Spelling help please

[Mom2Five]

I am trying to think through how to best help my son without buying every spelling curriculum on the planet. :lol:

Ds8 (3rd grade) is not a natural speller..at all.

I gave him the mccalls spelling test that you can download from the spalding website and he tested at 2.9 grade level so not that far off. WRTR was hard for me to implement and I ordered How to Teach Spelling. We are just a couple weeks in, but I have no idea to help him.

Most of the misspelled words can be seen as phonically correct. For example, he spelled "phase" as "phaze", "whale" as "whell". Some words are completely off, but most are like this. Does he just need to work on memorizing? Sometimes he misspells words that he just obviously did not take the time to sound out. One example is that he spelled "butter" as "better". I asked him what letter made the "uh" sound for "b *uh* tter" and he knew it but still didn't write it that way.

My oldest is a natural speller so im just a little lost.

[FO4UR]

Good spellers are good at visualizing the words.

 

Work a few things into whatever you already have:

 

 - Take a mental picture of the word.  Now close your eyes, see the word in your mind, spell it back orally.

 

- Air write the word in huge arm motions.

 

 - Build the word with tiles or magnets.

 

- Do plenty of copywork, but cover the passage to be copied with an extra piece of paper and only peek as needed. He will have to hold the words in his mind to get them onto paper. It's that holding the word in his mind that will help the words stick.

 

[displace]

One thing he should be encouraged to do is read the word he spelled (sounding it out). That would help with butter, for example.

 

Does he have a pattern of more misspellings with vowels vs consonants or rules? He may not really hear the difference between vowels. If so you can have him work on that with spelling nonsense words with short vowel sounds to help him hear (nef, mim, ug, ot, av) or something. Not real words he probably knows.

 

As both the butter and whale were examples of pronunciation vowel errors I'd work on vowel sound work with nonsense words, then reading back after to check. If he can't hear the difference or improve with time you may need to investigate. I assume his speech is normal?

 

Ps - whale and whell to me are not phonetically correct. -ale has long a, -ell is short e. Maybe a typo or regional pronounciation?

Edited February 27, 2016 by displace

[Mom2Five]

Good spellers are good at visualizing the words.

 

Work a few things into whatever you already have:

 

 - Take a mental picture of the word.  Now close your eyes, see the word in your mind, spell it back orally.

 

- Air write the word in huge arm motions.

 

 - Build the word with tiles or magnets.

 

- Do plenty of copywork, but cover the passage to be copied with an extra piece of paper and only peek as needed. He will have to hold the words in his mind to get them onto paper. It's that holding the word in his mind that will help the words stick.

 

Those are great suggestions.

[Mom2Five]

One thing he should be encouraged to do is read the word he spelled (sounding it out). That would help with butter, for example.

 

Does he have a pattern of more misspellings with vowels vs consonants or rules? He may not really hear the difference between vowels. If so you can have him work on that with spelling nonsense words with short vowel sounds to help him hear (nef, mim, ug, ot, av) or something. Not real words he probably knows.

 

As both the butter and whale were examples of pronunciation vowel errors I'd work on vowel sound work with nonsense words, then reading back after to check. If he can't hear the difference or improve with time you may need to investigate. I assume his speech is normal?

 

Ps - whale and whell to me are not phonetically correct. -ale has long a, -ell is short e. Maybe a typo or regional pronounciation?

 

 

I haven't noticed a pattern of misspellings with vowels vs consonants. In fact, when we did the three letter cvc words and most of the other words we have spelled so far from How to Teach Spelling he has gotten them all right. The majority of the spelling that he does wrong is when he writes stuff on his own. It is like there is a disconnect and it seems like he isn't really thinking about what he is writing. I am trying to tell him to divide the word by syllables and say it slowly and write each syllable at a time to try to encourage him to hear the sounds in the words.

