spelling

Spelling by sounds is a *good* first step, but then you want to move on from that first step into higher levels.

Three related approaches:

All of these start with regular sound patterns and move gradually into more complex and less regular patterns.

— I use a phonics series called Check and Double Check Phonics from scholarschoice.ca This is very inexpensive and they deliver fast across North America. Book 2 does vowel patterns and I review it with most students, Books 3 and 4 do syllabification and spelling variants. I just do the books with most students and spelling slowly improves as they start to *see* the patterns in words; in some cases you can take the word lists on each page and use them as spelling lists as well.
I also am using copies of the lists from the back of “Why Johnny Can’t Read” for developmental work with one student.

— AVKO spelling. I have the adult version although I understand the children’s version is similar. Again moves from simple to complex and shows patterns. The first few lessons (at least in the adult) introduce the double-consonant-after-short-vowel-to-add vowel-suffix rule. The first group of lessons are short vowels and ee; I haven’t gotten there yet but later lessons include other patterns.

— Johnny Can Spell and Johnny Can Write. I have read the website for these programs (NINE.com) and they look good. A traditional, step-by-step program working from common high-frequency words, and teaching the vital directionality skills which really are basic to spelling.

For any spelling and writing program, short frequent spaced practices are much more effective than big blocks of time, which quickly reach diminishing returns. The best is fifteen minutes a day five days a week, and then next best is twenty minutes three times a week.
The *least* effective method is the tradtitional memorization of a bunch of irrelevant words for a test on Friday and a complete memory dump on Friday afternoon; also copying words over and over has little effect; what matters is looking at the word and analyzing how it works.
Once spelling words are taught, correct them in all writing, and insist on student self-correction. Don’t correct things than haven’t yet been taught, but do insist on transfer of skill on those patterns that have been done. Go slowly and get a few words right, not fast and superficial. Otherwise spelling is a strange little ritual of its own with no point.

Sequential Spelling usually works very well with children like this. Website is http://www.avko.org .

I’d recommend starting with the first two books of the 6-book series. Lessons in the first book can be done in about 5 minutes each. If your child gets all the words in the early lessons right, keep doing them until you get to a lesson that offers some challenge. Once into the program, to speed things up you can work from two sections of the work simultaneously if you want to — e.g., do lesson #1 immediately followed by lesson #31 on Monday, lesson #2 immediately followed by lesson #32 on Tuesday, etc. Book One repeats patterns for two weeks at a time. Starting with Book Two, patterns are repeated for only one week at a time.

Sequential Spelling seems to develop spelling sub-skills that other programs take for granted. Carryover into writing seems to be automatic. You usually start seeing results after the first 60 lessons or so.

After the first two books of SS, you could probably switch to Spelling Mastery from http://www.sra4kids.com (another spelling program that has a very good reputation).

Nancy

Sequential Spelling is a good angle; another option is Seeing Stars which ties in the visual image with the sounds.

For the immediate present, you might want to try some different ways to practice spelling; I remember being surprised to discover that my students could copy words until the cows came home and it didn’t help them ***at all** when it came to spelling them on their own. I’ve put a few online on this site and at http://www.resourceroom.net/readspell/index.asp

Here is another spelling suggestion that helps develop visualization skills (often lacking in poor spellers). It is very easy to do, but if you can spend three minutes a couple of times a day on it, it can be surprisingly effective.

Start with simple two-letter and three-letter words. Spell a word out loud with about one second between letters. Your daughter then has to tell you what the word is. You might be surprised at how difficult this can be! Once she is comfortable with three-letter words, work on four-letter words. Once she is comfortable with four, expand to five, etc.

This particular exercise seems easy, but it forces the child to visualize the letters in order to figure out the word.

Nancy

I’m stealing that one today….

I’m homeschooling a dyslexic 12 year old son. I tried 3 or 4 spelling programs with him and the major problem was that he couldn’t handle many words at one time. I found a great program at www.steck-vaughn.com for LD children called “Target Spelling”. It starts with 6 words a week, then halfway through the series they spell 8 words a week. We are a little over halfway through the series now and will go all the way through. It begins with 1st grade level to high school level. If your child is about 2nd grade level you probably should start with the first book which is Target 180, called that because it covers 180 words in the book. Each week you cover words with a certain spelling or phonics pattern, and also 2 Dolch words which are the most common words used in reading and writing. You can look at sample preview pages online at: http://www.wieser-ed.com/previews/LD3531/index.html