mathnmusic Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 I've had SWR on my shelf for 1.5 years and haven't been able to figure it out. Needless to say, spelling hasn't been getting done here. I keep picking it up, reading the manual, get confused as to how to implement it, and put it back down. I can't figure this out! I'm also on the yahoo board, but since it's moderated by Sanseri and certified trainers, I feel like my questions are too elementary (dumb!) to ask there. Can someone please explain to me what exactly is "think to spell"? I hear that term used sometimes to apply to specific words, but I'm confused - aren't all words "think to spell"? And what is "finger spelling"? - putting up my fingers to show how many total phonograms are in the word, and then counting down as the correct phonograms are spelled? :001_huh: Please help! Many thanks in advance! I'd love to get started on this program with my kids, it seems very powerful, IF I could ever figure it out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 I've had SWR on my shelf for 1.5 years and haven't been able to figure it out. Needless to say, spelling hasn't been getting done here. I keep picking it up, reading the manual, get confused as to how to implement it, and put it back down. I can't figure this out! I'm also on the yahoo board, but since it's moderated by Sanseri and certified trainers, I feel like my questions are too elementary (dumb!) to ask there. Can someone please explain to me what exactly is "think to spell"? I hear that term used sometimes to apply to specific words, but I'm confused - aren't all words "think to spell"? And what is "finger spelling"? - putting up my fingers to show how many total phonograms are in the word, and then counting down as the correct phonograms are spelled? :001_huh: Please help! Many thanks in advance! I'd love to get started on this program with my kids, it seems very powerful, IF I could ever figure it out! We use "think to spell" to differentiate between how a word is spelled and how we pronounce it IRL. This is particularly helpful with words that have vowels which are now indicated as schwas in the dictionary. It can also help with words such as "batch," where we might say "ba-t-ch" (pronouncing the t), although maybe SWR has a "tch" phonogram? Anyway, it's things like that, where we think to spell so that we remember how a word is spelled, even though we pronounce it slightly differently. "Finger spelling" seems to be a subset of Spalding spin-offs (or Riggs? Orton?). I think Hunter posted a link to a YouTube (or other) video where the teacher is actually using hand gestures along with saying the phonograms. Spalding and its spin-offs (which includes SWR) use the fingers to indicate how many letters are in a phonogram when analyzing a word, but that isn't really "finger spelling" (unless SWR refers to it that way, lol). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 bumping so the sWR experts will see it. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Writerdaddy Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 (edited) go to youtube there are lots of examples, enter "spell to write" that will be enough to enter to get a bunch of SWR videos also there is detailed instructions in the manual but they might be hard to follow unless you see a moving picture example. for more, britta mccall's dvd is very basic for starting littluns right from the start, or for taking a small step into SWR. otherwise the sanseri dvd that britta sells has far more detail. basically think to spell means we think in phonograms when we spell, even if that means it sounds different than in real speech. i can give an example but it might not be right-- just a good example. "Again" we say one way, but think to spell Long A, g (geh), ai (as in ay), n (nnnn). We just say the sounds and hold up a finger for each sound (ay)(geh)(ay)(nnnn). If its two syllables we will do the second syllable on another hand. finger spelling in SWR is one finger per phonogram, not for indicating letters. SWR attempts to bypass normal speech and the alphabet by think to spell and the reinforcing the idea of phonograms as the writing units, rather than letters (since there are not enough letters for the basic units of speech sounds). Ben Franklin proposed a new alphabet with new letters for all sounds, and others have since. I can speak and write in a foreign language that has perfect correspondence between letters and sounds. Most kids there in second grade can read any college level text (that is, phonetically-- of course they can't understand it). By thinking to spell this way, english becomes more rule based (in our minds at least). Edited June 25, 2012 by Writerdaddy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 http://www.lulu.com/shop/elizabeth-claggett/quick-and-dirty-guide-to-getting-started-with-spell-to-write-and-read/ebook/product-420352.html From our very own Oh Elizabeth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mathnmusic Posted June 25, 2012 Author Share Posted June 25, 2012 Thank you so much Ellie, Writerdaddy and Kalanamak! Your replies are very helpful. You guys are awesome, I knew this was the place to come with my questions. I just wish I'd asked sooner. I'm off to view some youtube videos and read the lulu book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fractalgal Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 I've had SWR on my shelf for 1.5 years and haven't been able to figure it out. Needless to say, spelling hasn't been getting done here. I keep picking it up, reading the manual, get confused as to how to implement it, and put it back down. I can't figure this out! I'm also on the yahoo board, but since it's moderated by Sanseri and certified trainers, I feel like my questions are too elementary (dumb!) to ask there. Can someone please explain to me what exactly is "think to spell"? I hear that term used sometimes to apply to specific words, but I'm confused - aren't all words "think to spell"? And what is "finger spelling"? - putting up my fingers to show how many total phonograms are in the word, and then counting down as the correct phonograms are spelled? :001_huh: Please help! Many thanks in advance! I'd love to get started on this program with my kids, it seems very powerful, IF I could ever figure it out! I recommend this video: which shows excellent examples of using the "think to spell" and "finger spelling" ideas. It is at the upper levels of Spell to Write and Read, but this will give you a good idea of the where the SWR program is taking you and the depth of the program. