Daughter still can't spell

[Guest Carmie]

Any ideas for a 11 yo who is a terrible speller? Things have inproved somewht but I'm starting to think that she may always be a poor speller and that makes me nervous. I need something that wouldn't take more than 10-15 minutes a day since she has homework and will be resistent to doing the extra work.

 

Carmie

[fivetails]

Scrabble. :D

 

This is going under the tree this year for my own dd11 who isn't the best speller ever. She'll see a fun board game to play with Mum - I'll see an improvement in her spelling....hopefully. ;)

 

(Some people really are just not all that great at spelling though - I have several members of my family who are that way...very smart people, just can't spell for beans.)

[Melinda in VT]

My own son seems to be getting slightly better, but this is a struggle at our house as well.

 

The other day I was at parent-teacher conferences with for my twins. They are in the same class and DH and I were meeting with their teacher (who also had my older son) and the student teacher. We were discussing spelling and the student teacher said that of course my kids would be good spellers because they were good readers, and the teacher and I started laughing. My older son is a fantastic reader and yet if you saw his spelling you would be stunned that he could decode any written words. How he can read a word and yet be so off on the spelling when it comes to write the word is still a mystery to me.

 

Now that he's in junior high, he can spell check his papers on the computer, but even then, you have to come close enough to the spelling that the spell checker can guess what word you're trying to spell.

 

In any case, my brother was the same way and he's gone on to a very successful career in the Navy and now in private industry. We continue to work on it here, but we're not too distressed about it. (And, to put it in context, both DH and I have worked as editors and writers.)

[NicksMama-Zack's Mama Too]

My 10 year old struggled for years and his spelling and confidence has improved greatly. They are inexpensive. Start with workbook 1.

 

http://www.epsbooks.com/dynamic/catalog/series.asp?seriesonly=1825M

 

K

[lmrich]

spelling Power is designed for someone like you - I don't have much experience with it, but I am sure someone on this group does. Also, I would teach her to type and use spell check - I was able to enable my spell checker to not automatically correct the words, but make them go back and fix them.

[Karenathome]

My ds is also spelling challenged.;) He love Sequential Spelling because it is quick and painless. It also is based on spelling patterns. It was originally intended for dyslexic students.

 

We also do a page a day in a workbook called Apples. It is geared more towards middle school kids who still need help with spelling, and comes from a rule approach. It does include some Christian content.

 

Both resources have really helped my son, and are very affordable.

 

Blessings,

KarenG in MD

[Maria/ME]

We really enjoyed W.I.S.E. Guide for spelling! I thought I was a pretty decent speller and it's helped me spell better! I really love this whole method and highly recommend it! It was a new way of learning spelling for me, so bit more intensive, but worth it!

[jensway]

I have an almost 11 yr. old and he is spelling used to be really bad. I broke down a few months ago and purchased All About Spelling Level 1(used). We just finished Level 1 and my son is now spelling words by himself in emails to his relatives. He is so proud of himself. We will be starting Level 2 after the holidays.

 

We had tried several different curriculum before hearing about AAS, but none have worked near as well. It really doesn't take more than 10-15 mins. a day. Hands down this is the best spelling curriculum for my son. He benefits by the multi-sensory approach.

[mommytobees]

My ds is also spelling challenged.;) He love Sequential Spelling because it is quick and painless. It also is based on spelling patterns. It was originally intended for dyslexic students.

 

We also do a page a day in a workbook called Apples. It is geared more towards middle school kids who still need help with spelling, and comes from a rule approach. It does include some Christian content.

 

Both resources have really helped my son, and are very affordable.

 

Blessings,

KarenG in MD

 

_I_ have learned more with SSpelling than ALL of those years in school.

 

Kris, who is going to post again

[mommytobees]

Honestly, neither can I.

 

You have been given several suggestions; Sequential Spelling, Spelling Power, Mega Words. Each is a good program that will help a struggling speller, but WHICH one is a best idea for her? You won't know until you try.

 

Rather than focusing on spelling in the way "normal" people teach/learn spelling, I would recommend you decide WHAT you want your daughter to learn.

 

Expand her vocabulary.

Teach her how to use dictionaries/thesauruses. (I just had to open a program to TELL me how to spell thesaurus.)

Teach her how to type.

Teach her how to use Word and then REQUIRE her to type EVERYTHING, with correct spelling.

 

You have a child, is she bright? Is she CAPABLE of learning? Then spelling is NOT as important as learning how to compensate. How to get around the spelling problem.

