Spelling level philosophy

[bakpak]

Hi folks,

 

I have a spelling question. My DD6 is in a Montessori school and has weekly spelling homework and tests. I think she misspelled 2 words total on the tests all semester.  I've only occasionally gone over them with her to quiz her. Anyway, along with her increase in writing that she experienced when she turned 6, I feel she's also suddenly leaped ahead in spelling compared to where she was at the end of the summer. I feel her spelling words are way too easy. This week I took out her spelling homework before she had looked at it and asked her to spell them. A couple of blends she had to work at, but otherwise I'm sure she would have gotten them all right if she'd NOT done the homework and had her quiz the next day.

 

I was thinking about supplementing spelling a bit (sigh), but more than that I wanted a gauge of what level you guys teach spelling? In a given new list of words, what percentage of the words do your children already know how to spell? I'm sure there's some sweet spot there.

 

I did AAS 1 with her a couple of years ago and at the time she wasn't super into spelling so I let it wane. I could start again at AAS 2, but am feeling conflicted and think maybe I should just talk to her teachers about the level. So before I potentially have that conversation, I wanted to find out about your philosophies about what level is the right level for working on spelling.

 

I know she is getting more out of her spelling homework than just spelling skills (handwriting, reading directions, trying new things, alphabetizing, etc.) but I'd rather the words not be so simple (oo words!!!!). She's not a natural speller, but she reads at a 6+ grade level, and I've noticed her natural spelling ability has really improved lately.

 

Any thoughts?

Thanks!

 

 

Edited December 7, 2015 by bakpak

[EKS]

If your Montessori teachers are like ours were, they're going to want her to proceed through the sequence.  Even if that is the case though, maybe they will be open to her doubling the number of words she does each time.

[bakpak]

Yeah, I'm not looking forward to the conversation, as they'll definitely push back. Doubling up is a good idea, although she's in a 'group' with 2 other girls supposedly at the same level. But supplementing is another option, and I wanted to see what folks thought.

 

FYI: 'Proceeding through the sequence' drives me nuts! I expect them to 'follow the child' and adjust accordingly when developmental leaps occur.  *sigh*  And it looks like she's going to have to shift to public school next year due to finances, so I'm guessing I'd better get used to this type of thing!

Edited December 7, 2015 by bakpak

[tm919]

Any idea what they use for phonics? My daughters go to a Montessori that uses primary phonics, and the 6 yo is a good speller who uses AAS 5 at home -- they only have her do specific phonograms. I think they suggest she do spelling on specific phonograms when she makes a mistake in her writing.

 

As far as word lists, my daughter pretty much never spells a word wrong from the word list in AAS, because it is in that pattern (e.g., if you just spelled 9 words using the 1-1-1 rule, you aren't going to get the 10th wrong). However, when the word appears in a different context, she can spell it wrong sometimes. To me, it really just depends. If your list is unconnected random words (e.g., not all "final blends" but just totally different spelling patterns) and she's getting them all correct at the start of the week, that's different than getting words correct when they all follow the same pattern (infection, objection, etc.)

[Black-eyed Suzan]

DS is not a natural speller. We work through the SWR word lists (we don't do all the exercises). I give him a pre-test and then have him work primarily with the words he doesn't know. I like for the list to be around 75 % words he needs to work on. I think 100% difficult words would be ideal, but he likes to have some that are "easy" or he starts to get overwhelmed. We have to walk the line between overwhelmed and too much busy work here in subjects that aren't his favorite.

 

I do like the SWR lists because the words are not all in the same pattern. My son would definitely memorize the pattern to complete the work without retention in a list that was all the same type of words.

[SparklyUnicorn]

I would not bother quite frankly.  I'd only work with her if she was struggling.  Both of mine are natural spellers.  I never did find a sweet spot.  Either they could spell all the words, or they couldn't spell the words because they were words they just had not yet encountered in their reading. 

 

With my first we did years of spelling because I thought surely this is a super important subject, and I wasn't comfortable not doing it.  It was pointless.  So with my second he was the same way so I decided not to do spelling at all.  There is no difference between the two of them in that department.  Once in a blue moon he spells something wrong.  I point it out, and he remembers it.

 

I think a better idea is to work through some of MCT's vocabulary books.  Those were magical for us.

 

 

 

 

[HomeAgain]

I wouldn't bother.

The goal of spelling to to be able to write fluently and easily.  You can achieve this through many different ways, not necessarily giving a child harder lists to memorize.  Point out spelling rules as you write together.  Offer a copybook and time to copy (or learn a different script like cursive or calligraphy).  Teach Latin or a romance language to help teach word patterns and how they fit together.

 

Supplementing with a different spelling curriculum may just confuse instead of teach. And honestly, out of all the subjects you *could* supplement, this would be very, very far down on the list of necessities for me.

[Nart]

I wouldn't bother.

