Is spelling instruction necessary? Megawords questions..

[Momling]

My 8 yo daughter has uncannily good spelling and an outrageously large vocabulary. I don't really know a 'level' for her reading or spelling, but I've seen a fair number of college students with worse skills than she has. So I'm debating whether to actually work on spelling at all next year.

 

The only spelling curriculum she's had has been a few weeks of Spellwell 3b which didn't work very well for her at all. I think I just got too easy of a level, because she kept getting all the pre-tests right and it just seemed pointless. I don't want to make the same mistake again.

 

I think if we do spelling, I might try Megawords. Is it best to begin at Megawords 1? Do the books get consecutively more difficult or does each book just practice different patterns of spelling that don't necessarily need to build on each other?

[PeterPan]

I'd just get her a workbook on the weirder stuff (plurals, doubling, that type thing) and homonyms and be done with it. Megawords is quite a bit more detailed than a natural speller probably needs. Have you looked at the workbook series WTM recommends? I forget the name, but it would be adequate. My dd is in the opposite camp, here today, goon tomorrow with spelling, so we've had to forge a different route. With a kid like yours, I'd just go for a light touch. Jim Halverson has a delightful workbook Spelling Works! we did a year ago. I think you can download it off CurrClick.

Edited April 3, 2010 by OhElizabeth
to remove the "r" word. :)

[LanaTron]

It starts in the first book with multi-syllable words, and the rules for dividing them into syllables, and how to spell those syllables. I don't really consider that remedial...and considering it is for 4th grade and up, it might be just right for an 8 yo who is an advanced speller.

 

No, the books do not build on one another. If you decide to go with Megawords, I would recommend the first book, just because it is good information. Then, I suppose you could pick and choose which other books to work in depending on the particular spelling topic she needs work on.

 

But, like OhElizabeth said, with a natural speller, you may not want to labor the point.

[nmoira]

Megawords is for remedial/strugglers, not your natural speller.

While it may be overkill for a natural speller, it is not a remedial spelling program. Its reading and perhaps even vocabulary aspects could be considered remedial. However, only one or two pages per list emphasize reading, since for the most part this is something the student would do with the teacher. Megawords is similar to Sequential Spelling in that it emphasizes patterns, though its approach is the direct opposite of SS's in that it makes the study explicit. Most worksheets take between five and ten minutes per day.

 

Edited to add:

Remedial spellers can certainly be accommodated, however. "Practical spelling words" are marked in both the student and teacher books in the first edition, and in the teacher's book in the second. For struggling students, the teacher and/or the student would decide which of these practical words should be mastered by the end of the unit.

Edited April 3, 2010 by nmoira

[Homeschooling6]

I didn't realize MW was more for struggling spellers. I'm using it with my dd who does not struggle:001_huh: Hmmm.........I still think she can benefit from it though and I plan to continue. But that's news to me. It's the first time I have heard of it being called a remedial program. I thought I researched well :glare:

Edited April 3, 2010 by Homeschooling6

[wy_kid_wrangler04]

I would recommend spelling power and apples daily spelling drills. Those two combined work amazing together to learn the rules to spelling. She may be a natural speller but how well does she know the rules? Do not do apples in the order in the book but do the rules based on the rules you are working on in spelling power. That combo is amazing! (apples is recommended for 7th grade on up but my 2nd grader is also a natural speller and she does amazingly well with it!!!!) :)

[wy_kid_wrangler04]

I didn't realize MW was more for struggling spellers. I'm using it with my dd who does not struggle:001_huh: Hmmm.........I still think she can benefit from it though and I plan to continue. But that's news to me. It's the first time I have heard of it being called a remedial program. I thought I researched well :glare:

 

 

Ya I havent heard that either :glare: and I did alot of research lately.

[lovemykids]

Megawords is for students of all abilities, although it can accommodate struggling students if needed. (as was mentioned)

Just because Megawords is published by EPS, it doesn’t make it only for struggling students. EPS also publishes many good programs such as ETC, Wordly Wise, The Story of the USA, etc.

We don't automatically lump these programs into a certain category- they can be used by all students.

[nmoira]

I think if we do spelling, I might try Megawords. Is it best to begin at Megawords 1? Do the books get consecutively more difficult or does each book just practice different patterns of spelling that don't necessarily need to build on each other?

Sorry, I missed her age on my initial reading. My 8yo (not a natural speller, but a quick learner) is about halfway through the series, and while she doesn't love it, it takes so little time that it's not an annoyance. ;) You'd need to start at the beginning because topics aren't repeated. Book 1 might seem slow, but it's is about syllabification, the basis for subsequent books.

[PeterPan]

Hey Wrangler, I think you may have picked our spelling for next year! That Apples book looks good! :)

[lovemykids]

Oh, I also see how you could think that Megawords was made for remedial students, since it is adaptable.

Yawn, why am I still awake? :blink:

[EppieJ]

I didn't realize MW was more for struggling spellers. I'm using it with my dd who does not struggle:001_huh: Hmmm.........I still think she can benefit from it though and I plan to continue. But that's news to me. It's the first time I have heard of it being called a remedial program. I thought I researched well :glare:

 

 

Same here. :001_huh:I've never heard it called "remedial" either. I actually have book one on my shelf, but we've only done a couple pages out of it. Spelling keeps getting pushed to the back burner. I plan to work on it a lot next year. Ds wants to know good spelling now!