 

I agree that whale and whell aren't technically phonetically correct but I was trying hard to think of examples and those were the only ones I could remember. We are in the south though, so maybe a regional thing, haha :laugh: . With that word he kept saying he didn't know how to spell it even though I said "ale" over and over again and just asked him how do you spell "ale" and then he still wrote it "ell". I am going to get his hearing checked as soon as I can get him in just to rule those type of problems out. He did show signs of dyslexia when younger though those are mostly gone now. I'm not sure if that could be affecting his spelling in some way. Just thinking out loud here.

[Mom2Five]

Ok, I have more energy now and actually went and grabbed the last thing he wrote and his spelling notebook. Some examples from yesterday of things I feel he just clearly didn't even try to sound out were "crismis" (supposed to be Christmas) and "vallentimes" (supposed to be Valentines). He wrote "fonds" for "friends"...huh and what?? He wrote "sandwigish" for "sandwiches". Ugh.

I could understand if he spelt Christmas as "Cristmas" but crismis? These are words that he would have seen thousands of times and read thousands of times too. I try not to be too hard on him, and point out every. single. misspelling because he does get frustrated, but I try to gently talk to him about certain ones to try to get him to think more about what he is writing. For example, I asked him why he would even put a "g" sound in sandwiches and then after pronouncing it a thousand times with him I realized we say it more like "sand-widges". Still why the "sh" sound on the end.

 

^^^This is from his free writing.

 

What I saw from his spelling notebook yesterday was that he spelled "than" and "then" correctly. Then, he misspelled "blunt" and "blont". He misspelled "these" as "thees". He spelled correctly almost all other words including blot, bled, blame, clap, clam, whisk, whim. Oh, he did spell "when" as "whin". He got flat, flip, flame, flash, and flesh correct.

 

Sorry I may be going over board with examples, I'm just wondering if there is something I'm not seeing.

Edited February 27, 2016 by Mom2Five

[FO4UR]

It sounds normal for 8yo.  He's just not a natural speller.

 

Another thing you can try:

 

Put a phonogram on one side of a large index card.  On the other side list words that use that phonogram, and add to those lists as he misses words.  Quiz him orally on a few of those cards daily. Send him to the couch to study those cards alone for 5min daily.

 

For holidays and months of the year, etc...Copywork as I described above.  Make him write out 20 family Christmas Cards in December...and so on...

[OneStepAtATime]

He may need help with more phonics based learning.  He may not actually be able to break apart and distinguish the sounds when he is hearing them.  In other words, he may need his spelling to go more slowly than his reading and to have some very specific, detailed rules to follow for how to break down a word and spell it correctly.  Sometimes just seeing a word or copying a word over and over won't help either.   

[displace]

I haven't noticed a pattern of misspellings with vowels vs consonants. In fact, when we did the three letter cvc words and most of the other words we have spelled so far from How to Teach Spelling he has gotten them all right. The majority of the spelling that he does wrong is when he writes stuff on his own. It is like there is a disconnect and it seems like he isn't really thinking about what he is writing. I am trying to tell him to divide the word by syllables and say it slowly and write each syllable at a time to try to encourage him to hear the sounds in the words.

 

I agree that whale and whell aren't technically phonetically correct but I was trying hard to think of examples and those were the only ones I could remember. We are in the south though, so maybe a regional thing, haha :laugh: . With that word he kept saying he didn't know how to spell it even though I said "ale" over and over again and just asked him how do you spell "ale" and then he still wrote it "ell". I am going to get his hearing checked as soon as I can get him in just to rule those type of problems out. He did show signs of dyslexia when younger though those are mostly gone now. I'm not sure if that could be affecting his spelling in some way. Just thinking out loud here.

 

I think the misspellings being worse during free-writing are likely normal.  He's probably writing for context and imagination or information, not for spelling.  That's where editing afterwards helps.  Plus there's a lot more going on, not just spelling one word.  He's considering the whole "topic" or sentence, punctuation, or recalling or imagining stories.  I think that will take time and repetition to get mistakes corrected.

 

For words he's having trouble hearing the sounds that make up the word, saying the word slowly may help him hear the sounds individually.  whale is only three sounds (/w/, /long a/, /l/) - unless you pronounce wh as /hw/.  The silent e on the end is a rule of long vowel being closed in by a consonant.

