How do you handle the how-do-you-spell question?

[plumshadow]

When your child is writing and asks "how do you spell....?" how do you handle it? Do you spell every word for him/her, have him/her look them up, let him/her guess and fix it afterwards or something else?

[Ellie]

It depends. How old is the child? How many words are we talking about? What kind of writing are we talking about?

[Pronghorn]

I ask the child how she thinks the word might be spelled. Then I give her clues based on rhyming words if needed.

[Gil]

Depends, we haven't done anything official for spelling, they are pretty good spellers but when they ask, if its something I know off the top of my head but want them to figure out, I give a hint. "Thats from that '-at' word group, so sound it out"

If we are not home, then I will spell each syllable since that is what I want them to learn to do when they have to "wing it"

If we are home (aka surrounded by resources), I try to avoid telling them at all costs. If after the hint they still can't get it, I just get out the dictionary and we look it up together, since I want them to learn to do that part also.

[plumshadow]

It depends. How old is the child? How many words are we talking about? What kind of writing are we talking about?

 

 

Specifically, my child is 7. It varies tremendously on the subject.  Any type of writing, like today is was just 3 sentences on what she ate for dinner last night and how it tasted.  She only asked about spelling hamburger and I told her but it lead me to wondering about what is the proper response? 

[Dolphin]

Different people have different theories. This is just what I do.

 

At 7, I keep all language arts subjects separate. If they are doing a writing exercise, I am their dictionary. Spelling is during spelling. For our family, I keep writing as low stress as possible, I am just happy that they are writing. I also don't have them write creatively at that age. My dd still is doing copywork and dictation. For her creative sentences, she narrates them to me. Then I have her copy. 

[JustEm]

For my 5 year old I ask him how he thinks it is spelled.  If he gets it right then I try to remind him to always attempt to sound it out first before asking me for help.  If he gets it wrong I praise the attempt, point out how well he sounded the letters out but then go over the rules he missed or discuss how some words are just odd.

[OneStepAtATime]

If they have had phonics training that would help them with that particular word then I ask them to try spelling it on their own and I check it, unless they are really worn out and just needing a break, wanting to do some fun writing.  I do not want to discourage enjoyment of writing.  If they have not had instruction that would help them accurately tweak out how to spell a word (and hamburger is actually a bit challenging because of the different ways to spell the sound "er") then I spell the word for them so they don't develop bad spelling associations.  We then add that word to a list of words we work on based on the phonics rules we are learning through their language arts program or work on it as a word that cannot be spelled through phonics understanding.

[Lang Syne Boardie]

I totally tell them, with no other commentary.

 

I have natural spellers who didn't pester me to spell every word for them; each of mine averaged fewer than 3 or 4 queries per day at their peak.

 

 

[Plink]

It depends.  If it is for fun writing I just spell it.  If it is for school I go through all the steps to help them discover the answer on their own:

 

How many syllables does it have?

What are the sounds in the first syllable?

What letters make those sounds?

Are there any tricky sounds that you need help with? (clarify as needed)

Once they have the right letter combination they write it down and we move on to the second syllable.

 

I am teaching a dyslexic, so our process may be overkill for the average kid.

[blondchen]

For my 7-year-old, who has started spelling instruction, I help her figure it out if I know she has the tools to do so, and if she doesn't, I just tell her. For example, this morning she asked me how to spell "ocean" and "wave". She would have no idea how to even begin to spell ocean at this point, so I spelled that out for her. With wave, I had her say each sound, and when she had to figure out which phonogram to use for long A, I asked her first if the v could be by itself at the end of the word. She said no (because English words do not end in I, U, V or J), so it needed a silent e. Then she figured out that the silent e could also function to make the single-A phonogram say its long sound, and that gave her the correct spelling. [if she had happened to be referring to the word "waive", which she wouldn't at her age, I would have explained to her that we use the AI phonogram for that word and that the silent e is there for the v.]

