DragonFaerie Posted November 22, 2011 Share Posted November 22, 2011 I am thinking about designing my own spelling program for DS using the spelling rules. Can anybody recommend a good resource that lists all the spelling rules, preferably with good explanations and examples? Free would be nice, too. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curlygirlzx2 Posted November 22, 2011 Share Posted November 22, 2011 http://mysite.verizon.net/jetted4/spelling.htm http://www.riggsinst.org/28rules.aspx http://www.dyslexia.org/spelling_rules.shtml http://www.splashesfromtheriver.com/spelling/spelling_rules.htm Hope those are helpful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonFaerie Posted November 22, 2011 Author Share Posted November 22, 2011 Thank you! These are great. I've seen a couple of them before but I'm really intrigued by this Spell by Color program. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoPlaceLikeHome Posted November 22, 2011 Share Posted November 22, 2011 Why re-invent the wheel when there is the 1908 version of Webster's Speller:D http://books.google.com/books?id=TOANAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=webster%2Bspelling%2Bbook&lr=&as_brr=1#v=onepage&q=webster%2Bspelling%2Bbook&f=false With a whiteboard or a compostion notebook you are good to go;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MerryAtHope Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Not free, but The ABC's and All Their Tricks is a great resource to have on hand. You can look up a pattern alphabetically (like "EE") and see how many words follow that pattern, if there is a rule or reason for the pattern, a list of exceptions, and so on. Merry :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Yeah... this is a case where it seems like making something would be re-inventing the wheel. There are a LOT of good spelling programs out there (new and old, free and expensive, worksheety and booky) that teach the rules. But maybe I'm missing something. I've been known to make our own thing for subjects for which there is seemingly endless stuff available. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonFaerie Posted November 23, 2011 Author Share Posted November 23, 2011 Yeah... this is a case where it seems like making something would be re-inventing the wheel. There are a LOT of good spelling programs out there (new and old, free and expensive, worksheety and booky) that teach the rules. But maybe I'm missing something. I've been known to make our own thing for subjects for which there is seemingly endless stuff available. Can you give me a few suggestions for rules-based spelling programs? I haven't been able to find anything that wasn't All About Spelling (hated that program) or religious, or really teacher-intensive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Soaring With Spelling, Spelling Plus and Sequential Spelling are all rules-based. We use Spelling Plus because it's so simple - it's definitely not religious (though it may be that the dictation has some religion, though I don't think so...) and I don't find it teacher intensive. Also, I was swayed by Elizabeth B recommending it. :) Sequential Spelling did seem sort of teacher intensive to me... but Soaring With Spelling definitely isn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonFaerie Posted November 23, 2011 Author Share Posted November 23, 2011 Soaring With Spelling, Spelling Plus and Sequential Spelling are all rules-based. We use Spelling Plus because it's so simple - it's definitely not religious (though it may be that the dictation has some religion, though I don't think so...) and I don't find it teacher intensive. Also, I was swayed by Elizabeth B recommending it. :) Sequential Spelling did seem sort of teacher intensive to me... but Soaring With Spelling definitely isn't. We tried Sequential Spelling, and while he thought it was neat to "build" words, he had absolutely no retention and quickly got frustrated. I haven't looked at Spelling Plus. Guess I need to look into that one. Soaring with Spelling is tentatively on schedule for next school year but in the samples I didn't see where it actually teaches the spelling rules. Did I miss that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 I've only glanced at Soaring With Spelling, so I'm sure someone else can speak more clearly to it, but the words are very clearly arranged by rule. In Spelling Plus, it takes the 1000 most common words and arranges them by rule. They present a method for memorization, but the rule is spelled out on the teacher page with the list. It also includes a list of extra words, also arranged by rule. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonFaerie Posted November 23, 2011 Author Share Posted November 23, 2011 Thanks. That sounds great! Now I'm off to compare SWS and Spelling Plus. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jayson Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 http://mysite.verizon.net/jetted4/spelling.htm http://www.riggsinst.org/28rules.aspx http://www.dyslexia.org/spelling_rules.shtml http://www.splashesfromtheriver.com/spelling/spelling_rules.htm Hope those are helpful. these are terrific!