Educational quiz app · Ages 5-10
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Educational quiz app · Ages 5-10
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English · Spelling
Year 1 common exception words: all 45 on one printable sheet
Common exception words are words that don’t follow the phonics children have learned so far, such as ‘said’, ‘was’ and ‘friend’. Children can’t sound them out letter by letter, so they learn to read and spell them by sight.
This page has every Year 1 example word from the National Curriculum in England. Print the list, tick each word your child can spell, and use the practice page for the ones still to learn.
Prints on two A4 pages: the full list, then a practice page.
Year 1 common exception words
45 words · tick each one you can spell
- the
- a
- do
- to
- today
- of
- said
- says
- are
- were
- was
- is
- his
- has
- I
- you
- your
- they
- be
- he
- me
- she
- we
- no
- go
- so
- by
- my
- here
- there
- where
- love
- come
- some
- one
- once
- ask
- friend
- school
- put
- push
- pull
- full
- house
- our
National Curriculum in England, English Appendix 1. Open Government Licence v3.0.Look, say, cover, write, check
Write a word from the list in the first column. Look at it and say it. Cover it, write it, then check. Tick it when you get it right.
| Word | Try 1 | Try 2 | Try 3 | ✓ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Free worksheets and the Owee quiz app at owee.world
Is this list statutory?
The National Curriculum asks Year 1 children to spell common exception words. The 45 words are its example list; schools may use these or similar words, ‘according to the programme used’.
How to practise at home
Pick three or four words a week rather than the whole list. Use the practice page: look at the word, say it, cover it, write it, then check. Point the words out in books you read together, and ask your child to use one in a sentence. Little and often works far better than a long session.
What comes next
In Year 2, children learn a longer list of common exception words, such as ‘because’, ‘could’ and ‘people’. If your child is confident with this list, the Year 2 list is the natural next step.
Questions parents ask
How many common exception words are there in Year 1?
The National Curriculum in England lists 45 example words for Year 1. Your child’s school may use these or a similar list from its phonics programme, so a few words may differ.
Are common exception words the same as tricky words?
Very nearly. Many phonics programmes call them tricky words. The idea is the same: words that can’t yet be sounded out with the phonics a child knows.
Is this printable really free?
Yes. Print it, save it as a PDF or share it with other parents. There is no sign-up and no email needed.
Word list from English Appendix 1: Spelling, National Curriculum in England (Department for Education). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Licence.
Educational quiz app · Ages 5-10
More learning in the Owee app
Owee turns topics like this into quizzes for children aged 5 to 10, and a treehouse grows as they learn. No ads, no chat, no strangers.
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Educational quiz app · Ages 5-10
More learning in the Owee app
Owee turns topics like this into quizzes for children aged 5 to 10, and a treehouse grows as they learn. No ads, no chat, no strangers.
Scan with your phone camera
- Family-friendly
- No ads
- Private