 

Anyway, just thought I'd share that detailed example because it just came up this morning and was fresh in my mind. I apply that process to pretty much any word she asks me to spell, regardless of what kind of writing she's doing. If she is writing for fun and I am simply too busy to take the time to help her, I often will ask her to tell me what she wants to say and then I write down the words she doesn't know for her to copy.

 

ETA: I also think it's important to not bog down the creative writing process with too much drudgery, and the process I use could become very laborious after a while if it happened all the time. Almost all of the "original" writing DD does is just for fun, and most of the time she tries to figure out the spellings on her own and doesn't ask me. But the few times she does ask, I like to help her figure it out herself.

[ocelotmom]

I have them take their best guess and then go back and correct them all at once, with discussion, later. I'd rather that spelling didn't interrupt the creative process and that they learn the value of drafts and revision.

[FairProspects]

I have dyslexics and I get asked this question many times a day. I help them get started with phonics they know and then I just spell it for them. One of the ways I'm trying to train their visual memories is by seeing correct spellings so I'd rather they get the correct visual from the beginning. I already know their own version won't be correct due to the dyslexia so I just give them the right one.

[Guest lbethay]

I spell it for them, but have them make a list of the words that they ask me to spell for them to study.

[Wilma]

For writing that they are choosing to engage in, I'd either just spell it or encourage them to guess and say it really doesn't matter when you're in the middle of your story about pigs flying to the moon.

 

But for other things, I'd go through the sounds with them.  "Mama, how do you spell sock?" "Well, what do you hear at the beginning?  How do we write that sound?"  "Great, yeah!  It's /s/, what sound comes next?"  "Hey, yeah, how do we write that?"  "Yep, you nailed it."  "okay, what about the last sound?"  "Yes!  And this time we're going to use two letters together to make that sound - it's ck."  My people are all good with the phonograms from SWR, so that's how we tackle the spelling issues that pop up.

 

One of mine is a natural speller, and hardly ever asks.  Another is an abysmal speller (there's hope though - she's only 7) and never asks.  And the other little gal is 5 and asks about everything.

[Loowit]

I depends on which kid, which word, and what they are working on.

 

My oldest, I would be shocked if she ever asked me to spell anything for her.  She can spell better than I can.  When she was younger I just spelled it for her and moved on because she asked so rarely.

 

My middle I will help in different ways depending on the word.  Some I help him sound out and some I just spell.  He can't spell well at all, although he has improved slightly.

 

My youngest, I ask him how he thinks it is spelled.  He is often right and this helps him to trust himself.  If he gets it wrong I will often sound it out with him while he writes it and correct as needed.  If he is doing writing on his own, a rare event, I will just spell it for him.

[RootAnn]

At 7, I'll help. Often, I'm just thrilled they are writing at that age.

 

All my kids know I'll proofread what they write for fun (letters to friends, for example).

 

If the oldest is asking as she's filling out a crossword puzzle, I'll often ask how she thinks it is spelled. If she doesn't get it, I'll offer some suggestions ('use the two letter /k/'). Dd#2 just got a dictionary - but she only has to use it for school-work-related look-ups. She has to look up words she misspells.

[Matryoshka]

I would ask them to sound it out, sound by sound, and then ask what letter or combination of letters they thought would represent that sound.  If they were right, yay, if they were not, I'd tell them.  If it was something that had a bunch of options (like long A) I'd just say, in this word, A is spelled "ay" (or "a_e" or "ae" or "eigh" or "ai" or...).  I had a chart with the sound/letter/letter combo options hung on the wall for their reference.  This started before I even taught them to read at all.  It was actually a good pre-reading activity to learn to hear each sound in a word sequentially.

[JanetC]

At that age, told in syllables "ham" H-A-M "bur" B-U-R "ger" G-E-R

 

No quizzing, no commentary.  Didn't want to interrupt the flow of whatever they were writing.

 

 

[IsabelC]

Sometimes I just spell it out, sometimes I break it into sounds or syllables, sometimes I give a clue (eg 'just like it sounds except it has a Greek k'), and sometimes I prompt the kid to have a try, correcting if necessary. Depends on the circumstances. 