 

What signs of dyslexia did he have?  I would never argue against getting someone's hearing checked, and the insurance should cover it.  But get a hearing test, not a screening from the pediatrician.  It takes about a half-hour in a sound proof room by an audiology tech.  It will not mean there is not an auditory processing issue but if it's good that's one less thing that could be an issue.

Edited February 27, 2016 by displace

[displace]

Ok, I have more energy now and actually went and grabbed the last thing he wrote and his spelling notebook. Some examples from yesterday of things I feel he just clearly didn't even try to sound out were "crismis" (supposed to be Christmas) and "vallentimes" (supposed to be Valentines). He wrote "fonds" for "friends"...huh and what?? He wrote "sandwigish" for "sandwiches". Ugh.

I could understand if he spelt Christmas as "Cristmas" but crismis? These are words that he would have seen thousands of times and read thousands of times too. I try not to be too hard on him, and point out every. single. misspelling because he does get frustrated, but I try to gently talk to him about certain ones to try to get him to think more about what he is writing. For example, I asked him why he would even put a "g" sound in sandwiches and then after pronouncing it a thousand times with him I realized we say it more like "sand-widges". Still why the "sh" sound on the end.

 

^^^This is from his free writing.

 

What I saw from his spelling notebook yesterday was that he spelled "than" and "then" correctly. Then, he misspelled "blunt" and "blont". He misspelled "these" as "thees". He spelled correctly almost all other words including blot, bled, blame, clap, clam, whisk, whim. Oh, he did spell "when" as "whin". He got flat, flip, flame, flash, and flesh correct.

 

Sorry I may be going over board with examples, I'm just wondering if there is something I'm not seeing.

The free writing was likely due to speeding through as he was writing his thoughts down.  A lot are understandable mistakes (Christmas he spelled phonetically, Valentine's beware he may be hearing or saying the word wrong - Valentime's is a common misunderstanding).  A lot of those free writing mistakes are also very complicated phonetically and not too surprising they were misspelled.

 

These and thees are phonetic so just needs to be memorized with practice. 

 

When sounds like whin depending on pronounciation in the house.  I grew up in a household where short i's sounded like short e's sometimes (pellow for pillow, melk for milk, pen for pin, etc), and I only pronounced them correctly later on as an adult because I need to enunciate properly for my dyslexic DS.  I still occasionally mispronounce words that I grew up speaking incorrectly. 

When saying words for spelling I make sure to "pronounce for spelling".  A lot of words can be pronounced how they are spelled.  (When is pronounced as when instead of whin).  Over time and practice the goal is for the word to be able to be spelled correctly when hearing it in normal speech.  So it stays on your spelling list for a week being pronounced for spelling, then a quick warning that you will pronounce the word naturally for a week, then once a week for a month or so. 

 

I don't think that's clear so in dialogue:

(week 1, days 1-5)

You: I'm going to have you spell a word that is spelled a little differently than it sounds.  The word is /hwen/ (I pronounce the hw for my son for wh but you may not need to).  The word you hear in speech is /win/.  Spell /hwen/. - hopefully he can hear and spell when

(week 2, days 1-5), plus one day every week for a week or two if he spells it correctly.

You: I'm going to have you spell a word that is spelled a little differently than it sounds.  We practiced it last week.  The word is /win/. - if he spells it whin instead of when I'd do a reminder day or maybe another week.

 

One last thing, if he has general difficulty in handwriting, sometimes that can make spelling worse as it's hard to write and spell at the same time (it's more complex of a skill than just spelling orally).

 

ETA - I pronounce when as /win/, but that may be regional.  Maybe others pronounce when as /wen/?

 

So confusing, I am!

Edited February 27, 2016 by displace

[Mom2Five]

It sounds normal for 8yo.  He's just not a natural speller.

 

Another thing you can try:

 

Put a phonogram on one side of a large index card.  On the other side list words that use that phonogram, and add to those lists as he misses words.  Quiz him orally on a few of those cards daily. Send him to the couch to study those cards alone for 5min daily.

