THIRD PLACE VOWELS

There are four third place vowels, heard in:

bit beat book boot

A third place vowel is written next to the end of the stroke:

• At the bottom of a downstroke

• At the top of an upstroke

• At the right of a horizontal stroke

pea lee key

The outline is written in third position, with the first up or downstroke written through the notepad line.

Where the vowel sign comes between two strokes, it is always written in third place against the second stroke. If it were put in third place after the first stroke, it would often be squashed within an angle, where it might not be clear which stroke it belongs to and therefore which sound is being shown:

pea beak lee leak

Dot vowels as in "bit" and "beat":

Thin dot for short vowel:

pip bib dip chip ship nip

bit kid lid itch pitch

ditch pick tick thick big

ill pill bill chill Jill kill

Tim dim Dick Jim/gym inch

mill if live village minute

Thick dot for long vowel:

pea bee eat tea/tee each

fee Eve see/sea she

peak/peek/pique beak beach teeth sheep

peach teach team beat

feed deep cheap keep

eel deal keel lead leave

Dash vowels as in "book" and "boot"

Thin dash for short vowel:

pull bull push bush

book took look shook wood

Thick dash for long vowel:

boo into chew Lou shoe/shoo zoo

boot food pool tool

cool Luke move tooth youth

For an outline consisting entirely of horizontal strokes, third place is on the line, because a horizontal stroke cannot be written through the line:
 

eke key inn knee ink nick

kick cook Mick king

ISH

Ish is written upwards before and after F and V for a better join:
 

sheaf shave shove fish lavish

Ish is written upwards before L, Ith and Thee:
 

shell shoal shallow Sheila sheath sheathe

FINAL I SOUND

The "i" sound at end of a word, usually written in longhand with a letter Y, is represented with a thin dot:
 

baby Betty bossy choppy copy muddy

lady Jackie daily Julie Billy chilly

lovely family Johnny Kenny many

money monthly Emily Molly collie

A thick dot is used at the end of the word where the last syllable is longer and has greater stress, also reflected in the longhand spelling:
 

jubilee escapee teepee

Short Forms
 

put, to be, different-ce, can* go

* This short form is used for the verb only (= to be able); the noun (metal container, tin) and its associated verb "to can" are written differently

wish any/in

Derivatives
 

differently wishing going

being doing having

Phrases

to give, to go*, ought to be, to do, today* may be

* Insert the vowel, so these do not look like "to give" or "to do"

The following phrases are similar, therefore lower the angle of the second phrase slightly to get the "wish" through the line:

we shall, we wish

SUMMARY

• Third place vowels are written next to the end of the stroke

• Between two strokes, the vowel is written in third place against the second stroke

• The outline is written in third position, through the line

• For an outline that only has horizontal strokes, third position is on the line

• Stroke Ish is written upwards before and after F and V

• Stroke Ish is written upwards before stroke L

• "i" sound at the end of a word is written with a thin dot: baby copy

• Long "ee" sound at the end of a word is written with a thick dot: jubilee

EXTRA VOCABULARY

Pippa tip lip zip nib

ditto width bitch Mitch midge

chick lick pig fig till dill

limb Kim milk ping ding

Dee Gee thee zee

teak cheek leech beam deem

peep jeep neap leap peel/peal

teal league leaf sheikh

poo pooch ooze Jew shooed/shoed

boom doom loom canoe

Polly Dolly lily Lenny

apology moody chimney fishy touchy

kink mink nook

coo goo moo

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