When I was growing up, I was an excellent reader. I would devour one book after another and made sure a large part of my day was set aside for reading. Knowing this, my grandmother could not understand why my grammar skills never came up to the level of perfection. Many people believe that SEEING the words and WRITING the words are one in the same. However, nothing can be further from the truth. Even though there are some people who gain their spelling skills from reading only, most English speakers are in need of additional assistance to succeed.
What is the best way to teach spelling?
If your household is like ours, you have most probably tried several spelling curricula wondering which one is going to yield the highest success. One thing we have concluded after doing much research is that many of the curricula teach spelling by writing the misspelled words over and over again without considering the auditory aspect of the word. However, one has to admit that language is originally a spoken art and therefore primarily processed through the ear. Therefore, a successful spelling curriculum must include a listening section in each lesson. For those children who are predominantly kinesthetic learners and master quickly what they touch and do, multisensory programs seem to be the best fit.
What is the key factor to spelling?
Like everything we want to achieve proficiently, spelling needs to be taught to the mastery level and that only comes by constant repetition and review. Do not stop reviewing the words once the lesson is over and the test passed 100%. Keep reviewing the originally misspelled words until they become so natural to your child that he/she can spell them even without being fully awake. It takes time and energy, but it brings the sweet fruit of confidence at the end.
How do you learn spelling to the mastery level?
Regardless of which spelling curriculum you are currently using, you can still follow the tips below to help your child achieve a mastery level in spelling:
- Purchase (or create) a small index box.
- Print the tabbed index cards on a colored card stock (they will serve as separators for your spelling words). Print or cut out small index cards. [You are welcome to use our template.]
- When you work on a spelling lesson, write each misspelled word on a separate index card. You will continue to review these words not only while working on the lesson, but also for weeks to come.
- After you complete your lesson, add the new cards behind “Daily” review tab and go over them quickly every day for at least one additional week.
- Once your child is proficient in spelling the words, move them behind one of the “days of the week” tabs. Make sure you have a similar number of index cards behind each of the “day” tabs so that your weekly work is equally distributed.
- Once your child feels confident in spelling any particular word, move the index card behind the “Monthly” review tab. Set aside the first work day of each month to review all the “Monthly” spelling words.
- Continue the steps above for the entire school year.
For those of you who are looking for a new spelling curriculum, we can suggest what we have used successfully over the years. All the curricula below are suitable for children with any learning style and ability, including those with learning glitches.
- Spelling Power by Beverly Adams-Gordon: A multisensory, multi-level program that combines old-style, research-proven approaches combined with the technology of today.
- All About Spelling by All About Learning Press: A multisensory program that uses sight, hearing, and touch simultaneously to process spelling rules and sequence effectively.
- The Phonetic Zoo by Institute for Excellence in Writing – A spelling program based on phonics and heavily focused on auditory processing.
Which spelling programs have you used successfully? Please leave your comment below. We would love to hear from you!
