AAS trouble...help!

[lea1]

I have two sons both around 6.5 years old. We have finished OPGTR and they are both reading well. Based on Pathway Readers, one is reading at around a 6th grade level and the other around 5th grade. It seems that spelling is a whole different ballgame.

 

They were actually doing just fine with AAS until we got to the lesson covering when to use C vs K for the /k/ sound at the beginning of a word. They know the rule and can repeat it just fine and they understand it. But we have gone through the lesson twice now, over 8 days, and they are still missing the spelling for these words. When they misspell it and write Cit (for Kit), I ask them what sound C makes when it comes before i and they quickly realize they missed and they correct it.

 

They also keep missing when to use i vs e in words, like tent, kit, kim, etc. This might have something to do with the accent here in Oklahoma but I am extra careful when I pronounce the words for them and I even give them a warning to listen carefully to these words. They still missing them, over and over again.

 

This is leaving me with the feeling that AAS is just not the right fit for them. I'm trying to figure out where to go next with this. What would you do?

Edited April 20, 2012 by Lea in OK

[NotSoObvious]

Those are extremely common mistakes for that age. Don't worry! Just keep reviewing and keep reminding. Do all the review that is built into AAS.

 

Also, you might want to print off a bunch of pictures of words for i and e and sort them, just working on listening for the correct vowel sound. Same for long vowels with -ke and short vowels with -ck. They need to be seeing and writing those words frequently. Just review several each day before your AAS lesson, if needed.

 

Yes, spelling is a completely different ball game for a lot of kids. Your kids are still young. Just keep reviewing. They'll get there!

[lea1]

Would you stay on this lesson until they are spelling the words correctly? After spending two weeks on the same lesson, I just wasn't sure if they would ever get it with AAS.

[edeemarie]

I would continue on with lessons but be sure to continue reviewing the words often. At our house every Friday is a spelling review day when we go over any problem areas. AAS will continue to review the older concepts in the phrases. My dd6 has the same issue with not always applying the rules she knows but I just keep reminding her and reviewing, and she is getting better. It just takes some time:)

[FairProspects]

I would continue on with lessons but be sure to continue reviewing the words often. At our house every Friday is a spelling review day when we go over any problem areas. AAS will continue to review the older concepts in the phrases. My dd6 has the same issue with not always applying the rules she knows but I just keep reminding her and reviewing, and she is getting better. It just takes some time:)

 

:iagree:Move on, but put all the words from that step behind your "review" tab. Then sneak those words in a few at a time for them to either spell with tiles, or on paper. Sometimes I do a day of just writing trouble words like these every couple of weeks or so. Plus, the phrases & sentences part of each step will continue to include words that review the rule.

[MerryAtHope]

A few ideas for you:

 

1, sometimes when I hit a roadblock like this, I go back and do a mastered review of previous concepts, then I come at the tough lesson fresh after a week or two of review. The review helps to solidify all that they know and rebuild confidence.

 

2, look at whether they miss all of the words or some of them, and whether they always miss them, or if they only miss them when writing (vs. when they make them with tiles, or vs. only in dictation). If they can do them correctly with the tiles but miss them when they write them, then I'd have them make each one with tiles first, and then write them (ie, make a word, write that word, make another, write that word, and so on). It may be that they are new enough at writing that having to think about letter formation and phonics and the rules for these letters is just too much all at once. Making it in tiles first breaks the task down into separate skills done one at a time.

 

3, add in tactile or kinesthetic activities to make review more fun when you hit a tough concept like this.

 

Your children obviously understand the concept because they can think it through and self-correct, so I think they have mastered the step. The word cards may not be automatic for awhile, and I would continue to rotate through those 10 words and work on 2 or so each day until the thought process IS automatic. I would also keep the key card in daily review until it's more automatic for them to think about this before spelling the words. So, you can move on but keep reviewing the cards until those are mastered. If they hit another hard step for them though, then I would take that break & do the mastered review I mentioned and give these concepts some time to be absorbed.

 

Short I vs. short E--this is actually so common that linguists have a name for it--the Pin/Pen Merger. Marie made a short video up for practice, here's a link. HTH some! Sometimes concepts are harder for kids, but they do get it. 6.5 is young yet :).

 

Merry :-)

[besroma]

:lurk5:

[mskelly]

I'm a big fan of AAS. My kids confused the i/e sounds also. Only my older son, 7, is using it right now. He will occasionally hit a lesson that causes more trouble than the others. As others have mentioned, move on but keep reviewing those words. I find it most helpful to review the words, but not during spelling lessons. Kind of like a pop quiz! LOL! Is that mean?