 

Kris, who is now going back and correcting her spelling mistakes using her wonderful Mac and its always-on-spellchecker ----and I'll highlight the words for you

Edited December 21, 2008 by mommytobees

[cillakat]

Any ideas for a 11 yo who is a terrible speller? Things have inproved somewht but I'm starting to think that she may always be a poor speller and that makes me nervous. I need something that wouldn't take more than 10-15 minutes a day since she has homework and will be resistent to doing the extra work.

 

Carmie

 

As an Orton-Gillingham based program, All About Spelling is absolutely the best spelling instruction available for the truly struggling speller. It wouldn't be difficult to do 15 mins per day....and with an 11 yo, you'd be moving along much quicker than with a much younger child.

 

Don't give up. Everyone can spell decently-- and if not dyslexic, can spell very well. It's just that it generally hasn't been taught very well (ie memorized random lists).

 

Katherine

[PollyOR]

I understand. My now 13 year old could barely spell at 11. She was terrified when people asked her to fill out forms, etc. at church. If I wasn't going to be at a church function, I would take aside at least one leader and explain to them that she NEEDED help with any writing.

 

About a year ago she decided to write a novel. Her spelling was so poor that she couldn't pick out the correct word from the spell checker's suggested list. As I continued to check her spelling at her request, she started to improve as she saw the words corrected by me.

 

Also, we are using Phonetic Zoo. It is more than I ever thought I would spend on a spelling program, but I was getting desperate. I'm sure you understand. I believe my dd is an auditory learner and it seems to work to that strength.

 

These types of threads always have a lot of different suggestions for curriculum. There is so much out there! I hope you find what she needs soon. Not being able to spell can make kids very self-conscious.

 

Oh, dd refuses to play Scrabble with the family.

[fivetails]

Scrabble. :D

 

This is going under the tree this year for my own dd11 who isn't the best speller ever. She'll see a fun board game to play with Mum - I'll see an improvement in her spelling....hopefully. ;)

 

(Some people really are just not all that great at spelling though - I have several members of my family who are that way...very smart people, just can't spell for beans.)

 

I can't spell and Scrabble is just one long spelling test I didn't study for. Playing just highlights my struggle. I would have felt horrible to get it for Christmas from my parents. It's only a fun game if you can play well and you already have to be able to spell to play. Scrabble does not teach spelling.

 

To the OP - get something like AAS and really teach your child the rules. Also, I can't hear the difference between most of the vowels and that causes huge issues in spelling. I have only realized this as an adult but it would have been nice to figure it out earlier, even if there was nothing I could do about it. Knowing I can't hear the differences is easier than my thought process as a 10 yo that was basically "I am too stupid to spell....".

 

I guess I am a little sensitive about this issue. :001_huh:

 

Okay, the difference though is that dd11 *likes* many spelling-related games - she used to have the junior version of scrabble, she always wants to play hangman, etc etc.... she may not be a very good speller, but she has fun with the games...and she *does* learn from them - she learns the proper spelling of a lot of words by seeing them in the games...by using them...etc...

 

Kids (and people in general) are all different....see now, Megawords is suggested in this thread - we tried that and dd11 hated it. It didn't work at all....yet it's popular and many people like it....everyone is different...the rules approach didn't work here....

 

I'm sorry that you've had a hard time though - and I can certainly understand how & why you might be more sensitive to this kind of thing. :grouphug:

[Guest Lorna]

Any ideas for a 11 yo who is a terrible speller? Things have inproved somewht but I'm starting to think that she may always be a poor speller and that makes me nervous. I need something that wouldn't take more than 10-15 minutes a day since she has homework and will be resistent to doing the extra work.

 

Carmie

 

 

Have your child keep a spelling book. Choose a nice exercise book that appeals to him/her. Arrange it so that the pages are in alphabetical order (a double page for each letter of the alphabet). Whenever they ask for a tricky word to be spelled get them to copy the word into this book writing. Write in words you see them spell wrong too.

 

Each week choose ten to twenty words.

 

On day one get them to write the words onto small pieces of card and read them over; covering the words up and then testing themselves (10-15 minutes).

 

On day two get them to write each word three times.

 

On day three get them to check the words again with the cards. Now get them to write the first word down. Check it is okay (if it isn't don't worry, simply show them the correctly spelled card). Have them copy it three times if it was wrong. Now do a dictated sentence using that word (make up sentences that relate to your child's life - funny or silly ones work well). Continue in this way for every word.

 

On day four test the words. If the word is correct the child gets given the card, if a word is wrong the card is put in the box and added to next week's words. The child gets to put the correct words in the garbage!

