C&R Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 I am thinking this might be a good solution to my 8 year olds lack of 'natural spelling' ability; he is a great reader. Does it have some phonics integrated into the program to help with the spelling? What can you tell me about the program & how do you like it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rikki06 Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 I would say it is phonics, as well, because they have you review the sounds each letter makes as step 1. My twins are using it and I'm still unsure about it but from what I've seen out there, it's the best option for my DS who has vision issues and struggles with spelling quite a bit. My DD just asked to switch to it because her spelling was so boring. :) I don't dislike it--I just don't have a good feel for it yet! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodland Mist Academy Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 AAS is a phonics based program, so phonics and rules are taught throughout the levels. We are in Level 6. My daughter reads well, but is not a natural speller. AAS has been great fit for her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
serendipitous journey Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 We've just started this year with AAS1, it is great for my little poor speller/good reader. We have been using Phonics Pathways for phonics, and various readers. I got the complete kit, which includes laminated letter/phoneme squares to be punched out and attached to included magnet stickers; a few kinds of flash cards to punch out and use; a box to hold the cards, with dividers for each type and, within each type, for material that is being learned, has been mastered, and has yet to be presented. There is also a book for teaching, and some plastic tokens for working with word sound games. The program begins with learning the sounds associated with various letters; you have a card for every letter with the letter printed on one side (to show the child) and the sound/sounds printed on the other. This is exactly what phonics is, I think. There are also cards for the child to practice identifying the letter when you give all the sounds, sort of reverse phonics. A similar strategy is used to introduce digraphs, and other multiple-letter sounds. For actual spelling, the child starts with identifying all the sounds in a word (ie, get has "g", the short "e", and "t"). Then, finding the letter tiles for those sounds; finally, writing the words. Button hates the tile method so we skip straight to writing. I'd say it's extremely phonetically based. :001_smile: hope this is useful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnointedHsMom Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 We use AAS and love it. It has helped my struggling reader and speller greatly. AAS is based on the Orten Gillingham method and because of that your child will not only become a better speller but their reading will likely jump also. OG method teachers the letters/phonograms with all their sounds so the child can't help but excel in reading along with spelling. It's multisensory and lessons only take 15 to 20 mins a day. Feel free to DM me if you have any more questions. I'll be happy to help you in any way I can. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenbrdsly Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 I use to have a line in my signature that said I'm knot stoopid. It's a bit from my blog about how I am learning a lot about why I am such a poor speller through teaching my six year old the AAS lessons. So yes, I'd say give it a try for your 8 year old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnMomof7 Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 We use it and REALLY like it. My 8-year-old isn't a natural speller either, but she's 2/3 of the way through level 2 now (we started with level 1), and it has made a huge difference for her. It is definitely based on phonics, but phonics as used for encoding (spelling) instead of decoding (reading), which means it is VERY detailed! What I like the BEST is that my daughter is using her newly learned spelling skills in her writing AND she applies the rules and concepts forward to words we haven't even studied yet. That's the mark of a really good spelling program in my opinion; conceptual understanding, not just memorizing individual words. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MerryAtHope Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 Yes, it's a complete phonics program. I like it because: It teaches rules that really work. It teaches the main effective spelling strategies over time. It's systematic and mastery based--we can do as much or as little review as my kids need, and move at their pace. My kids see that it's effective and are willing to do it! I wrote more about it on my blog. For us it's been a great fit! Merry :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warneral Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 I just started my 7 (natural speller) and 9 (not natural speller) on it this year. Start at level 1! There are some useful important tricks there. When you start at level 1, remember that you don't have to memorize all of the sounds of the phonograms to move forward in the program. We did it in 3 weeks but could have done level 1 in 2 weeks if we hadn't taken several breaks during that time. Level 1 goes fast, and then level 2 starts to slow down a bit as you start dictating sentences. My kids love this program - the love the 1 on 1 with me and (much to my chagrin) they love the multi-sensory approach. My son who whines about too much writing does much better with the tiles and the white board. It really can be fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newlifemom Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 I love it, but I will also give the caveat that it is teacher intensive. My ds absolutely needed it so I decided it was worth my time. Dd goes along for the ride. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veggiegal Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 We love it--both my 9-year-old and 6-year-old ask to do spelling if we haven't for a few days, and the older often says it was his favourite part of homeschool that day. (One of our usual dinner time topics of conversation). I wrote a detailed blogpost about it here. Hope it helps answer your questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BetterthanIdeserve Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 We use AAS and love it. It has helped my struggling reader and speller greatly. AAS is based on the Orten Gillingham method and because of that your child will not only become a better speller but their reading will likely jump also. OG method teachers the letters/phonograms with all their sounds so the child can't help but excel in reading along with spelling. It's multisensory and lessons only take 15 to 20 mins a day. . My daughter's reading improved significantly after starting AAS. She quit guessing and started sounding out words much better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C&R Posted October 11, 2011 Author Share Posted October 11, 2011 Thank you everyone for the thorough and detailed replies. All About Spelling sounds like it is exactly the program that I am looking for. Something that will teach spelling and help with difficult words when they arise more and more in his reading. Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3peasinapod Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 My DD8 is also not a natural speller. We are in level 2 now, and we have went slowly through. AAS has a lot of built-in review of previous rules learned, which is wonderful for us. I just remind DD of the rule as we encounter a rule that she already learned. It is really working to glue it in her mind. We're just going to work through at our own pace and not worry about how old she is and at what level. There is dictation of phrases and sentences, and it has really enhanced her ability to "hold" whole sentences in her mind while practicing writing and spelling on the fly instead of testing a group of words memorized. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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