudyDen plan, in teaching order:

  1. Joining aw, ap, an, ar(with a plan)
  2. The second join(with a plan)
  3. Joining if, il and it(with a plan)
  4. The third join(with a plan)
  5. Joining on, om and ow(with a plan)
  6. Joins that reach up(with a plan)
  7. The fourth join(with a plan)
  8. The third join(with a plan)
  9. The third join dips(with a plan)

Every Year 2 English worksheet

The worksheets plan opens a printable sheet for every lesson in Years 1 to 6, each with its answers on a separate page for you. It costs £6.99 a month or £59 a year for the whole family, with no free trial.

The full StudyDen plan adds the lessons themselves, marked as your child works, with the worksheets included. It is 7 days free, then £29.99 a month.

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