Spelling for 7th grade (jr. high)

[Sweet Home Alabama]

Ladies, I decided to use WRTR phonogram cards with my kids to review spelling.

 

(Sounds strange, but this is the first year I've systematically used them to teach spelling because my son has used them in Sing,Spell,Read, and Write 1st grade.) Now I want to use them with my older children.

 

Great idea, but this has led me down a bunny trail, and I am stuck.

 

We've been using Spelling Power for 3 years. My daughter's spelling has improved, but it doesn't feel like we've make grade appropriate progress. She said to me the other day, "When are we going to get to harder words?" and she also doesn't like the 10-step page either. I think we just need something fresh and more age/grade appropriate for next year.

 

Coming from a Spelling Power background, I thought we could just apply WRTR phonogram cards/spelling rules. I tried.... there's no way to check to see if I marked a word correctly. This became frustrating.

 

Ok... checked this forum to see what is good for 7th grade (jr.high) spelling that uses phonogram/rule approach: Megawords and How to Teach Spelling. There are advantages/disadvantages to each.

 

I like Megawords better.... looks like more fun and the look of the pages is more appealing. But... it requires we start at Book 1 and take at least 2 years to finish. This becomes expensive and time consuming.

 

HTTS: Is much less expensive and they have only 1 book to cover grades 7-12. But.... it looks like anything but fun. This is the kid who likes colors in her school books. (I realize that none of these use color, but HTTS somehow rates lowest in appearance appeal.)

 

Then, we could try...

 

Apples and Pears: Which is what I think I'll use for my 2nd and 5th graders: both boys. Good fit for 2nd because he is young and for my 5th because he makes characteristic spelling errors. (SP works at the table for him, but does not transfer to writing.) Using A&P with my daughter would get us all doing the same thing, but she's a decent speller, and I don't think A&P would be the best choice. Am I wrong here???

 

Ok..... then there is WRTR. I love the idea of WRTR, and I'm reading/disecting it right now with a library copy. Maybe if I used How to Start a Spelling Notebook I would understand the process better. I do understand that the student learns the phonograms/rules and then applies them to words. That sounds easy enough, but as I try to read this book and learn the system, I can't believe the depth to which I'm considering to teach SPELLING..... ! Come on...... it's just spelling! (I know, WRTR is awesome, and it works, and I like it!) I've never read anything about it going past 6th grade, so I looked at SRW which indicated spelling through 12th grade. That program is just WAY more complicated than I want. We won't even go there. Is WRTR ok for jr. high?

 

I told you this research got me going down a bunny trail. I just want to review phonograms/rules with my 7th grader so she can apply them to words. (I love the analysis.... seems like WRTR would fit logic stage well). What would you all suggest? Is there some curriculum I've overlooked that would get the job done more easily or would you choose one of the items above?

[MamaT]

I use splashesfromtheriver.com for spelling at that age. I print off the spelling rules for them to keep in their spelling folder and refer to. It's free too, so that's a plus. We do a pre-test and all the exercises, dictation sentences, and then test at the end of the week. I like the fact that the exercises refer them back to the spelling rules.

[Sweet Home Alabama]

I use splashesfromtheriver.com for spelling at that age. I print off the spelling rules for them to keep in their spelling folder and refer to. It's free too, so that's a plus. We do a pre-test and all the exercises, dictation sentences, and then test at the end of the week. I like the fact that the exercises refer them back to the spelling rules.

 

MamaT, thank you! This looks awesome!

 

Is there anyone else who can help me with logic-level spelling? I've since thought about how this age needs to be able to proof-read and find their own spelling/grammar errors..... Of course, knowing the phonograms/rules would certainly play into this.