Still not sure what to do for spelling....

[mamamindy]

My 1st grader is reading well, we use FLL & WWE for Language Arts. She has been working through Spelling Workout, but I really dislike the busywork. I have heard conflicting things about spelling... Like not to start until 2nd or 3rd grade. Also, when I looked into AAS, I have had some reservations due to price and I've heard it can be a pain since I have other littles - 1 & 3 year olds. However, some of the other options seem to be just as teacher intensive. I am used to doing all her school work with her pretty much. Is that the drawback to AAS? The "teacher-intensive" part? Or is it prep? I am very interested in something all my children would hopefully benefit from. Thank you for even more advice in this area!!

[Ellie]

My 1st grader is reading well, we use FLL & WWE for Language Arts. She has been working through Spelling Workout, but I really dislike the busywork. I have heard conflicting things about spelling... Like not to start until 2nd or 3rd grade. Also, when I looked into AAS, I have had some reservations due to price and I've heard it can be a pain since I have other littles - 1 & 3 year olds. However, some of the other options seem to be just as teacher intensive. I am used to doing all her school work with her pretty much. Is that the drawback to AAS? The "teacher-intensive" part? Or is it prep? I am very interested in something all my children would hopefully benefit from. Thank you for even more advice in this area!!

Well, for a little person who is just 6yo, "busywork" isn't necessarily a bad thing, especially if she doesn't mind doing it. :)

 

AAS, Spalding, SWR, LOE, Phonics Road--all of them are teacher-intensive. How much time each one takes may vary, but there's never really a time when you can teach for a few minutes and then give them seatwork and walk away.

[mamamindy]

Well, for a little person who is just 6yo, "busywork" isn't necessarily a bad thing, especially if she doesn't mind doing it. :)

 

AAS, Spalding, SWR, LOE, Phonics Road--all of them are teacher-intensive. How much time each one takes may vary, but there's never really a time when you can teach for a few minutes and then give them seatwork and walk away.

 

Thank you for your reply & perspective! :) So, when is it necessary to begin teaching spelling? With SWO I don't really feel like I'm "teaching" anything. That makes me a touch nervous... Perhaps I need to let that go... She doesn't mind the busywork, so I don't mind finishing up the book we have. A big reason I am looking into something else is that I really don't think SWO will work for my K'er. She just learns really differently than her sister. She needs multiple methods of input. (Not sure if I'm saying that right....)

[boscopup]

AAS is easy to use, open and go. There are parts and pieces to keep up with though. It's also expensive.

 

Does your DD like SWO? Can she spell the words she's learning? In spelling, working with the words is how a child commits those words to memory, so I don't really call it â€busywork†in that case.

 

I'm happily using R&S Spelling. It teaches phonograms, syllabication, and various spelling rules much like AAS does, but it is independent. I just have to give a test at the end of the week. With younger kids to teach, I realized that I didn't want to spend a lot of time teaching spelling to a student who isn't struggling with spelling. I'd rather invest my time in writing or read-alouds.

[Ellie]

Thank you for your reply & perspective! :) So, when is it necessary to begin teaching spelling? With SWO I don't really feel like I'm "teaching" anything. That makes me a touch nervous... Perhaps I need to let that go... She doesn't mind the busywork, so I don't mind finishing up the book we have. A big reason I am looking into something else is that I really don't think SWO will work for my K'er. She just learns really differently than her sister. She needs multiple methods of input. (Not sure if I'm saying that right....)

But she's just 6. IMHO, unless you're using Spalding or a Spalding spin-off, you don't need to teach much to a 6yo (or a 5yo). If I were using a different method for to teach a child to read, I wouldn't worry about spelling until he were 8 or 9yo, and then I'd do Spelling by Sound and Structure (Rod and Staff, my first choice) or SWO. However, since Spalding is my first choice for teaching reading, I wouldn't worry about spelling, since Spalding teaches children to read by teaching them to spell.

