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The statutory spelling lists, Year 1 to Year 6

Learn these common exception words:could, would, shouldTest on Friday

The national curriculum in England names the words children should learn to spell: common exception words in Year 1 and Year 2, then a statutory word list for Years 3 and 4 and another for Years 5 and 6. Here are all four, word for word as the Department for Education publishes them: Year 1, Year 2, Years 3 and 4 and Years 5 and 6.

Year 1 to Year 6

From the photo to the practice

  1. You photograph the list

    The words the teacher sent home, from the homework diary or a printed sheet. The four official lists are also built into Kamelo.

  2. You check the words

    About thirty seconds later you see the words Kamelo read. Correct any of them, then confirm.

  3. Your child practises

    Today’s homework is waiting on their screen: about ten minutes on those words, and nothing else.

During the session

See it, then write it
A word is shown for a moment, then hidden, and your child writes it from memory. Then they compare it with the word.
An ‘almost’ comes back
A word your child misses returns a few words later, at most twice in the session. Nothing turns red.
Or as this week’s spelling test
When the words are set as weekly spellings, they become a spelling test instead: Kamelo reads each word aloud, your child writes it on paper, then checks it.

Using the statutory lists at home

  • Your school may use its own order

    For Years 1 and 2, the curriculum says schools may use other words too, depending on the phonics programme they follow. Your child’s scheme may also teach them in another order.

  • This week’s words, not the whole list

    Each list covers one or two school years. At home, practise the words set this week rather than drilling all of them.

  • Learn words that go together

    Could, should and would, or Mr and Mrs, are easier to learn side by side than one at a time.

  • Read them as well as spell them

    In Year 1 and Year 2, children learn to read common exception words as well as spell them. Reading the list aloud is useful practice too.

Questions parents ask

What are common exception words?
Words that don’t follow the phonics patterns taught so far, or that are spelt in an unusual way, such as said, friend, people or Christmas. The national curriculum lists 45 for Year 1 and 64 for Year 2, and adds that schools may use other words, depending on the phonics programme they follow.
Are the Year 3 and 4 spelling words statutory?
Yes. English Appendix 1 says the word lists for Years 3 and 4 and Years 5 and 6 are statutory. Each has 100 words, a mixture of words pupils often use in their writing and words they often misspell. Teachers decide how to spread them over the two years. See the Year 3 and 4 list and the Year 5 and 6 list.
Where can I find the official spelling lists?
In English Appendix 1: Spelling, part of the national curriculum the Department for Education publishes on GOV.UK. We republish the four lists here under the Open Government Licence, word for word and in the original order, each on its own page with ideas for practising at home.
Should my child learn the whole list at once?
No. The Year 1 and Year 2 lists are spread across a school year, and each statutory list across two. Schools usually give a few of the words at a time. Practising this week’s words for a few minutes on several evenings works better than drilling the whole list in one go.

Official sources

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