 

For holidays and months of the year, etc...Copywork as I described above.  Make him write out 20 family Christmas Cards in December...and so on...

 

I will try that also, thanks! It is comforting to know that others think it is within the normal range and not something to be terribly concerned about right now. We just started copywork recently so I am hoping that will help as well.

 

 

 

He may need help with more phonics based learning.  He may not actually be able to break apart and distinguish the sounds when he is hearing them.  In other words, he may need his spelling to go more slowly than his reading and to have some very specific, detailed rules to follow for how to break down a word and spell it correctly.  Sometimes just seeing a word or copying a word over and over won't help either.   

 

He went through Abeka K-2nd but because of so many things going on I didn't do the program exactly as written, so that could be why the phonics hasn't seemed to stick well. How to Teach Spelling is rules/phonics based, so Im again hoping that starts to help over time. We had a late start to the year due to a move and my 1 year old having surgery. We technically began 3rd grade only a few months ago, so I know there is still lots of time left to our year.

 

I think the misspellings being worse during free-writing are likely normal.  He's probably writing for context and imagination or information, not for spelling.  That's where editing afterwards helps.  Plus there's a lot more going on, not just spelling one word.  He's considering the whole "topic" or sentence, punctuation, or recalling or imagining stories.  I think that will take time and repetition to get mistakes corrected.

 

For words he's having trouble hearing the sounds that make up the word, saying the word slowly may help him hear the sounds individually.  whale is only three sounds (/w/, /long a/, /l/) - unless you pronounce wh as /hw/.  The silent e on the end is a rule of long vowel being closed in by a consonant.

 

What signs of dyslexia did he have?  I would never argue against getting someone's hearing checked, and the insurance should cover it.  But get a hearing test, not a screening from the pediatrician.  It takes about a half-hour in a sound proof room by an audiology tech.  It will not mean there is not an auditory processing issue but if it's good that's one less thing that could be an issue.

 

In regards to editing, should I sit down with him afterwards, help him correct the misspelled words and then have him rewrite it?

 

When starting out in K-1st he wrote letters and numbers backwards. He would sometime do things like writing 24 as 42. I know some of that is normal and he seemed to outgrow it. He only does it very rarely now. Today he wrote z backwards for a math problem, but I think he was just over thinking the problem and not thinking about his writing. My husband was severely dyslexic, so I guess that's why ive had it more on my radar.

 

He has had his hearing checked by an audiologist before but its been a few years. I will have it checked again to make sure nothing has changed and its still good.

 

 

 

 

The free writing was likely due to speeding through as he was writing his thoughts down.  A lot are understandable mistakes (Christmas he spelled phonetically, Valentine's beware he may be hearing or saying the word wrong - Valentime's is a common misunderstanding).  A lot of those free writing mistakes are also very complicated phonetically and not too surprising they were misspelled.

 

These and thees are phonetic so just needs to be memorized with practice. 

 

When sounds like whin depending on pronounciation in the house.  I grew up in a household where short i's sounded like short e's sometimes (pellow for pillow, melk for milk, pen for pin, etc), and I only pronounced them correctly later on as an adult because I need to enunciate properly for my dyslexic DS.  I still occasionally mispronounce words that I grew up speaking incorrectly. 

When saying words for spelling I make sure to "pronounce for spelling".  A lot of words can be pronounced how they are spelled.  (When is pronounced as when instead of whin).  Over time and practice the goal is for the word to be able to be spelled correctly when hearing it in normal speech.  So it stays on your spelling list for a week being pronounced for spelling, then a quick warning that you will pronounce the word naturally for a week, then once a week for a month or so. 

 

I don't think that's clear so in dialogue:

(week 1, days 1-5)

You: I'm going to have you spell a word that is spelled a little differently than it sounds.  The word is /hwen/ (I pronounce the hw for my son for wh but you may not need to).  The word you hear in speech is /win/.  Spell /hwen/. - hopefully he can hear and spell when

(week 2, days 1-5), plus one day every week for a week or two if he spells it correctly.