 

I have found this method works really well with our son. He hates to get things wrong. It is effcient because the child learns the words that they are getting wrong already and words that they like to use.

 

In my experience reading is very important too for spelling. Make sure you child has plenty of books that they enjoy and that they read for at least an hour a day.

 

It takes time but it is so worth it!

[mchel210]

Also, we are using Phonetic Zoo. It is more than I ever thought I would spend on a spelling program, but I was getting desperate. I'm sure you understand. I believe my dd is an auditory learner and it seems to work to that strength.

 

These types of threads always have a lot of different suggestions for curriculum. There is so much out there! I hope you find what she needs soon. Not being able to spell can make kids very self-conscious.

 

Oh, dd refuses to play Scrabble with the family.

 

I was thinking of trying this with my 12 yo. It looks like it would be the only thing that would work. I also use Spellingcity.com with my 7yo. She loves that site.

[Karen sn]

My ds is also spelling challenged.;) He love Sequential Spelling because it is quick and painless. It also is based on spelling patterns. It was originally intended for dyslexic students.

 

We also do a page a day in a workbook called Apples. It is geared more towards middle school kids who still need help with spelling, and comes from a rule approach. It does include some Christian content.

 

Both resources have really helped my son, and are very affordable.

 

Blessings,

KarenG in MD

 

Sequential Spelling is working here as well.

11yo dyslexic dd - learning to spell.

[Perry]

My favorites for struggling spellers are Sequential Spelling, Megawords. and Apples and Pears. Of these three, I like Apples and Pears best.

[ElizabethB]

I have my spelling suggestions and a link to my free online spelling lessons here:

 

http://www.thephonicspage.org/On%20Spelling/spellingforsucce.html

[tarana]

I have an almost 11 yr. old and he is spelling used to be really bad. I broke down a few months ago and purchased All About Spelling Level 1(used). We just finished Level 1 and my son is now spelling words by himself in emails to his relatives. He is so proud of himself. We will be starting Level 2 after the holidays.

 

We had tried several different curriculum before hearing about AAS, but none have worked near as well. It really doesn't take more than 10-15 mins. a day. Hands down this is the best spelling curriculum for my son. He benefits by the multi-sensory approach.

 

1. Where did you get your All About Spelling Level 1 USED copy?

 

2. Are these books available in local stores in US?

 

3. Do you really need the Teacher's Manual also ? or will the Student's Workbook suffice?

 

I have a 7 yr old who is a good reader but a very POOR speller. It has been very frustrating to get her ready for her spelling test every week.

Edited May 26, 2009 by tarana

[Kareni]

Okay, the difference though is that dd11 *likes* many spelling-related games - she used to have the junior version of scrabble, she always wants to play hangman, etc etc.... she may not be a very good speller, but she has fun with the games...and she *does* learn from them - she learns the proper spelling of a lot of words by seeing them in the games...by using them...etc...

 

 

 

If she enjoys spelling-related games, she might also like Quiddler and Banagrams.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[KinderSafari]

If your kids like to read, don't worry so much about the reading. (at younger ages, like 7, anyway).

 

My oldest 2 were HORRIBLE spellers and we all just did terribly with the subject. I finally asked for ideas and had an older mom (with TWELVE kids) advise me just to have them read as much as possible.

 

Her theory? (And she didn't make this up, she got this from somewhere too.) Was that when kids are excellent readers, the more they read, the more the words form the correct pattern in the brain. The words will start to look WRONG when they are spelled wrong.

 

We dropped our spelling books that day and didn't quiz them again for a year and a half. (From 4th to 6th grade, and from 2nd to 4th grades). Both of their spelling had improved 2 grade levels. (So still about a year behind normal.)

 

But that happened with NO tears, no nagging, no frustration, etc. Just reading. We will pick it up again as it becomes necessary.

 

For us, that was a wonderful bit of wisdom for our particular family.

 

We worked on writing without correcting spelling. They started to write better because they didn't get hung up and frustrated about spelling.

 

That's just our own personal experience.

 

Of course spelling was still necessary for us for the younger levels when they're just beginning to read.

[PenKase]

I suppose I could say that I have two "natural" spelers. In my opinion, both my girls, ages 9 and 6, are excellent spellers mostly because of their strong phonics backgound. Whenever they do get stuck on a word, they use the sound out method and usually don't have a problem spelling it thereafter. Also, without a doubt, another key factor in my "natural" spellers' success is the deliberate practice of providing them with meaningful literature.