[Coco_Clark]

I break it out for them as much as they need. So for hamburger my 6 yo would get "ham" wait, "bur with a ur" wait, "ger with an er". My 5 yo would get each individual phonogram (I say the sound, not the letter name), "h... a... m... b... ur... g...er".

[rocassie]

I do what a lot of other have suggested.  It really just depends on the circumstances.  Anything during school, I mostly use reminders from our spelling lessons unless it is way beyond what they have learned.  I've started to get out the dictionary as an excuse to teach them how to use one, but it is usually words that if they really though about it, they could figure out on their own.

 

My oldest greatly dislikes spelling things incorrectly and will get hung up on that world even if she is just free writing.  I try to balance reminding her of her lessons vs spelling everything for her.

[JenneinCA]

I would spell it for them.

 

My oldest and youngest spell better than many adults. Including me.

 

My middle child can't spell for any amount of money. If middle child asks for help I may refer him to big sister for help (she is more likely to be correct than I am), but I don't attach any stigma to asking for help. He has enough issues being the only one who needs the help already.

[Space station]

It depends. If I know how to spell it, then I ask them what they think and confirm it or give them a hint if they get it wrong. If I am not sure how to spell it (which happens more often than I want them to know - I often need to write a word to spell it, and they usually seem to ask me when my hands are in the sink washing dishes!) then I direct them to the dictionary. They are fairly strong spellers and in middle school now, so more and more often they are being directed to the dictionary. They think I am getting mean in my old age! ;)

[Arctic Bunny]

I tell them to start, and then I'll help. Often I think my 7yo is asking just to make sure he's right, since he usually is. If he hasn't got it, I'll give him a rhyming word, or a word he knows how to spell with those letters making that sound. If it's a word that's a complete rule breaker, I tell him that, then I spell it.

[Pronghorn]

A spelling dictionary can be handy too. I found an old one of my husband's. It just has the words without the definitions, so it is not as cumbersome to work with.

[sdobis]

I usually say, "How do you think it's spelled?" If she makes a mistake, I simply correct her. On occasion, I'll throw in a spelling rule to explain.

[swellmomma]

I spell it for them.  When younger I write it down and they copy it, when older I spell outloud orally.  All are developing their spelling well with me doing that (and using their spelling curric).  Between the ages of 5-7 they asked nearly constantly, by the time they were teens it is only occasionally.  Given how many adults I encounter daily that ask me how to spell things and I help them without a second thought I could not imagine not giving my kids the same courtesy.

[KrissiK]

I spell it out. Every word. I think it's dumb to make them go to the dictionary. If they can't spell it in the first place, how are they going to look it up? Plus, it can just interfere with the creative process to go find the dictionary and look it up. I don't want them to use creative spelling, either. So I just spell it out.

[candicane]

My mom always told me to look up the word. It never helped because I would always get frustrated instead and then I won't know how the word is spelled. I would spell out a few, or at least help with hinting them along to the spelling.

[LizzyBee]

Sometimes I ask them what they think, sometimes I just spell it.  Two of my kids are dyslexic and it's helpful for them to hear words spelled aloud.

[duckens]

We have a dd7, too.

 

If she is practicing another skill, then I just spell it for her.

 

Example: dd prints off a lot of coloring pages from online.  She is

--typing

--navigating the internet

--cutting and pasting into powerpoint

So, when she asks how to spell "frozen" for "free coloring pages Frozen,"  I just spell it. 

 

If we are doing Language Arts, we sound it out.  That is a skill she needs, too.

 

If she is writing for Science or Geography, we look for the word in the reading and highlight it with a crayon so she can just copy.  If you are copying, I expect it to be spelled correctly.  Being resourceful in this way is a good skill to have.

And, yes, we practice looking words up in the dictionary; usually vocabulary words from history.  (Alphabetizing is learned in our Phonics curriculum).  Using a dictionary with ease is a good skill.

 

Type it into Google to watch the suggestions and make a best guess is one strategy we are starting to use.  I'm ambivalent whether this is good or bad.