 

Spalding has a learning curve (on your part), and it is teacher-intensive, but it isn't painful, lol, and once you get going you don't need lesson plans or anything. Just open the manual (WRTR) and you're off.:)

[mamamindy]

AAS is easy to use, open and go. There are parts and pieces to keep up with though. It's also expensive.

 

Does your DD like SWO? Can she spell the words she's learning? In spelling, working with the words is how a child commits those words to memory, so I don't really call it â€busywork†in that case.

 

I'm happily using R&S Spelling. It teaches phonograms, syllabication, and various spelling rules much like AAS does, but it is independent. I just have to give a test at the end of the week. With younger kids to teach, I realized that I didn't want to spend a lot of time teaching spelling to a student who isn't struggling with spelling. I'd rather invest my time in writing or read-alouds.

Thank you for your perspective as well. This helps.

 

But she's just 6. IMHO, unless you're using Spalding or a Spalding spin-off, you don't need to teach much to a 6yo (or a 5yo). If I were using a different method for to teach a child to read, I wouldn't worry about spelling until he were 8 or 9yo, and then I'd do Spelling by Sound and Structure (Rod and Staff, my first choice) or SWO. However, since Spalding is my first choice for teaching reading, I wouldn't worry about spelling, since Spalding teaches children to read by teaching them to spell.

 

Spalding has a learning curve (on your part), and it is teacher-intensive, but it isn't painful, lol, and once you get going you don't need lesson plans or anything. Just open the manual (WRTR) and you're off.:)

 

This makes sense, thank you. I used OPGTR to teach her to read. Although we haven't even completed the book, she reads very, very well, and all the time! I've liked this method to teach her (and her younger sister) to read, so I guess we should leave well enough alone. I will let her finish her SWO book and add spelling when I think she's ready. Thank you again for clarifying!

[SnMomof7]

Yep. AAS doesn't really have prep past the initial set-up. You don't need to be FINISHED phonics to start with spelling, but it is good to start once reading is established like with your DD (that's what we did with my oldest, no one else reading here yet). Then it also serves as review. It is teacher intensive, but you only need a 15 minute block to do it, which isn't bad!

[Miss Tick]

I, too, became disenchanted with SWO. My kids weren't retaining it, if yours are I stay stick with it!

 

We switched to Spelling Power at the beginning of last calendar year. They did OK, but after a long break over the summer I decided to just start over, and they are doing great - so either they really did learn it the first time, OR they are more prepared for spelling in second grade than they were in first. We spend about 15 minutes a day and the book has something like "H" levels so I don't feel pressure to match certain levels with grades. It's working for us.

 

Don't feel like spelling is "must do" at 6yo.

[Kathleen in LV]

We also used OPGTR, and now we are using AAS for my 6 yo son. We're nearing the end of Level 1. I'm very happy with the program & planning on buying Level 2.

 

Frankly, I like that it has the tiles. We can get through a lot more practice words with tiles than with him writing them (and there's a lot less frustration on his part). Typically, I introduce a new lesson/rule with the tiles & have him practice with them. Then throughout the week we practice the words orally & in writing.

 

I quickly abandoned all of the cards, but I'm sure others find them very helpful. I keep track of what he needs to work on mentally or with little sticky notes in my book or by looking at the last few lists of words he wrote. I find it's a pretty straightforward program that doesn't take a lot of preparation.

 

In terms of when to start, my son was wanting to write things & asking how to spell them. So I figured it was a good time to start. (We were about 2/3 of the way through OPGTR.) Also, you don't need to rush through AAS - you can do a lesson as quickly or slowly as you & your child desire.

 

Good luck!

 

Just wanted to add that I agree that AAS is pretty pricey. For Level 2, I plan on just buying the Teacher's Guide. And if I had it to do again, for Level 1 I would have just purchased the Teacher's Guide & Tiles. I have never used the CD, and, as mentioned, I've abandoned the cards from the Student book. And you certainly don't need that fancy little card box. When I used the cards, I just put them in an appropriately-sized gift box that I had around.

Edited September 26, 2012 by Kathleen in LV