You: I'm going to have you spell a word that is spelled a little differently than it sounds.  We practiced it last week.  The word is /win/. - if he spells it whin instead of when I'd do a reminder day or maybe another week.

 

One last thing, if he has general difficulty in handwriting, sometimes that can make spelling worse as it's hard to write and spell at the same time (it's more complex of a skill than just spelling orally).

 

ETA - I pronounce when as /win/, but that may be regional.  Maybe others pronounce when as /wen/?

 

So confusing, I am!

 

I pronounce when as win as well. I can see how he'd have trouble with those. It also makes sense that his free writing would be worse.

He doesn't like handwriting and I just started requiring him to write a little this year so that could be it too.

Thank you for the suggestions and plan. I am going to get back on here  tonight and reread all the suggestions and come up with a more structured plan than we have currently.

[displace]

My recommendation is any reversals (even one) after age 8 get tested for dyslexia. Most people recommend even sooner, by 7.5, even for one. With other symptoms testing can start very early now, 5/6 years old. A lot of dyslexics can overcome their reading difficulties and reversals with time on their own. But that doesn't mean the LD is not there. With a dyslexic father he automatically has a 50% chance of having it too.

 

As far as editing his free writing idk how often to tell you to do that. Something occasionally as you don't want to crush his free writing desire. Like once a week maybe? Just choose one sentence to go over and see if there are things he'd like to improve to help him communicate or journal better. Or maybe leave it alone if you're addressing sentence formation or grammar or copy work already.

 

Also a lot of people on this board may suggest having him see a COVD to get an eye exam. Handwriting difficulties (which could be a result of having trouble seeing) may present like that. A COVD is a special optometrist who checks how the eyes are working while reading and doing activities, not just checking for a need for glasses.

 

Eta - I wouldn't have him rewrite anything if he already doesn't like it. Maybe teach him editing marks to put in the corrections if you decide to do that. Honestly I'd just leave it alone for free writing.

Edited February 27, 2016 by displace

[FO4UR]

He may need help with more phonics based learning.  He may not actually be able to break apart and distinguish the sounds when he is hearing them.  In other words, he may need his spelling to go more slowly than his reading and to have some very specific, detailed rules to follow for how to break down a word and spell it correctly.  Sometimes just seeing a word or copying a word over and over won't help either.   

 

When the majority of the mistakes are phonetically feasible, the lack is visual memory. "Crismis" is spelled exactly the way he hears it. I would guess he's distinguishing sounds just fine.  What he's not doing is taking that mental picture of Christmas and holding that in his visual memory.

 

Yes, he needs to know that 'ch' can say /k/, and so on...knowing the rules & phonograms only takes us so far in spelling though. This is where some kids need a whole lot more CM style teaching and a lot less curricula.  Visualize it.  Glue into memory through copying poetry and prose that are meaningful to the child.

 

I would not recommend copying a word over and over like I did in elementary school, no.  But the act of peeking at a word, holding it in their mind long enough to copy it on paper, does work to input the word into their visual memory.  Word searches and crossword puzzles are great for the same reasons.  They force the child to stretch the visual memory.

[MerryAtHope]

He may need help with more phonics based learning.  He may not actually be able to break apart and distinguish the sounds when he is hearing them.  In other words, he may need his spelling to go more slowly than his reading and to have some very specific, detailed rules to follow for how to break down a word and spell it correctly.  Sometimes just seeing a word or copying a word over and over won't help either.   

 

 

I agree. I would expect mistakes but perhaps more phonetic (something like "frends" would be phonetic for friends, whereas "fonds" leaves one sound out and misrepresents a second sound, so it seems pretty far off). Several of the other mistakes seemed like more than just phonetic errors too, and would make me wonder if there might be either some dyslexia or auditory processing issues going on. I do agree that I'd expect more errors than normal in a piece he's doing on his own (and I wouldn't correct them now--just encourage him to write!--but would address spelling separately. You can always make note of words that he misspells, and then without referencing his writing, make them into a spelling lesson. Help him work through each sound and how to represent each sound. )

 

Here's an article on Auditory Processing that you might find helpful. 