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RootAnn Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 I recommend this video: which shows excellent examples of using the "think to spell" and "finger spelling" ideas. It is at the upper levels of Spell to Write and Read, but this will give you a good idea of the where the SWR program is taking you and the depth of the program. :iagree: This is the video I was thinking of when you asked the question. Excellent examples! hannahptl -- It is really helpful to find someone who already uses SWR to walk you through it. I have never been able to go to a training session, but I have heard those are the best. Other than that, making your own log (which I did, but it didn't make sense to me until I started to teach my daughter) & just starting teaching it are what helps you to learn the method. I'm still learning (little) things, understanding certain things in the manual for the first time, appreciating how Sanseri explains things, & this is my third child & fifth year using it. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aloha2U Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 If you're interested in seeing how yet another SWR user implements "fingergrams" and "think to spell", I recorded part of a SWR dictation session for a friend of mine with my webcam and posted it in this weekly report. Admittedly, it's not professionally done my any means, just a spur of the moment type thing to share an inside glimpse at our process/routine, but if it's helpful in any way, then it's worth exposing my dorky self to scrutiny. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 I recommend this video: which shows excellent examples of using the "think to spell" and "finger spelling" ideas. It is at the upper levels of Spell to Write and Read, but this will give you a good idea of the where the SWR program is taking you and the depth of the program. :lol: I used this vid to scare kiddo into straightening up and flying right during spelling lessons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 One of these has already been posted, but I am posting it along with others so that you can see the progression in the lists. Basically, you use think to spell when a word is not spelled precisely as pronounced. For example, when most people spell "Wednesday," they don't think "Wensday" but think the syllables as they are spelled--"Wed - nes - day." Another example would be the word "solution." Most people probably say something resembling "su loo shun." But to spell it, we think "so (long O) loo shon (short o)." We emphasize those unaccented vowels that get garbled into a schwa sound so we know which vowel to use. Fingerspelling is where you put the number of fingers up to coincide with the number of letters. For example, the word "tow" has two phonograms but three letters. When the child says the "t" sound, you put up one finger. When the child says the "O" sound, you put up two more fingers, for a total of three letters. That gives the child a clue that the "O" sound is a two-letter phonogram. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiannaC Posted July 2, 2012 Share Posted July 2, 2012 Thanks for the links to the you tube examples. I am beginning SWR with my 5 year old son next month & I'm working my way through my learning log. So far it seems like a great program, but definitely a lot for me to learn before I can teach it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dinsfamily Posted July 2, 2012 Share Posted July 2, 2012 One of these has already been posted, but I am posting it along with others so that you can see the progression in the lists. Basically, you use think to spell when a word is not spelled precisely as pronounced. For example, when most people spell "Wednesday," they don't think "Wensday" but think the syllables as they are spelled--"Wed - nes - day." Another example would be the word "solution." Most people probably say something resembling "su loo shun." But to spell it, we think "so (long O) loo shon (short o)." We emphasize those unaccented vowels that get garbled into a schwa sound so we know which vowel to use. Fingerspelling is where you put the number of fingers up to coincide with the number of letters. For example, the word "tow" has two phonograms but three letters. When the child says the "t" sound, you put up one finger. When the child says the "O" sound, you put up two more fingers, for a total of three letters. That gives the child a clue that the "O" sound is a two-letter phonogram. Tracy did a great job explaining finger spelling but I just wanted to say that it is 1 finger per letter since there was some confusion about that upthread. You stick fingers representing a multi-letter phonogram together and use separate hands for different syllables. I think finger spelling is fabulous. It has really helped my visual learner see the components of a word in his head. I didn't realize until we started using SWR that I think to spell all of the time when words are spelled differently from their sound. Wednesday is a great example. I wonder if I learned that in school or came up with it myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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