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chepyl Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 I love Spelling Plus. It is so easy. There is nothing religious in the dictation. It has been great fpr my son. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonFaerie Posted November 23, 2011 Author Share Posted November 23, 2011 I love Spelling Plus. It is so easy. There is nothing religious in the dictation. It has been great fpr my son. The problem I have with Spelling Plus is the dictation. DS and I both hate dictation. He struggles so much with it and I hate to see him suffer. That was a large part of the problem with AAS, too. We both dreaded those dictation phrases. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonFaerie Posted November 23, 2011 Author Share Posted November 23, 2011 Well, I decided to go with Soaring With Spelling and instead of waiting until next year, we'll start it after the holidays. Ya'll cross your fingers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nansk Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Can you give me a few suggestions for rules-based spelling programs? I haven't been able to find anything that wasn't All About Spelling (hated that program) or religious, or really teacher-intensive. Spalding (Writing Road to Reading) is rules-based and is not religious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomandlorih Posted November 24, 2011 Share Posted November 24, 2011 Well, I decided to go with Soaring With Spelling and instead of waiting until next year, we'll start it after the holidays. Ya'll cross your fingers! :bigear: I'm also looking for a rules based spelling and would love to use SWS since we do WWW and will be adding GWG next year. Would you mind reviewing SWS(if it addresses the rules or not?) after you start to use it? Thanks!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonFaerie Posted November 24, 2011 Author Share Posted November 24, 2011 Sure! If I can remember. LOL... my memory is like the proverbial sieve. I did also order a set of spelling rules cards, too. Not really sure how I'm going to use everything but I'll have the tools, anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoPlaceLikeHome Posted November 24, 2011 Share Posted November 24, 2011 The problem I have with Spelling Plus is the dictation. DS and I both hate dictation. He struggles so much with it and I hate to see him suffer. That was a large part of the problem with AAS, too. We both dreaded those dictation phrases. You could do the dictation as copywork and possibly as dictation another day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonFaerie Posted November 24, 2011 Author Share Posted November 24, 2011 Neither one works for us, actually. The dictation brings him enormous frustration and tears. With copywork, he just copies one letter at a time. It takes FOREVER and he's not learning anything by it. He's not seeing the words and trying to copy whole words (or even recognizing parts of words). He simply copies rows of letters. I even quit having him copy for cursive. Instead, he writes his spelling words in cursive, two birds with one stone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomandlorih Posted November 24, 2011 Share Posted November 24, 2011 Sure! If I can remember. LOL... my memory is like the proverbial sieve. I did also order a set of spelling rules cards, too. Not really sure how I'm going to use everything but I'll have the tools, anyway. No worries, Dragon, I am totally there with you..LOL I actually have spent the last week trying A.to figure out what's out there and B. see if it's what I want(I need sample pages!). I have also decided to go with SWS.. it was what I was leaning towards before and haven't found anyting that excited me to replace it with.. I really need non-teacher intensive for next year..and it "covers" vocabulary too. I did order The Writing Road to Reading and Spell to Write and Read from the library..just to double check.=D And thanks for the link to the rules cards.. that's a great idea! Lori Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonFaerie Posted November 24, 2011 Author Share Posted November 24, 2011 Both kids are already using WWW and DS is also using GWG. I'm liking it so much that I'm switching DD to GWG for next year, too. I haven't decided about SWS for her, though. Right now she's using Wordly Wise and Vocabulary from Classical Roots. However, we're upping the Latin for next year, and I'm adding Word Roots from Critical Thinking Co. for both kids so she might be better to focus on spelling instead of continuing with all the vocab (although she's a natural speller so it's really a non-issue for her). However, vocabulary is her current favorite subject. I hate to change something she likes so much. Maybe I'll show her SWS when DS's arrives and see what she thinks then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetted4 Posted November 25, 2011 Share Posted November 25, 2011 Can you give me a few suggestions for rules-based spelling programs? I haven't been able to find anything that wasn't All About Spelling (hated that program) or religious, or really