[Karla in Oregon]

http://www.espindle.org

 

eSpindle has been a wonderful find for my spelling challenged daughter. She is 11 and we started her at the 3rd grade level. She is tested on 25 words per day. She also uploads her own geography words and is tested on those. I can upload any words I would like her to work on. I am thrilled with her progress from using eSpindle.

[Renai]

I suppose I could say that I have two "natural" spelers. In my opinion, both my girls, ages 9 and 6, are excellent spellers mostly because of their strong phonics backgound. Whenever they do get stuck on a word, they use the sound out method and usually don't have a problem spelling it thereafter. Also, without a doubt, another key factor in my "natural" spellers' success is the deliberate practice of providing them with meaningful literature.

 

 

Not all children will "become" natural spellers, regardless of phonics background or how much literature they've been exposed to.

[Sara R]

My dd is 11 too, and is a poor speller in the process of remediation. We started Laurie4B's Overteaching Spelling Program with the Spelling Plus list 10 months ago.

 

We spend about 15 minutes per day. She gets a spelling test daily before school (about 5 minutes). I move words around in the spreadsheet (another 5 minutes). After school she practices her spelling words (about 5 minutes). Every week she gets a review test of the spelling words that she has passed off for the previous 3 weeks. Every month she gets a long spelling test with words she has passed off in the previous 3 months. We usually take a couple days to get through that one.

 

The idea is to overlearn the spelling words. It's not enough to know how to spell the word if you think hard about it, just like it's not enough to know what 7x6 is if you think about it. You have to know math facts automatically, so your limited brain power can concentrate on more complicated math. It's the same with spelling; you have to know how to spell the words automatically, so you can concentrate on the message when you write instead of the spelling.

 

The strength of this program is the review. With most spelling programs, you study a word for a week, but if you forget it, there is no mechanism to study it again. So if, the week after they practice a spelling word, they misspell it in their writing, you just bang your head against the wall and that is all. :) With this program, I just move the word in the spreadsheet, and she practices it again. The other strength is that it's free. The weakness is the parental time required to maintain the spreadsheet.

 

It's working. Last year her writing was unintelligible because she didn't know how to spell simple words. Now she spells the high frequency words correctly, and she only misspells big words or homonyms.

 

I plan to continue this program till the beginning of 7th grade or when she completes the Spelling Plus list. Then I'll switch her to Megawords.

[PenKase]

Not all children will "become" natural spellers, regardless of phonics background or how much literature they've been exposed to.

 

I was simply offering my opinion on what has worked for my children. I was agreeing with the poster who mentioned literature exposure as a means to improve spelling. I meant to offend no one. Pardon me if such has been the case for you. We are all entitled to our opinion and offer of advice. Not everything will work for everyone but maybe my experience may help someone here.

[Renai]

I was simply offering my opinion on what has worked for my children. I was agreeing with the poster who mentioned literature exposure as a means to improve spelling. I meant to offend no one. Pardon me if such has been the case for you. We are all entitled to our opinion and offer of advice. Not everything will work for everyone but maybe my experience may help someone here.

 

Offense? :confused: None taken here. I was also offering information. I've been on these boards for 8 years and know how they work.

 

The truth of the matter is, I forgot "which" board I was on- I peruse this one and a couple of others. I thought I was on the special needs board. There is so much misinformation out there as far as just read to them and surround them with books and they'll learn to read and/or spell, that those with children with problems (like dyslexia) think they're failing in some way. There was a thread about that just 1.5 months ago about that, which is why I responded to bring this information back into view.

 

We had one set of books when I was growing up, and don't remember anyone ever reading to me, but was a reader and natural speller. I don't remember how I learned to read, so no help there. My daughter has 25 times more books than I did, I've read to her since the womb, and has a phonics background (in both languages) but is certainly not a natural speller. Unfortunately, she did NOT take after me in this area :tongue_smilie:. I use All About Spelling with her and it's clicking now.

 

I've read (somewhere) that these children have a problem picturing the word in their minds (Elizabeth and Sara R would probably know more about this), so even if they read a lot, it does not transfer to their spelling. Now, that I think about, I used to have uncanny photographic memory- that probably helped.

 

Having said that, being exposed to literature- being read to- is very important for these children (especially if they're not reading well), because they get their vocabulary that way, which helps close that gap.

 

I'm looking at this thread, and realizing how old it is--it started in December 2008! :lol:

[Guest SueJ]

I had the same impulse -- the Ack!! Another "just expose them and they'll learn~" and then somebody did a little research and foundthat if kids know how to spell words, they'll be able to read 98% of them... of the words they could read, they could spell about 60%.