 

Dyslexia often does show itself through spelling struggles, so you could be right about that affecting him now. Things like reversing the order of sounds (like the g you tend to pronounce in sandwiches being at the end of his spelling), mistaking vowel sounds, leaving out consonant blends (like the /r/ sound in friends) are all common with auditory processing issues and can also show up with dyslexia.

 

Good spellers tend to use several strategies: phonetic, rules-based, visual, and morphemic. We used All About Spelling, which really helped my kids work through issues like you are describing. 

[desertflower]

I love AAS.  It is phonics based.  I only use the teacher's manual.  Judging from your post, I think there's only about 5 or so lessons that your ds can benefit from level 1.  So don't let that deter you.  (I'm speaking from experience.) 

 

I'm from the south as well and apparently I can't pronounce thing.  He spells it (thang) exactly how I pronounce it.  LOL 

[displace]

I also use AAS as a component of teaching my dyslexic DS. It is thorough and logical but some dyslexics need a different approach or slower implementation.

[Ellie]

I am trying to think through how to best help my son without buying every spelling curriculum on the planet. :lol:

Ds8 (3rd grade) is not a natural speller..at all.

I gave him the mccalls spelling test that you can download from the spalding website and he tested at 2.9 grade level so not that far off. WRTR was hard for me to implement and I ordered How to Teach Spelling. We are just a couple weeks in, but I have no idea to help him.

Most of the misspelled words can be seen as phonically correct. For example, he spelled "phase" as "phaze", "whale" as "whell". Some words are completely off, but most are like this. Does he just need to work on memorizing? Sometimes he misspells words that he just obviously did not take the time to sound out. One example is that he spelled "butter" as "better". I asked him what letter made the "uh" sound for "b *uh* tter" and he knew it but still didn't write it that way.

My oldest is a natural speller so im just a little lost.

 

I would expect an 8yo child not to know how to correctly spell "phase" or even "whale." It isn't a matter of "memorizing," because he couldn't possibly memorize every word there is. He still needs guidance in learning and applying spelling rules and conventions, and he has to read and write many words before he will be able to spell correctly words he hasn't yet studied. He's only 8.

[FO4UR]

I would expect an 8yo child not to know how to correctly spell "phase" or even "whale." It isn't a matter of "memorizing," because he couldn't possibly memorize every word there is. He still needs guidance in learning and applying spelling rules and conventions, and he has to read and write many words before he will be able to spell correctly words he hasn't yet studied. He's only 8.

 

She has already ordered How to Teach Spelling for him. That will cover phonics/rules.

 

That is not enough for many kids.  Many kids do need that extra help with visual memory. Charlotte Mason found the visual memory was foundational, and the rules/phonics built upon the visual memory.  Natural spellers, naturally have the ability to see it and remember it.  The rest of us can build up our visual memory with methods CM outlines. 

 

The mistakes she posted lean towards a lack of visual memory, age-appropriate for an 8yo.  My advice, fwiw, is to use what she has ordered and add in activities that build his visual memory as he studies.  

[Mom2Five]

Thank you! You've all given lots of things for me to think over and implement.

[EmilyGF]

She has already ordered How to Teach Spelling for him. That will cover phonics/rules.

 

That is not enough for many kids.  Many kids do need that extra help with visual memory. Charlotte Mason found the visual memory was foundational, and the rules/phonics built upon the visual memory.  Natural spellers, naturally have the ability to see it and remember it.  The rest of us can build up our visual memory with methods CM outlines. 

 

The mistakes she posted lean towards a lack of visual memory, age-appropriate for an 8yo.  My advice, fwiw, is to use what she has ordered and add in activities that build his visual memory as he studies.  

I have three kids and use three different spelling curricula because spelling rules don't work for certain types of kids (like my kid #2). When I start using rule-based spelling, she basically turns off her brain. Once I made this connection, I was able to transition her to an appropriate pattern-based spelling curriculum.

