Earthmerlin Posted June 21, 2016 Share Posted June 21, 2016 (edited) Hi. I've a rising 2nd grader who's pretty bright & creative. This tends to come out with her writing--making stories, writing notes, creating books. However, I have noticed a back slide with her spelling. She forgets simple words (i.e., two, does) but has progressed with harder words (i.e., special, autograph). I believe some of this is normal. I don't suspect there's any learning issue--just to bypass any subsequent poster's suggestions. I believe part of it is a child's natural brain growth. What I mean to say is that kids move forward in one area & simultaneously move back in another way--temporarily. Part of me knows this & that she's doing just fine for a 6 year old. Another part of me knows she spelled easier high frequency words better in Kinder. It's this second part that's nagging me. In Kinder she had a veteran teacher who placed an importance on (age-appropriate) writing & spelling. My daughter had a portable word wall & relied on it, stretched out words (to hear their sounds--letters better) & used phonetic spelling. In 1st grade I didn't see solid writing & spelling instruction. Referring to word walls & utilizing phonetic spelling basically disappeared. She now relies on us parents to spell unknown words. She even gets irritated if I ask her to sound out words--something she gladly & confidently did last year! For more than this reason--there are plenty--I am unhappy with her 1st grade teacher & feel I need to rectify some issues with my daughter's education. This is a long-winded way of asking for advice on low-pressure ways of providing spelling instruction at home this summer. Per her request, we have 'word challenges'--basically spelling tests--& I sneak in some words during these 'playing school' moments. We edit her writing from time to time too. We play hangman & use word tiles too (kind of like scrabble). Other than that, I'm stumped. I have 'What's Gnu?' & 'Snap It Up' spelling games I can pull out again. What other high interest spelling games are out there? Any games or activities to increase her fluency with K & 1st grade high frequency words? Also, (& perhaps more importantly) any suggestions on getting her back on track regarding her confidence & independence? I'd like her to not only progress but also be confident in her abilities & utilize age-appropriate resources. Thanks in advance! Edited June 21, 2016 by Earthmerlin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Tick Posted June 21, 2016 Share Posted June 21, 2016 The two things that come to mind for you to consider are Spelling City, which is an online program you can put your list into. There are a variety of free activities available. Also, I wonder if you could do a modified game of Bananagrams. Perhaps give her a word bank to work from. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Earthmerlin Posted July 3, 2016 Author Share Posted July 3, 2016 The two things that come to mind for you to consider are Spelling City, which is an online program you can put your list into. There are a variety of free activities available. Also, I wonder if you could do a modified game of Bananagrams. Perhaps give her a word bank to work from. As a follow up, I'd like to thank you for the 2 suggestions. Spelling City isn't much of a hit here although we enjoy Bananagrams. Our 1st game lasted a couple of days & we loved the family time! The bonus is that we're in Belgium for a month & Bananagrams easily fit in our luggage--so we can extend the spelling fun while on vacation! If you or any other members have additional suggestions, I'm all ears! Thanks.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jess4879 Posted July 3, 2016 Share Posted July 3, 2016 I think you are doing well with the games you currently play, to be honest, and I wouldn't worry about adding in any extra. Some of the back-slide could definitely be because of her love of writing. She could be getting so absorbed in the process of putting her ideas on paper that the spelling falls by the wayside. When she makes an error, have her try spelling that word in isolation during a game. It will give you a better idea of which words she truly knows. If you see a pattern in certain words, then you know to address that concept. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luuknam Posted July 3, 2016 Share Posted July 3, 2016 I don't know if this is a thing with spelling or not, but with speech kids will go through a phase of overgeneralizing rules, such that even if they used irregular verbs correctly in the past, they'll go through a phase of making irregular verbs regular, saying e.g. 'I standed' instead of 'I stood'. So, it's possible that as your kid is internalizing all the spelling rules, she might temporarily backslide with irregularly spelled words. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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