1st Grade · Core Spelling
Short Vowel Ending Rules: -tch and -dge
Twelve 1st Grade words that practice final tch for /ch/ and dge for /j/ after a short vowel in many one-syllable words.
These spelling words are a good fit for students who...
- can spell familiar short-vowel words with endings such as ck
- can hear whether the final sound in a word is the one in “catch” or the one in “badge”
- notice that words like “catch” and “badge” end with more letters than the sound alone would suggest
Word list
The 12 words to practice in this step
1st Grade · Core Spelling
- catch
- match
- hatch
- patch
- pitch
- ditch
- badge
- edge
- bridge
- fudge
- judge
- wedge
12 words
Spelling Skill
CK, Double Letters, and TCH/DGE Word Endings
Learn how this spelling pattern works, see examples, common mistakes, and teaching guidance.
Explore the CK, Double Letters, and TCH/DGE Word Endings skill →Why these words — and what they teach
This list balances six -tch words—catch, match, hatch, patch, pitch, and ditch—with six -dge words—badge, edge, bridge, fudge, judge, and wedge. In these one-syllable examples, final /ch/ or /j/ comes immediately after a short-vowel spelling and is represented by a multi-letter ending. The generalization is useful but not exceptionless.
This final 1st Grade unit returns to a decision first practiced with ck: after hearing a short vowel and one final consonant sound, the child may need more than one letter for the conventional ending. The list brings together that earlier positional thinking with the stronger sound-to-spelling habits developed across the 1st Grade sequence.
How to practice this list
Say a word without showing it. Have your child identify the short vowel and decide whether the final sound is /ch/ or /j/. Map the word by spelling parts, write tch or dge as one final unit, and read the word back without adding sounds for every letter. Practice the two endings separately before mixing them.
Writing mach for match or baj for badge is a normal sound-based attempt: the child represented the final sound but has not yet applied the target convention. Compare the word with catch or badge, identify the short vowel immediately before the ending, and let the child repair it. If tch and dge are confused with each other, return to the final sound first rather than asking the child to memorize the whole word.
When your child can spell these words in mixed order, choose -tch or -dge from the final sound and short-vowel context, and correct an occasional simpler spelling by using a known example, they are ready for the 2nd Grade Long E Vowel Teams unit that follows in the Core sequence.