Alessandra Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 (edited) Background -- dd is a great speller, so I will be including a spelling program because she loves to spell. I mean, learning to spell state capitals is dd's idea of fun, and she enjoys words like xylophone & xanthosis. My preference is for a spelling program that explains spelling rules -- dd has a great visual memory for individual, but needs help in seeing patterns. My first thought was Spelling Workout, because WTM recommends it. Looking at it, I see that there is a lot of writing, exercises, games, etc. I am concerned that some of these may be too time-consuming for dd, who has some learning issues. (Confession, I bought SW, but now I am not so sure about it.) So, I went to the Rod & Staff website and looked at their spelling program. It looks much more straightforward and sounds like it could be a better match. Any thoughts about spelling in general or specific programs? What works for your dc, especially if you have a kid who wants to spell? Edited July 20, 2012 by Alessandra Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrulySusan Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 (edited) Have you looked at Building Spelling Skills by Christian Liberty Press? We are going to try them this year. Your 5th grade dd would especially enjoy the 5th grade lists,which follow a weekly theme including Countries of Asia, Africa,etc. Also themes on music, birds, sports, kinds of buildings, pretty much anything you can imagine. Christianbook has samples to view and the books are cheap-less than $10. It might not work for everyone, but I think they seem way more interesting for natural spellers. Also, I have the 3rd and 7th grade versions, and they do not follow all the cute themes of the 5th grade book. No idea why? eta: Just saw the part you wrote about teaching spelling rules: These don't seem to follow spelling rules too much so it may make dd happy but not mom. Edited July 20, 2012 by miknsusn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alessandra Posted July 20, 2012 Author Share Posted July 20, 2012 Have you looked at Building Spelling Skills by Christian Liberty Press? We are going to try them this year. Your 5th grade dd would especially enjoy the 5th grade lists,which follow a weekly theme including Countries of Asia, Africa,etc. Also themes on music, birds, sports, kinds of buildings, pretty much anything you can imagine. Christianbook has samples to view and the books are cheap-less than $10. It might not work for everyone, but I think they seem way more interesting for natural spellers. Also, I have the 3rd and 7th grade versions, and they do not follow all the cute themes of the 5th grade book. No idea why? eta: Just saw the part you wrote about teaching spelling rules: These don't seem to follow spelling rules too much so it may make dd happy but not mom. Actually, that is an interesting idea -- spelling by themes. I would never have thought of that approach, but it does match the way my dd learns to spell on her own. I will look at the samples. Since I normally stick with secular curriculum, I had not even considered CLP. Thanks for sharing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alessandra Posted July 20, 2012 Author Share Posted July 20, 2012 Bumping, in hopes of more responses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 We use Rod and Staff's Spelling by Sound and Structure, and couldn't be more happy with it. It does have the child actually working with the rules. The words may seem on the light side, but the lists aren't where the strength of the program is; it's in the exercises. Spelling Workout was a flop in our house. The rule is merely mentioned once on one page, and the child can complete the whole lesson without ever glancing at that box. The activities are generally puzzles, and we found the writing assignments to be busywork. My oldest would rather poke his eyes out with a spork than do a corny puzzle for school. My puzzle-loving second dc enjoyed the book and easily memorized most of the lists, but she didn't internalize the spelling rules. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alessandra Posted July 20, 2012 Author Share Posted July 20, 2012 We use Rod and Staff's Spelling by Sound and Structure, and couldn't be more happy with it. It does have the child actually working with the rules. The words may seem on the light side, but the lists aren't where the strength of the program is; it's in the exercises. Spelling Workout was a flop in our house. The rule is merely mentioned once on one page, and the child can complete the whole lesson without ever glancing at that box. The activities are generally puzzles, and we found the writing assignments to be busywork. My oldest would rather poke his eyes out with a spork than do a corny puzzle for school. My puzzle-loving second dc enjoyed the book and easily memorized most of the lists, but she didn't internalize the spelling rules. Thank you so much! Actually, since I didn't have any replies for a while, I searched through 5 pages of spelling threads and found a lot of your earlier posts. WTM gave SW such a good review, but when I saw the whole book I didn't like it -- too much reading, writing exercises, etc, as we already have programs for that. I agree wholeheartedly about the puzzles. In our case, dd has trouble doing that sort of thing -- they would turn a 'success' subject into a 'struggle' subject. Not to mention that the new books I got are printed on newsprint quality paper. I just ordered Rod & Staff (based on your older posts). And I kept in mind what you said about not jumping too far ahead -- that it is not simply about spelling a group of words, but about learning rules & spelling patterns. I am such a convert to Rod & Staff. Thanks for your input!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourisenough Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 You mentioned earlier in this thread that you generally prefer secular materials. I'm curious whether you mind the religious content in R&S? I've been so tempted, both by the English and Spelling books, but not sure if the bible references would throw us for a loop. For one, it is not our holy book so I don't even know many of the answers (I guess the TE would help with that), but I'm also concerned it would be confusing/strange for my kids. Any thoughts or wisdom to share? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alessandra Posted July 20, 2012 Author Share Posted July 20, 2012 You mentioned earlier in this thread that you generally prefer secular materials. I'm curious whether you mind the religious content in R&S? I've been so tempted, both by the English and Spelling books, but not sure if the bible references would throw us for a loop. For one, it is not our holy book so I don't even know many of the answers (I guess the TE would help with that), but I'm also concerned it would be confusing/strange for my kids. Any thoughts or wisdom to share? I don't mind the references. A few quotes (from R&S English, which is the only R&S I've used so far.) "The Bible teaches about God." "God does all things well." "Jesus sat down. Jesus taught the people." "Jacob and Rebekah deceived Isaac." These are interspersed through the book -- most pages are just secular (with a lot of farming/gardening references). I am OK with this, because I haven't found anything about a particular denominational doctrine. I wouldn't want doctrine, or providential history, or creationist science, or intelligent design, or anti/neutral on evolution. I suppose in the end it is a very personal decision and, if you like the program otherwise, you have to decide if the trade off to non-secular is worth it. I confess that I needed the TE for some of the mix & match Bible answers. What drew me to R & S English is that is has classic grammar, diagramming, writing exercises that start small, and it is overall very well organized. It is teacher taught, which suits my dd. Plus there are remedial workbooks for students who need extra practice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 Spelling Power. If you get the word right, you move on and don't hash and re-hash it. SWO bugged kiddo that way, AAS went too slowly, SWS went too fast. SP can be set to kiddo's pace and the steps for looking at a word to remember it have been helpful to both of us. I think it would be great for kid who loves to spell. No "make busy" crosswords. I review it in detail on amazon under the 3rd edition and the name kalanamak (and the title Victory At Sea). Some here say it doesn't "teach the rules". It does the same thing SWO does: states a rule and has some examples. **I** know the rules and I add the ones not in todays lesson in verbally as we are going over the steps for remembering missed words. One thing I miss about SWO is the proofreading marks, but those are easy to teach as you go. Kiddo remembers those better than the rest of SWO. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 Sorry I can't help you. I decided about a year and half ago to get serious about spelling. I've wasted hundreds of hours and hundreds of dollars, and am still no closer to settling down with something I think is worth my time. YesPhonics is in the mail, and on it's way to me. Will this be the one???? I'm getting to the point I'm ready to just give up on teaching and learning spelling, and decide that I just don't care. Studies show that spelling instruction doesn't work. Does the "right" spelling curriculum work? Probably. But show me the "right" one. I'll get all excited, over and over, thinking I have found THE one that will work, only to get swallowed up by something that I don't fully understand how to implement, or turns out to be ineffective or annoying. Good luck :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AbbeyLehman Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 Spelling Power. If you get the word right, you move on and don't hash and re-hash it. SWO bugged kiddo that way, AAS went too slowly, SWS went too fast. SP can be set to kiddo's pace and the steps for looking at a word to remember it have been helpful to both of us. I think it would be great for kid who loves to spell. No "make busy" crosswords. HTH I second this. It's the rules, the words, and games (if you want them) for all ages, all in one book. I really like it, DS loves that it's only 15 minutes, MAX, each day. We don't use the games, just the word lists & correction forms. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwg Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 I am currently considering this spelling. I have not bought it though so I have no idea if it is any good. But it looks interesting! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alessandra Posted July 21, 2012 Author Share Posted July 21, 2012 Spelling Power. If you get the word right, you move on and don't hash and re-hash it. SWO bugged kiddo that way, AAS went too slowly, SWS went too fast. SP can be set to kiddo's pace and the steps for looking at a word to remember it have been helpful to both of us. I think it would be great for kid who loves to spell. No "make busy" crosswords. I review it in detail on amazon under the 3rd edition and the name kalanamak (and the title Victory At Sea). Some here say it doesn't "teach the rules". It does the same thing SWO does: states a rule and has some examples. **I** know the rules and I add the ones not in todays lesson in verbally as we are going over the steps for remembering missed words. One thing I miss about SWO is the proofreading marks, but those are easy to teach as you go. Kiddo remembers those better than the rest of SWO. HTH That was a great review on Amazon. SP looks good, but R&S looks easier to implement. (Wow, you have tried just about every spelling program there is!) Also, I don't know spelling rules, so I think I'ee try R&S for now. But I will keep SP in mind.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alessandra Posted July 21, 2012 Author Share Posted July 21, 2012 I am currently considering this spelling. I have not bought it though so I have no idea if it is any good. But it looks interesting! Very cool series. I read the part on Middle English -- it is a book I would enjoy. But my dd needs something simple for now, and even the other levels of Spelling Mechanics are more than she needs now. Thanks for the recommendation! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 That was a great review on Amazon. SP looks good, but R&S looks easier to implement. (Wow, you have tried just about every spelling program there is!) Also, I don't know spelling rules, so I think I'ee try R&S for now. But I will keep SP in mind.... You *should* know the spelling rules, and the very best intro to them I've found is Unlocking The Logic of English. Short and sweet and to the point. BTW, SP is for after you've learned phonics and are ready to take level I words dictated (mostly 3-4 letter words). You do a test at the beginning of each year and start at the right level, which also lowers frustration. My library also has The ABCs and All Their Tricks, which ULOE used, and which I've read over and over. Yes it is a book of lists, but it also has a substantial intro on teaching spelling. Yeah, spelling is my poorest subject, and same with kiddo. He can spell phonetic words like a plow horse, but trying to remember the non-phonetic has been painful. Hence the love of SP, with its word attack questions. For us, spelling reminds me of a Colette quote (I think, and I paraphrase roughly): Look at what give you pleasure, but look twice as hard at what gives you pain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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