Spelling Words

             Each week our grandsons have new spelling words as part of their literacy curriculum. This past week, the list of spelling words for fourth grade were based on words with the “-r” sound – noting that this includes words with “-er,” “-ir,” and “-ur”. So, some of the words were percent, circus, and surprise. I noted that all of these words have to be memorized, as it’s not obvious from the sound which vowel is supposed to be used. For example, these three words could just as easily have been spelled “purcent,” “cercus,” and “sirprise” and they would be pronounced fine.

            This set the creativity in my brain off. As I pondered all the words in this category, the thought came to me about cases where there are words with different vowels but the same “-r” sound and they are pronounced the same way. So, without boring you anymore, here is the little story that came to my mind…

 

            In the mountains and valleys of West Virginia, they enjoy eating all kinds of things. And unlike those of us who live in cities and suburbs, there are other kinds of animals that grace their menu – things like possum and squirrel. But in addition to eating the meat, the other parts of the animal can be put to good use, including the pelt and fur. After removing it from the animal, it must be scraped and dried. One of the methods of drying is to spread the hide on a small tree. In one small community, a man named John has perfected this art and has begun selling his wares. He takes a small evergreen tree, perhaps 5’-6’ tall, cuts it down and nails a couple of crossed boards to the base. He then removes all the needles and small branches. What is left works really well for hanging/draping the drying pelts.

            One day a friend of his was walking by John’s cabin and noticed that John had another brand-new drying tree sitting next to the front door. Being curious, he knocked on the door and when John answered, he asked, “Who is the fur fir fer?”