dtsmamtj Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 OK, my dd is 10.5 and is still stuggling spelling. She seems to be doing alright in language arts and math. She reads ok, except for sounding out words so to speak. The same thing happens in spelling - she can't seem to sound out a word to spell it, but can spell words if they are to memory. Thoughts? Testing necessary - yes/no? Supplementation? - if so, what recommendations? T Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngelBee Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 I am having similar issues with my ds11. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EKS Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 From your post, I'm not completely clear on what your daughter's issues are, but I do recommend REWARDS for older kids who have trouble sounding multisyllabic words. As for spelling, my son (14yo) has done well with a combination of AAS, writing everything on the computer, and now with Sequential Spelling for Adults. FWIW, my 14yo has dyslexia. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 There are always so many things that MIGHT be going on. My dd never had much use for phonics; she was one of those kids who learned to read on her own before I got around to phonics, and she certainly doesn't spell using phonics very often. She is a visual speller with, bizarrely enough, a poor visual memory. You might see whether your dd's learning traits and behaviors fall into what Jeffrey Freed describes in Right Brained Children in a Left Brained World. He has separate chapters on teaching very visual kids to read, spell, write, and do math using different techniques. I used a lot of his recommendations for spelling with dd, along with plugging away at a regular spelling program, teaching her root words, and continuing to model how to sound out a spelling word. She now uses a combination of all these things, but she is still largely a kid whose basic strategy is to remember visually how a word looks. Edited to add: and now at fourteen she is at or above grade level in spelling. It all finally clicked after she pulled together all these different tools, and with just age and maturity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klmama Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 A couple of ideas for you: Does she know how to type? My dc's spelling has improved tremendously since they started to type their own stories - the spell checker tells them immediately when there is a problem, they fix it, and they learn it. Daily spelling tests vs. weekly ones can help greatly. There is no daily grade - the point is, the child is retested on a word every day until it's spelled correctly. Read the words on the list and have your dd write them. Keep track of those she misses. Once she has 5 or 10 words she doesn't know, stop testing and go over the words together, explaining any rules she needs to remember to get them right. You may also point out what it looks like vs. what it sounds like. ("People" is "pea-o-pul-ee.") The next day, do it again, marking words she got right with a dot. The next day, do it again, and cross off any words she got right two days in a row. Test new words as old words are learned. Periodically, go over all words ever missed to be sure they are still remembered. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvenice Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 You might try All About Spelling..starting at the beginning. This program is used for students struggling with spelling and addresses multiple learning styles. it teaches them the rules and fundamentals of spelling and is mastery based. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SailorMom Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 It could be a lot of things, I agree - but dyslexia is, by definition, an inability (or less ability) to understand and use phonics. If she is having a hard time sounding out words, you may want to look in to it more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterPan Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 My dd couldn't sound out words till she did VT (vision therapy). Interestingly, the way she stumbled when sounding out words was the same as how she'd stumble with digit spans. (She would do the first and last and guess the middle.) Since a good eye exam never hurt anyone, it would be a good thing to eliminate. http://www.covd.org Look on their list for a fellow. You want a developmental optometrist, not a regular one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coffeegal Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 There are several good programs out there, but my recommendation is Apples and Pears Spelling. They have placement tests that begin with phonograms, and it's there I discovered my dd didn't know all of her phonograms. We started at the beginning and her spelling has improved dramatically. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VinNY Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 :iagree: There are several good programs out there, but my recommendation is Apples and Pears Spelling. They have placement tests that begin with phonograms, and it's there I discovered my dd didn't know all of her phonograms. We started at the beginning and her spelling has improved dramatically. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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