Leisure and Sports
Primary 6 · English
Leisure and Sports
Lesson 5 of 5
30 min
Say these two words aloud: cat and city. Both begin with the letter c, but not with the same sound. In cat, c says /k/. In city, c says /s/. Now try goal and giant: the g changes its voice too.
Today you will discover the secret that tells c and g which voice to use.
These sentences come from two stories you read in this unit, Africa Unity Race and The Big Game. Read them aloud slowly. Listen to every c and every g.
1. The race started at the southern tip of our continent, in Cape Town.
2. They ran through the Republic of the Congo and Cameroon.
3. The growing group of people rested in Abuja, in Nigeria.
4. They ran through Algeria and Libya, and stopped in Egypt to visit the pyramids.
5. They sat on the beach and ate coconut rice with fish.
6. Crowds gathered at this important place.
7. “Let's play a game to celebrate our friendship!” Everyone cheered with excitement.
8. They danced, sang and enjoyed the food.
Answer each question in your head or in your exercise book first. Then tap Show answer to check.
In sentence 5, which c sounds like /k/ and which sounds like /s/?
The c's in coconut sound like /k/. The c in rice sounds like /s/.
Which three country names in sentences 3 and 4 have a g that sounds like /j/?
Nigeria, Algeria and Egypt.
In sentence 2, Congo has a c and a g. Are they soft or hard?
Both are hard: /k/ and /g/, because they come before o.
Find three words in sentences 7 and 8 with a c that sounds like /s/.
celebrate, excitement, danced
The word bicycle has both: bi-cy-cle. The first c comes before y, so it is soft. The second c comes before l, so it is hard.
Watch out: g has some stubborn words that keep a hard sound even before e or i: get, give, girl, begin, tiger, finger, together, forget. Learn these by heart.
An e at the end of a word makes the c or g in front of it soft: face, dance, page, cage. That is why race ends in -ce and village ends in -ge.
Tip
E, I and Y are the softeners. When c or g stands just in front of e, i or y, it usually goes soft: c says /s/, and g says /j/.
G has a few stubborn exceptions: get, give, girl, begin, tiger.
Say each word aloud before you answer.
Is the c soft or hard in: circle, cup, centre?
Answer: circle: the first c is soft and the second is hard; cup: hard; centre: soft
Which word has a soft g: goal, gentle or gum?
Answer: gentle (g comes before e)
Why does the g in village sound like /j/?
Answer: Because it comes before the letter e.
Odd one out: city, cake, cycle, centre
Answer: cake: its c is hard, the others are soft.
Which letter makes the c in rice soft?
Answer: the e
What you learned today
Sources and credits
Quick check
Which word has a soft g that says /j/?
