Teacher Master Key • Lessons 119 & 120
Diphthongs oi (/ɔɪ/) and ow (/aʊ/) • Carrie Shaw Rice Lyric Clinic • Page 65
INSTRUCTOR REFERENCE KEY
1 Complete Orthoepic & Morphological Matrix (Lessons 119 & 120 Vocabulary)
24 Target Words • Diphthong Glides /ɔɪ/ and /aʊ/
Word IPA Diphthong Type Grammar Phonetic & Etymological Notes
voice / choice /vɔɪs/, /tʃɔɪs/ oi = /ɔɪ/ + soft c Noun OF vois, chois. Final -ce indicates voiceless /s/ following diphthong.
toil / soil / spoil /tɔɪl/, /sɔɪl/, /spɔɪl/ oi = /ɔɪ/ + /l/ Verb / Noun OF toiler, soile, espoillier. Diphthong glides from /ɔ/ to /ɪ/ before lateral /l/.
join / coin / point /dʒɔɪn/, /kɔɪn/, /pɔɪnt/ oi = /ɔɪ/ + nasal Verb / Noun OF joindre, coigne, point. Nasal codas retain clear diphthong quality.
how / brow / plow /haʊ/, /braʊ/, /plaʊ/ ow = /aʊ/ (open) Adv. / Noun OE hū, brū, plōh. Great Vowel Shift diphthongization from Middle English /uː/.
town / down / brown /taʊn/, /daʊn/, /braʊn/ ow = /aʊ/ + /n/ Noun / Prep. / Adj. OE tūn, dūn, brūn. Pure diphthong glide before alveolar nasal coda.
howl / scowl / crowd /haʊl/, /skaʊl/, /kraʊd/ ow = /aʊ/ + coda Verb / Noun ME houlen, ON skūla, OE crūdan. Onomatopoeic and expressive phonology.
1. The Anatomy of English Diphthongs
• Diphthong /ɔɪ/ (oi): Glides from open-mid back rounded [ɔ] to near-close front unrounded [ɪ]. In internal positions, it is spelled oi (soil, coin); word-finally, it is spelled oy (boy, joy).
• Diphthong /aʊ/ (ow): Glides from open front/central [a] to near-close back rounded [ʊ]. Spelled ow before n, l and word-finally (town, owl, how); spelled ou internally before other consonants (shout, cloud).
2. Carrie Shaw Rice's Lullaby Clinic
• The Acoustic Rhyme: Town /taʊn/ and down /daʊn/. Perfect diphthong rhyme creating an evocative, calming cadence.
• Personification & Capitalization: Drowsy Town is capitalized as a proper poetic place-name, depicting the onset of twilight sleep.
• Interrogative Syntax: Notice the inversion (“were you ever...”) and concluding question mark.
3 Oral Dictation Sentences (Administer in Class)
Contextual Application • Exact Decodability
1. The patient farmer must toil and plow the rich brown earth.
2. A cheerful voice rose above the noisy crowd in the busy town.
3. Do not let cold water spoil the hot kettle when it begins to boil.
4. The king wore a golden crown upon his royal brow.
5. We will join hands at the turning point of the peaceful road.
4 Orthographic Distribution: oi vs. oy and ow vs. ou
Spelling Rule Demonstration
Internal oi (/ɔɪ/):
• boil, soil, spoil
• join, coin, point
• voice, choice
English words rarely end in -i, so -oi- sits inside stems.
Terminal & Pre-n/l ow (/aʊ/):
• how, brow, plow
• town, down, brown, crown
• howl, scowl, crowd
Used at word end and before -n, -l, -d.
Cross-Diphthong Counterparts:
• Final /ɔɪ/: boy, joy, toy (-oy)
• Internal /aʊ/: out, loud, round (-ou-)
• Soft c: voice (/vɔɪs/), choice (/tʃɔɪs/)
Evaluative Scoring Rubric (20 Points Total) Mastery Assessment
• 1. Diphthong Discrimination (6 pts): Correctly distinguishes and spells oi (/ɔɪ/) and ow (/aʊ/) vocabulary words without vowel confusion.
• 2. Carrie Shaw Rice Couplet Accuracy (5 pts): Transcribes the 2-line lyric with 100% orthographic accuracy, capitalization, and punctuation.
• 3. Oral Dictation Application (5 pts): Correctly spells target words in the 5 administered oral sentences.
• 4. 26px Penmanship Standard (4 pts): Letters aligned to 26px baseline, ascenders/descenders properly proportioned, midline touches at 13px.
Socratic Discussion Prompts Classroom Administration
1. Phonetic Movement: “Say 'oil'. Notice how your mouth glides from an 'aw' shape to an 'ee' shape. That glide is called a diphthong!”
2. Spelling Position: “Why do we write 'boil' with 'oi' but 'boy' with 'oy'? Where in a word does 'oi' usually live?”
3. Poetic Geography: “Where is 'Drowsy Town'? Is it a real town on a map, or a poetic name for bedtime?”
4. Soft C Rule: “Look at 'voice' and 'choice'. Why does the 'c' sound like /s/ rather than /k/?”