 

 

[LucyStoner]

When my older son started asking to spell words, I bought him a binder with a set of alpha tab dividers. Then I had him write the word he was asking how to spell into "his dictionary" and then he could copy it onto whatever he was writing. If he was asking to spell a word I thought was already in his book I would tell him to look it up. One day I noticed how quiet it was whole he was writing and I took me a minute to figure out that it was because he wasn't asking to spell words. I peered over his shoulder and realized that he didn't need any words spelled for him.

 

It must have worked ok. He is stiff spelling be competition and has a very real shot at realizing his dream to go to the national bee at some point. We use a binder based system now for spelling bee prep.

[Ivey]

I tell them, but that has more to do with the fact that I feel like a jerk if I don't tell them than my philosophy for teaching spelling. Asking a couple of my kids how they think a word is spelled would be a disaster - one kid would feel like he was being put on the spot and would shut down, while another would be very annoyed that I'd messed up his "flow" while he was writing.  

[Sahamamama]

It depends. For my 9.5 year old (going into 4th grade), if it's a word I think she could spell, if she put some thought into it, I might say "Look it up." I figure the effort of looking it up might outweigh the effort of thinking, thus triggering actual thought. If not, she gets dictionary practice. ;) Depending on my mood and how lazy I think she's being, I might even go with a sarcastic, "Oh, didn't we cover that in 2nd grade?" This usually does the trick.

 

For my 7.5 year old twins (going into 2nd grade), I usually spell the word or part of the word (e.g., how to add the suffix). Sometimes I hang back to see if another child will answer, which normally happens. They like to show off.

 

All three girls are excellent spellers, so if they're asking me the how-do-you-spell ________ question, it's probably because they're writing a painstakingly illustrated letter to a grandparent and don't want to have mistakes all over the page. Then I help them spell, so the letters impress the grandparents. I like to show off, too. :laugh:

 

Edited to Add: All About Spelling explicitly teaches "scratch paper spelling" as a strategy. When you aren't sure how to spell a word, write it several ways on paper, then pick the one that "looks" right. I remind my oldest (who has had that lesson), "Try scratch paper spelling." She does, and gets it right most of the time. There's no shame in having to write out a word!

[shinyhappypeople]

I always spell it for them.

 

 One DD benefits from explicit spelling instruction and the other is a natural speller.  

 

The one who struggles more with spelling is the least likely to ask for help.  I attribute that to her Kindergarten teacher.  The teacher instructed parents not to tell kids how to spell words, and instead  encouraged "invented" spelling.  Like a stupid lemming, I nodded, smiled, and trusted the professional.  We pulled DD out after kindy, and it took about a year to convince her that her invented spellings were not automatically correct and equal with dictionary spellings.  All that to say, we trained her not to ask when she was five.  I would like the opportunity for a do-over, please. :(

[ItoLina]

I pretty much always spell it out for them. My son is a very reluctant writer and it's not worth it to me to risk discouraging him from writing by frustrating him with spelling. The only time he is really on his own is during AAS lessons (obviously, lol) but even then I remind him of the rule if he forgets. My daughter is only 4 but she loves to write. She prefers to try to sound things out on her own and rarely asks me for help. She actually gets upset if I try to help sometimes. She also rarely spells anything right, lol...but there you go.

[plumshadow]

I always spell it for them.

 

 One DD benefits from explicit spelling instruction and the other is a natural speller.  

 

The one who struggles more with spelling is the least likely to ask for help.  I attribute that to her Kindergarten teacher.  The teacher instructed parents not to tell kids how to spell words, and instead  encouraged "invented" spelling.  Like a stupid lemming, I nodded, smiled, and trusted the professional.  We pulled DD out after kindy, and it took about a year to convince her that her invented spellings were not automatically correct and equal with dictionary spellings.  All that to say, we trained her not to ask when she was five.  I would like the opportunity for a do-over, please. :(

 

 

I remember seeing a flyer like that in either K or 1st and wondered if it was their philosophy because it was structurally sound, or if it was because there were too many kids in the class to properly deal with all their spelling needs when writing.