 

That's a great link Merry. Thanks for sharing that!

[lea1]

A few ideas for you:

 

1, sometimes when I hit a roadblock like this, I go back and do a mastered review of previous concepts, then I come at the tough lesson fresh after a week or two of review. The review helps to solidify all that they know and rebuild confidence.

 

2, look at whether they miss all of the words or some of them, and whether they always miss them, or if they only miss them when writing (vs. when they make them with tiles, or vs. only in dictation). If they can do them correctly with the tiles but miss them when they write them, then I'd have them make each one with tiles first, and then write them (ie, make a word, write that word, make another, write that word, and so on). It may be that they are new enough at writing that having to think about letter formation and phonics and the rules for these letters is just too much all at once. Making it in tiles first breaks the task down into separate skills done one at a time.

 

3, add in tactile or kinesthetic activities to make review more fun when you hit a tough concept like this.

 

Your children obviously understand the concept because they can think it through and self-correct, so I think they have mastered the step. The word cards may not be automatic for awhile, and I would continue to rotate through those 10 words and work on 2 or so each day until the thought process IS automatic. I would also keep the key card in daily review until it's more automatic for them to think about this before spelling the words. So, you can move on but keep reviewing the cards until those are mastered. If they hit another hard step for them though, then I would take that break & do the mastered review I mentioned and give these concepts some time to be absorbed.

 

Short I vs. short E--this is actually so common that linguists have a name for it--the Pin/Pen Merger. Marie made a short video up for practice, here's a link. HTH some! Sometimes concepts are harder for kids, but they do get it. 6.5 is young yet :).

 

Merry :-)

 

 

Thanks so much for this Merry. This is very helpful, especially the short Pin/Pen Merger video. I will take everyone's advice and hang in there with AAS and see if we can get past this. Thanks everyone for the encouragement and advice!

[Sharilynn29]

I wouldn't be that quick to move on to something new. AAS is a wonderful systematic approach to spelling. Your kids are still very young.

[TracyR]

I agree, your kids are young. Just because they read at a 5 and 6th grade level. You still have to remember they are young. Reading and spelling use different pathways in the brain. So they are not one in the same. Some people think because their children read well , they will be able to spell just as well as they read. My 5yr old reads at a 2nd grade level(at least) and though she reads that well doesn't mean she spells at a 2nd grade level either.

We are getting close to the c to ck step in the AAS 1 and I'll have to see if she has the same difficulty. I'm sure we'll encounter issues along the way. But just because you've come across one road block doesn't mean the program isn't working at all. Its just a wall that they will have to get through. Some concepts will come easier to some children than others.

 

Whatever words my daughter has problems spelling gets put in the review pile, we continue on, and bring those words out when we do our review.

 

The E and I is very common for children to mix up. I know when I have my daughter spell a word and she uses the wrong letter. I have her read it back to me after she is done spelling it. Marny times she will correct herself after she reads it. Sometimes she doesn't and then we go over what sounds e and i make. I'm noticing she is correcting this more on her own now.

 

I also liked an idea I saw on someone's blog. I'm not sure who's blog I saw it on. But there was a picture of a boy with his AAS cards, and he had them out, looking at them and copying them. Sometimes letting them see the word helps. As long as they know the rule I don't see what harm that would do by letting them copy the words on a dry erase board after you've practiced with them.

 

Like everyone says here, they are young,, just like my daughter is young. I would expect some road blocks here and there because of their age and the time it will take for them to process the information they are taught, versus if I was teaching them AAS at the age of 8, or 9, or 10 etc.

[lea1]

 

The E and I is very common for children to mix up. I know when I have my daughter spell a word and she uses the wrong letter. I have her read it back to me after she is done spelling it. Marny times she will correct herself after she reads it. Sometimes she doesn't and then we go over what sounds e and i make. I'm noticing she is correcting this more on her own now.

 

 

 

I really like this idea. I will definitely try this and I would bet it will really make a difference.

 

I think part of my question arises because this is the first trouble spot we have hit since we started AAS so I really didn't know what to expect. I thought that if I completely re-did the lesson, that surely that would do the trick and they would get it. When they didn't, I began second guessing everything.

 

The feedback from everyone has been very helpful. Thanks!

[Tanikit]

The "I" sound in particular is a hard sound - we also thought it had to do with the way people speak (I'm from South Africa) here but it seems just to be a common problem. They will get it eventually. And I would probably spend more time watching them write the words with a K in them so that you can make it clear BEFORE they write those words - ask them what letter follows the "c/k" sound and then what letter they will write then - if they know the rule they just need to learn to practice the reasoning behind it and it is double step reasoning which will make it harder for young children.