 

I had read the critiques of a pattern-based curriculum when using WRTR for my oldest (who thrived on a rules-based spelling) but used Sequential Spelling after burning out with WRTR and AAS while seeing absolutely no improvement or connection.

 

I think DD9 likes making her own rules and patterns, so she turned her brain off when she got ready-made rules. Now she pays attention and she is learning to intuit spelling she hasn't learned yet. We've actually accelerated the curriculum because she is doing so well and the words are sticking.

 

I tried WRTR with DD7, also, because it had been such a hit with my oldest, but she is naturally a R-L tracker who reverses most letters/numbers/words naturally. I was getting frustrated and she wasn't doing any better with tracking, despite finger spelling, verbal spelling, etc. We've now been using Apples and Pears since October and I've seen a huge improvement in spelling, tracking, and reversals. She still makes mistakes, yes, (like "ses" for "says", which hasn't been taught yet) but they make sense. She still reverses numbers frequently, which haven't been covered in Apples and Pears, but practically never letters, so I'm pretty sure it is because of the curriculum and not maturity.

 

While I am a fan of explicit phonics for spelling, it hasn't worked for more than one of my kids! The other two needed me to meet them where they were, and then they could thrive.

 

Oh, and once I figured this out about my second daughter, I changed her to a different math program than the one her older brother had to one that is more about intuition and pattern-based thinking, and guess what, she is doing really well!

 

Emily

[Hunter]

There is no need for me to repeat all the above great advice. What I am about to say is in no way a contradiction of the above. Of course we are going to try.

 

But the fact is, that people that "need" spelling instruction the most, benefit from it the least. Good spelling is a talent like drawing. Just like we can all learn to draw a bit, not all of us can become career artists.

 

It is not worth spending too much time and money on spelling at the expense of others things that will produce more results.

 

I also strongly believe in waiting to teach rules until the student is fully demonstrating logic stage development. I do NOT teach logic and rhetoric level skills to grammar stage students. Period!

 

Learning a spelling rule and applying it to new words is a logic level skill. Now, you can take advantage of the poll parrot grammar stage to memorize those rules if you want, but don't expect the student to use them yet. TWTM explains the theory of grammar, logic, and rhetoric stages.

[Hunter]

Also, I wanted to say I like the spelling instructions in Ruth Beechick's The Three R's.

 

All I'm using for phonics/spelling at this point is Blumenfeld's Phonics for Success version of Alpha-Phonics and then McGuffey's Speller. Both are free. And the 3R's which is not.

 

Life is too short to spend the time and money I was spending on spelling. It has become a bit of a hobby, but I have mostly moved onto some new hobbies.

Edited February 28, 2016 by Hunter

[Ellie]

She has already ordered How to Teach Spelling for him. That will cover phonics/rules.

 

That is not enough for many kids.  Many kids do need that extra help with visual memory. Charlotte Mason found the visual memory was foundational, and the rules/phonics built upon the visual memory.  Natural spellers, naturally have the ability to see it and remember it.  The rest of us can build up our visual memory with methods CM outlines. 

 

The mistakes she posted lean towards a lack of visual memory, age-appropriate for an 8yo.  My advice, fwiw, is to use what she has ordered and add in activities that build his visual memory as he studies.  

 

I know she has, but she said she still didn't know how to help him.

 

I also said that his spelling was age appropriate.

 

Phonics and spelling are not even the same thing.

[Incognito]

I'm sure you don't need another curriculum, but I'll show you one anyways. :)

 

Spelling You See seems like it is working really well with my non-natural speller, and it is easy to implement.  It involves reading a passage and clapping out syllables, going through and highlighting patterns, copywork, and then dictation of the passage that has been read for the week and copied for the week at the end of the week.  I find it gets my child looking more closely at the words, and there is the bonus of erasable colored pencils. :)  You definitely want the teacher's manual, or you will have to figure out and hunt for all the patterns yourself.

 

Spelling You See

[Janeway]

I just love Spelling Workout. It teaches phonics and spelling rules and is laid out so easy, that all I have to do is give the tests and correct the pages. The activities are interesting. You get the idea.