teacher-intensive. DragonFaerie: I am the creator of Spell By Color. As far as teacher intensiveness is concerned, for the first couple of weeks of using the program, you may need to work with your child on the lessons while they get used to the format. After that, once they are used to the color coding process, they should be able to work fairly independently. From my own experience using it with my own son, I find that I can wash dishes or do some other chore nearby and just glance at his work now and again to make sure he's not missing anything; for the most part he can do the lessons on his own. Sometimes, if a new rule is a bit more complex to grasp, we talk through it a bit while he color codes the first couple of sentences on the first day for that rule, but then the rest of the week he's able to work pretty independently. All in all, I haven't found using it to be all that teacher intensive, plus my son's spelling has clearly grown stronger since I started...that's why I decided to continue on with it and am now working on developing Year Two. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetted4 Posted November 25, 2011 Share Posted November 25, 2011 Forgot to add... Spell By Color is rules-based and does not contain any religious content (I figured I'm developing the program to teach spelling - I can teach our beliefs plenty of other ways). I also have a son who dislikes writing, so that drove the format of the lessons. The majority of the lessons do not require writing - your child uses crayons to color code the rules used in sentences that are provided in the lessons (and the lessons build so that they continue to practice rules long after the lesson for that rule is done). I do suggest that you can have your child copy any rule words from the lesson, but that leaves it open to you to tailor the amount of writing to the needs of your child. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonFaerie Posted November 25, 2011 Author Share Posted November 25, 2011 Thanks so much for your input, jetted4. It's always nice to hear from the creator of a program. I have downloaded all of your Year One lessons. I'm definitely going to look it all over and try to incorporate it into our studies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Embassy Posted November 25, 2011 Share Posted November 25, 2011 DragonFaerie: I am the creator of Spell By Color. As far as teacher intensiveness is concerned, for the first couple of weeks of using the program, you may need to work with your child on the lessons while they get used to the format. After that, once they are used to the color coding process, they should be able to work fairly independently. From my own experience using it with my own son, I find that I can wash dishes or do some other chore nearby and just glance at his work now and again to make sure he's not missing anything; for the most part he can do the lessons on his own. Sometimes, if a new rule is a bit more complex to grasp, we talk through it a bit while he color codes the first couple of sentences on the first day for that rule, but then the rest of the week he's able to work pretty independently. All in all, I haven't found using it to be all that teacher intensive, plus my son's spelling has clearly grown stronger since I started...that's why I decided to continue on with it and am now working on developing Year Two. Your program looks great! Thanks so much for sharing it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThreeBlessings Posted November 25, 2011 Share Posted November 25, 2011 I'm currently working on making our Spelling lessons for the next year. I don't want to buy one right now and don't want to use what we have. I wasn't really finding *exactly* what I wanted. I've spent far too much money on curriculum that I felt the need to tweak already. I'm using this really old free google e book and a book from the library called Spelling Made Simple. The information I'm using from the e book starts on page 38 with Word Building. I'm using index cards, rewriting the lessons in easy language, incorporating info from Spelling Made Simple where relevant, and carefully checking for outdated word spellings because they are in there. I really like the way the lessons are presented and how the child needs to manipulate the words. I'm also putting in review cards with a list of words from the exercises once or twice a week. These I will say the word aloud and watch as the students spell them on paper, correcting any mistakes right away and noting any words missed for further review. I'm also throwing in cards with homophones, info on word origins, spelling patterns, info on word parts (morphemes, suffixes, affixes, prefixes), and meanings of prefixes and suffixes. In the end I think I'll be pleased I put the time into doing this. I'm just learning the rules myself though, so I don't have much confidence yet and I'm triple checking everything as I go. I don't want to teach them anything wrong. I've definitely caught a couple mistakes already. I wish I had someone who could look it over for me when I'm done! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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