FloridaMomTo5 Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 I have a dd age 9 whose spelling is very poor right now. We used AVKO Sequential Spelling the first half of this year. She did not mind taking the course, but it drove me crazy teaching spelling as memorization and not offering any reasons for the way words were spelled. She was memorizing the words that the program was telling her, but was then having trouble spelling very simple words that she should know through reading rules. Hopefully this all makes since.... Anyway.. bottom line is that I know my child and I know she could be spelling much better than she is. She's also never complained about anything I try with spelling (Spelling Workout is what we tried last year). Therefore, I'm convinced I just need the right program. PLEASE tell me what you are using and if it is working!! Thanks!! Beth cbb_momof3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhondabee Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 I have a dd age 9 whose spelling is very poor right now. We used AVKO Sequential Spelling the first half of this year. She did not mind taking the course, but it drove me crazy teaching spelling as memorization and not offering any reasons for the way words were spelled. She was memorizing the words that the program was telling her, but was then having trouble spelling very simple words that she should know through reading rules. Hopefully this all makes since.... Anyway.. bottom line is that I know my child and I know she could be spelling much better than she is. She's also never complained about anything I try with spelling (Spelling Workout is what we tried last year). Therefore, I'm convinced I just need the right program. PLEASE tell me what you are using and if it is working!! Thanks!! Beth cbb_momof3 I didn't get to "fix" my oldest's spelling until he was 11yo! We did Sequential Spelling at first, and quit after about 3 months. Like you, I wanted more rules, etc. We had already tried SWO, and it wasn't enough practice (and Abeka, which was just too hard and not enough practice); But, then we found Rod & Staff. It is wonderful! Well, you still have to deal with the farm emphasis, but the exercises themselves are great at teaching the rules, pointing out exceptions, building other words beyond the words on the list by using the rules, and teaching dictionary skills to boot. So far we've used 3rd, 4th, 5th and 7th grades (two different kids), and I am very pleased. They only have 34 lessons per grade level, and every 6th lesson is a review. If you skip the reviews, that's only about 23 lessons ~ plenty of time to do some "catch up". Best wishes finding what works, Rhondabee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LizzyBee Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 The only thing that worked for my poor speller was Calvert Spelling on CD. She's a visual-spatial learner and after 4 years of phonics and frustration, Calvert finally made it click for her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FloridaMomTo5 Posted February 11, 2008 Author Share Posted February 11, 2008 Rhondabee... What level would you start a child out with rod and staff? Did you start with the cooresponding grade levels? Did you go one down? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susie in tx Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 I started my then 9 yo with All About Spelling and she's doing much better with her spelling. We are on book 2 now, and she's learning new rules all of the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FloridaMomTo5 Posted February 11, 2008 Author Share Posted February 11, 2008 Susie in TX. Thank you so much for this recommendation! I love the one year guarantee from this company! I'm so tired of buying curriculum that does not work and having no idea what to do with the expensive materials. I'm definitely considering this one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mandy Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 I wanted to put my two cents in about All About Spelling. Though my daughter is NOT a natural speller and struggled quite a bit with other programs, she is thriving with this one. We started last year, and now she is just finishing up level 2. Level 3 is already on the shelf! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhondabee Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 Rhondabee... What level would you start a child out with rod and staff? Did you start with the cooresponding grade levels? Did you go one down? Well, if she's 9yo and in 3rd grade, I would just start with the 3rd grade book and plan to skip the reviews. If she's 9yo and in 4th, I guess it would depend on where she really is at. The 4th grade book (and the 5th and the 6th) all go over all the "phonics-based spelling rules" (Yeh - I know that's probably not the professional term, but I mean things like use FF, LL or SS after a short vowel and how to add -ING or -ED to various types of words.) But, you might go on to the website for milestone ministries and look over the 3rd and 4th grade samples - they list all the words that are in the basic word lists: http://www.rodandstaffbooks.com/Rod_and_Staff_Curriculum/ One thing to remember is that the words on the list aren't the *only* words learned, because R&S uses those words to teach how to "build" other words. But, it ought to give you some idea whether the 3rd or the 4th would be the best starting place. hth, Rhonda Edit: After looking at the Grade 3 samples to be sure my link would work, I did forget that there is a big jump up in the amount of writing required in the Grade 4 books. Also, the space given for the writing is much less. So, be sure to look at that as well - if you can print the pages, that would be really be best. I don't really know which would be best - one of my kids would have rather done the Grade 3 extra fast; but the other would have been put off by the fact that he was "behind grade level" and made life miserable for all, so I would have rather struggled through Gr 4 with him, knowing 5 would be better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FloridaMomTo5 Posted February 11, 2008 Author Share Posted February 11, 2008 Did you start with level 1 or 2? I looked at the sample lessons and I'm just a little concerned that my dd will be bored with level 1. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susie in tx Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 Did you start with level 1 or 2? I looked at the sample lessons and I'm just a little concerned that my dd will be bored with level 1. I started with Level 1, but we've run through it pretty quickly. Level 2 begins with a review of everything in Level 1, though. It's the first lesson. It's feasible to take a week or 4 to go through the first lesson in Level 2 prior to going ahead with Level 2. You might also want to email the author. She responds nicely to questions. More than likely, she will recommend that you begin with the first Level, though. My dd was not excited about going through all of Level 1, but it's what she got to do. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beth in Central TX Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 I use R&S Spelling. So far we've done R&S Spelling 3, 4, 5, & 6. Some of the lessons tie in with the R&S Grammar program that I also use. When I used the R&S lower level science books, some of the lessons corresponded there too. The word lists are not as challenging as I would like, but the program has a built-in review of phonics rules, dictionary skills, & spelling patterns. In addition, I like the Subject Words section which brings in different subjects into their spelling program. For example, the 5th grade book is reviewing the States and their capitals. In the 6th grade book, the Subject Words have been centered around anatomy. Each lesson offers a spelling test sentence list along with 2 sentences for dictation. All in all, I've been pleased. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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