The goal of spelling to to be able to write fluently and easily.  You can achieve this through many different ways, not necessarily giving a child harder lists to memorize.  Point out spelling rules as you write together.  Offer a copybook and time to copy (or learn a different script like cursive or calligraphy).  Teach Latin or a romance language to help teach word patterns and how they fit together.

 

Supplementing with a different spelling curriculum may just confuse instead of teach. And honestly, out of all the subjects you *could* supplement, this would be very, very far down on the list of necessities for me.

I really agree with this. My son finished AAS 1 before he entered kindergarten then AAS 2 and most of 3 before he started first grade. Then he started weekly spelling and dictation tests and I realized it wasn't worth supplementing anymore because it was so far down on the list.  I give him a pretest of the words on Monday. I only have him practice the words he has missed.  All of his teachers have been fine with him doing modified spelling homework- only copying 3 times the words he missed or whatever practice they wanted. This is something I never discussed with his teachers, I just started doing. Since he gets 100% on his spelling/dictation tests I don't think they care or maybe have never noticed. Now in third grade he gets challenge words that he has to look at since many are from science or social studies and aren't common and/or don't have regular spelling pattens. 

Many public school teachers aren't so picky about the homework from their top students. I remember when my son was in second grade I went in to volunteer one Friday and the teacher was collecting homework. My son had forgotten his (and probably only partially completed it because of all the afterschooling). His teacher told him to turn it in on Monday. A girl forgot hers and the teacher made a big deal of it, asking where it was, why didn't she do it, etc. and pointed out that she needed the practice. 

If your daughter is staying in school, spelling is one subject that is actually taught well in most schools. There are usually weekly spelling tests, lots of spelling homework, etc.  I would work on a subject that is not taught well like math or world history. 

[EndOfOrdinary]

I did not prioritize spelling. If it had not been a curriculum given to us, completely free, from a friend, it would not have happened. However, Sequential Spelling was amazing. We did levels 3-7 and loved it! It is basically just lists of words which build on one another. They are grouped like so:

 

Day 1

Form

Forms

Formed

 

Day 2

Conform

Conformed

Conforming

 

Day 3

Conformation

Figure

Configure

Configuration

 

Day 4

Configuring

Reconfiguring

Reconfigured

 

The idea is to teach kids common suffixes, prefixes, and roots so they learn to first take words apart, but second to apply this to building their own words when writing.

 

Each day is about twenty five words, four days a week. You originally begin by giving a word, having the child try to spell themselves, and then writing the base in one color, the suffixes in another and prefixes in a third to illustrate the concept really extremely. There are no real wrong answers, just direct spelling reinforcement after the child attempts themselves. We did this for the first week. It took quite a bit longer than when we switched to orally spelling aloud. Once Ds understood how to chunk the words, he could orally spell quite well, and the whole thing took about fifteen minutes. Since the program does not shy away from complex words - it actually encourages them - it became word study as well.

[bakpak]

Thanks for all your thoughts. I had taken a quick peek at Sequential Spelling last week and it definitely piqued my interest. She loves vocabulary and has never not stopped me to ask what something means.  Hmmm...that makes me think it's about time for a dictionary! :) Of course, she's already figured out the Google microphone option on my cell phone and will often ask it what something means (or about some famous person/place/etc), and then take her cue for the next word to ask about from the prior definition. It's pretty funny to watch the sequence unfold, as well as her delight.

 

I really like the structure of AAS in terms of learning the whys and wherefores of phonics, but perhaps it's not the best fit for her, or for me to teach with limited time. Something fast & straight-forward, or just drop spelling completely as many folks suggested.

 

I still haven't gone down the MCT route yet, as I really struggle seeing the awesomeness of it from the small excerpts provided. I'm sure it's great since you all rave, but it's pricey and we already have limited time with shared custody, extracurriculars and after-schooling a bit.  I like the idea of continuing to have fun with languages via MCT compared to spelling though. I guess I need to read the MCT threads again. Any other specific MCT suggestions? I always thought Grammar Island was the main starting point...

 

She's home sick today, so we had fun diving into Wee Free Men by Terry Prachett! :)  I so loved sharing every one of her giggles!

[Jackie]

I still haven't gone down the MCT route yet, as I really struggle seeing the awesomeness of it from the small excerpts provided. I'm sure it's great since you all rave, but it's pricey and we already have limited time with shared custody, extracurriculars and after-schooling a bit. I like the idea of continuing to have fun with languages via MCT compared to spelling though. I guess I need to read the MCT threads again. Any other specific MCT suggestions? I always thought Grammar Island was the main starting point...

 

 

Grammar Island followed by Sentence Island and Practice Island would be the typical entry.

 

I would point out, however, that both Building Language and Music of the Hemispheres could easily be used as standalone. If one of those would be of interest, you could start there.

[SeaConquest]

I have an almost 7 year old. We have finished Grammar Island and Sentence Island thus far, and we are both fans. Even my French-speaking husband is learning from it. :)