[debbielong]

Our oldest is a natural speller. He did one year of WTM-recommended Spelling Workout, which seemed like a waste. He is now 13 and he rarely spells anything wrong. I'm glad we didn't spend a ton of time on spelling, and I wish we would have ditched SW before the year was over.

 

Another option is to start preparing for spelling bees. We did a bit of that, but my son showed no interest.

[Homeschooling6]

I would recommend spelling power and apples daily spelling drills. :)

 

Apples Daily Spelling Drills I am using this with Joshua, my oldest child. Actually just started it three weeks ago and he really likes it. After having to write the days of the week throughout the week he was excited to spell them to me correctly. He also likes the drill of the rules. We use it with SWR.

[abbeyej]

Some kids *don't* really need much formal spelling.

 

Both of mine have turned out to be "natural" spellers. They continue to improve in their spelling ability regardless of whether we do spelling or not. My younger one is 8, and we do Spelling Power (doing the H level now) because it just takes a few minutes a day and she likes it well enough. I like that with Spelling Power, we aren't wasting time and we can race ahead when things are easy (without having to buy new books). I did SP off and on with my older one as well, but really found it to be superfluous.

 

There are so many other, wonderful things to spend time studying. :) I don't see putting a lot of time into spelling for kids who understand the rules intuitively and can apply corrections easily the first time.

[PeterPan]

Homeschooling 6, that's what I'm thinking, that for next year we'll go back to SWR and use Apples alongside. Apples looks pretty whitty, and the Bible theme is a plus. She knows the rules, but I try to give her consistent practice, just to keep working on it. Right now we're applying SWR analysis to the MCT words, and that's good too. I've always had to do a multi-pronged approach with my dd. We got out of it this year, and it's showing.

[Homeschooling6]

Homeschooling 6, that's what I'm thinking, that for next year we'll go back to SWR and use Apples alongside. Apples looks pretty whitty, and the Bible theme is a plus. She knows the rules, but I try to give her consistent practice, just to keep working on it. Right now we're applying SWR analysis to the MCT words, and that's good too. I've always had to do a multi-pronged approach with my dd. We got out of it this year, and it's showing.

 

I think Apples compliments other spelling programs very well. Some might not like that it has the child correct misspelling like "uh"way, to 'away' but this is something that really has helped my son Josh. He would normally right it 'uway' or 'ubout'. Since he worked on this in Apples he remembers to use an 'a' instead of the 'u'.

[Momling]

Thank you all for your suggestions! You've given me a lot to think about!!!

[Shawna in Texas]

I have a natural speller. We did Spelling Workout A and B, started C, but didn't finish. Took a break for a year, then started Spellwell and it was a dud. As much as dd enjoyed workbooks for various things, she really didn't like them for spelling. She really wasn't learning anything. I don't remember Megawords being in the running probably because we used Spellwell, but I'd consider it if I could go back a few years.

 

This is what we use when I can remember. It has some pretty cool words in it. Sometimes we do it orally, sometimes written. DD doesn't mind doing it. If you check it out, make sure you look at some of the exercises toward the end. It's good stuff.

[wy_kid_wrangler04]

Hey Wrangler, I think you may have picked our spelling for next year! That Apples book looks good! :)

 

 

I really love it!!! They have 2 volumes too! :party:

[Halcyon]

My 7 yo son is using MW1 and he is an advanced speller. I don't have him do every exercise within a given chapter--I have him do a few, and when he understands the definition of the word, and can spell it easily, we move to the next chapter. So this serves as a vocab program as well (for us).

 

So far (and we're on section 3) he gets only about 4-5 words wrong out of the list of about 80 words that are covered in each chapter/section, and that's without review-I 'quiz' him on spelling before the chapter to see where the trouble spots are. Nonetheless, I think the review is good and no doubt, when we hit more difficult words later, he won't find them overly troublesome because he will have learned some of the rules.

 

Oh, and he enjoys the book, and loves the challenging words. Personally, I like how the book is laid out. Some explanations, such as when to use -ir, -ur and -er (as in bird, church and fern) are nicely presented, imo. I don't think the book would be considered remedial (I did tons of research before settling on this book), particularly when used for the younger ages. I too debated whether my son even needed a spelling book as it seemed to come naturally, but I do think there is a benefit in learning certain rules, and he enjoys it and feels 'smart' when doing it, so no harm :001_smile:

 

Notwithstanding all of the above, we are working towards potentially doing some spelling bees (he did a local bee recently and placed 1st, and that motivated him), and so add words in from both English from the Roots Up, McGuffey's Eclectic Speller and a couple of other spelling bee lists we've culled from various sources. I create weekly lists of very challenging words in Word for him to study. He is also expected to look up the definition if he does not know it. Some of the words we've covered recently include:

 

 

 

• mythical
  
• breath
  
• breathe
  
• gesture
  
• guillotine
  
• amuse
  
• resemble
  
• character
  
• machine
  

 

Edited April 3, 2010 by Halcyon

[NancyNellen]

No, spelling is absolutely NOT necessary for a certain sub-set of children. My oldest three have never done more than a few months of formal spelling (but have had thorough phonics instruction) and very, very rarely spell anything wrong. I would say go with your gut. If you don't think she needs it, skip it. If you change your mind, add it back in.

[Pam B]

I would try Spelling Power. It goes through adult. You'd give her a placement test, so you wouldn't have to worry about it being too easy.