 

Some sources if you really want to dive in ;)

Resources:

 

1Rayner, K., White, S., Johnson, R., Liversedge, S. (2006). Raeding Wrods With Jubmled Lettres; There Is a Cost. Psychological Science 17(3), 192-193. Discussed at: http://blogs.msdn.com/fontblog/archive/2006/05/09/594050.aspx

 

2Vail, Priscilla (1991). Common Ground: Whole Language and Phonics Working Together. Rosemont, NJ: Modern Learning Press, p. 4

 

3Joshi, R., Treiman, R., Carreker, S., & Moats, L.. (2008-2009, Winter). The real magic of spelling: Improving reading and writing. American Educator , 9. http://www.aft.org/pubs-reports/american_educator/issues/winter08_09/joshi.pdf p. 10

 

 

 

5Donna J. Montgomery, George R. Karlan, and Martha Coutinho, “The Effectiveness of Word Processor Spell Checker Programs to Produce Target Words for Misspellings Generated by Students with Learning Disabilities,†Journal of Special Education Technology 16 (2001): 27–41. http://jset.unlv.edu/16.2/Montgomery/first.html

[AngieW in Texas]

For a kid who learns well with rules, I would recommend Megawords or All About Spelling.

 

For a kids who learns well with patterns, I would recommend Sequential Spelling.

 

My youngest is dyslexic. She doesn't learn well with rules, but does learn with patterns. I use Sequential Spelling with her. I type the words in at http://www.spellingcity.com for her to do the test there. Testing on the computer has worked better for her than trying to do spelling orally, on the whiteboard, or on paper.

[Homeschooling6]

If your kids like to read, don't worry so much about the reading. (at younger ages, like 7, anyway).

 

My oldest 2 were HORRIBLE spellers and we all just did terribly with the subject. I finally asked for ideas and had an older mom (with TWELVE kids) advise me just to have them read as much as possible.

 

Her theory? (And she didn't make this up, she got this from somewhere too.) Was that when kids are excellent readers, the more they read, the more the words form the correct pattern in the brain. The words will start to look WRONG when they are spelled wrong.

 

We dropped our spelling books that day and didn't quiz them again for a year and a half. (From 4th to 6th grade, and from 2nd to 4th grades). Both of their spelling had improved 2 grade levels. (So still about a year behind normal.)

 

But that happened with NO tears, no nagging, no frustration, etc. Just reading. We will pick it up again as it becomes necessary.

 

For us, that was a wonderful bit of wisdom for our particular family.

 

We worked on writing without correcting spelling. They started to write better because they didn't get hung up and frustrated about spelling.

 

That's just our own personal experience.

 

Of course spelling was still necessary for us for the younger levels when they're just beginning to read.

 

I thought this too. My 10yr. old dd who reads tons spells at a 3rd grade level. She can learn a word pretty quick though. She looks at it, studies it and for the most part can spell it later but she does need a spelling program

 

My 11 year old ds reads a lot, books like The Coral Island by R.M. Ballantyne and he spells at a 2nd grade level.

It's amazing how children are so different

[jillian]

scrabble

word games like boggle and the like

 

dh is a TERRIBLE speller. He knows what he has to spell but honestly he asks me how to spell things like "hiccup" and/or "easel

[Carin' For Seven]

We're still using the Wise Guide to Spelling. It seems to be working for us.

[Guest Betty Davis]

I thought this too. My 10yr. old dd who reads tons spells at a 3rd grade level. She can learn a word pretty quick though. She looks at it, studies it and for the most part can spell it later but she does need a spelling program

 

My 11 year old ds reads a lot, books like The Coral Island by R.M. Ballantyne and he spells at a 2nd grade level.

 

It's amazing how children are so different

 

Hello; I agree with you that definitely early learners would indeed review of the spelling. But my question is when teaching them phonics do you chunk the word families> Chunking just means rhyming words with a particular word family. For example cat, rat sat mat fat, By just changing the first letter your child now knows how to read and spell all the words in the at family. This theory is used for all word families. In that way children will recognize and be able to red fluently. I hope that helps. It seems like you are doing an awesome job!

[pmurphy]

I just realized this is an old post, but I thought I'd add my vote for Apples and Pears. My dd is 11 and a very self conscious poor speller. We started in level A this year and she is finally spelling high frequency words correctly. She sees in patterns--she told me that she finally remembered how to spell "little" instead of "littel" because it's all tall in the beginning and then it gets short at at the end.

This is an easy program to use, just pull out the teacher's bok which is scripted and have the student write in their book. No other equipment needed.

 

Tricia