teach spelling by
giving students a list on Monday
and a test on Friday with practice in
between. This
type of drill and practice has earned traditional
spelling
instruction a reputation for being boring.
As soon as one
spelling list is tested, another list
takes its place.
Now, there is an alternative to
traditional spelling instruction
called "Word Study,"
which is not based on the random memorization of
words. A word study program is a cohesive
approach that addresses word
recognition,
vocabulary, and phonics as well as spelling.
Traditional Methods of
Teaching how to spell
Rote memorization is not an effective way to learn
and remember. How many kids forget their spelling
words as soon as they finish the test?
With traditional spelling instruction, kids are passive
learners. Spelling is boring – for both the students
and the teacher!
Children move through the stages of spelling
development at a
different pace.
Just a handful of kids’ needs are met when the
entire
class has the same word list!
Advanced strategy to teach
spelling:
The advanced method to teach spelling is the
Word study method.
What is word study?
Word study provides students with opportunities
to investigate and
understand the patterns in
words. Knowledge of these patterns means that
students needn't learn to spell one word at a time.
1-In the first or early treatment sessions, make sure
the student has a
secure understanding of sound-
symbol correspondence and letter name
knowledge.
2-Dividing words into syllables can help students
identify spelling patterns at the morphological level.
3-Do not teach too many spelling patterns within a
lesson. For example,
you might decide to contrast
–tion versus –sion in a lesson. This will
require
acute attention to the verbal production of “shun”
(-tion) as in
“production” versus “zhun” (-sion) as in
“lesion.”
4-Make learning spelling fun with using cards,
games, activities.
5-List the most commonly misspelled words to be
studied and practiced .
6-Learning spelling through using affixes, suffixed
and prefixed.
7-Teach the long words spelling through showing
the words roots or origins.
8-Teach words that don't conform to regular patterns.
9-Seeing the word in print also helps one use
Spellcheck.
10-Teach spelling through homophones and silent
letters.
11-Spelling Word Memory:
Create a double set
of word cards and play a game of Spelling Word
Memory by spreading out the cards face down and
then taking turns
flipping two cards at a time to
find a pair!
12-Flip 4 Steps: In just 4
steps, your child can
practice reading, spelling, and writing his
words.
Have him flip over a word card, look at the word,
say it out loud,
say the letters, then flip it back over,
and write the word on paper.
13-Trace, copy, recall: Fold three columns on a
piece of paper, and label one column ‘trace’,
the
next ‘copy’ and the last ‘recall’. Write the word in
the first
column, and have your child trace the
letters.
Next have her copy the
word by looking at what
she’s just written. Have her fold (and
hide) the first
two columns and recall the spelling as she
writes
the word independently.
14-Spelling Word Race: Create
two teams, with a player from each team taking the ‘pen’ at a
time. Teacher calls out a word from the list, and players
race to write the word.
15-Spelling Puzzle: Make a
home-made puzzle by writing each word in large letters on an index card
and then having the child cut each card apart. The fun is in putting the
puzzle back together!
16-Stairsteps: Write words as if they are stairs, adding one letter at a time.
17-Window writing: All you need is special wind0w-safe crayons to use, and Window-Writing
makes learning spelling words totally crazy and so much fun! Example: ( S -SP -SPE- SPEL- SPELL).
18-WORDO: Kind of like Bingo but with letters, words, or numbers! (Or just stick with — but doesn’t WORDO! sound more fun?)
19-Water Paint: Use
water and a paintbrush to water paint the spelling words. On a hot,
sunny day, words disappear quickly, so spellers move fast!
20-With a computer and fun electronics:
Type it Out: Open up a Word
document and have your child type the spelling words on the screen as
you call them out. Enlarge the font, make it a cool color, and he’ll have
a ball.
Spell on Tape: Have your child spell the words into a tape recorder or using the voice recorder on your phone or computer.
Video Record: Pull out the video camera or flip cam and take a video of your child spelling the
words. Have him put on a funny hat, dress-up, or use a silly prop to
add to the fun.
Use puzzle maker:
Have your child type in all of the week’s spelling words and then let
her search for them using this cool resource from Discovery!
Use "Let them sing it": Type in a spelling word on this site, and the word is sung back to your student.
21-With space to run, jump, and play:
Chalkboard Race: Form two
teams, with one player from each team holding a piece of chalk and
standing at a designated spot about 10 feet from a chalkboard. Teacher
calls out a word, and players run to the board and write the word
correctly as quickly as possible. The winner finishes the word first and
spells it correctly.
Ball Toss: Players stand in a
circle with a Nerf ball or something else safe to toss. Teacher calls
out a word, tosses the ball to a student, and that student spells the
word.
If the word isn’t spelled correctly, the student tosses the ballto
another person who will try to spell it if it is spelled correctly, the player tosses object to another student and teacher gives her a new
word to spell.
Swing and Spell: Teacher
gives the student a word to spell, and the student says a letter of the
word with each back and forth movement of the swing, much like you can
do when teaching syllables.
22-With anything and everything else:
Spelling Word Hunt: Look for
those spelling list words in the newspaper or in another book,
magazine, or text! Circle them or use a highlighter to highlight them.
Scrabble, Boggle: Use these cool game pieces to ‘build’ spelling words on the on a cookie tray, on the table, or on the floor.
Crazy Words:
: Put something ‘crazy’ (like jell-o mix, shaving cream, sand, or rice)
on a cookie sheet, and have your child use his finger to ‘write’
spelling words on the tray.
Paint Bag Writing:
Put poster paint in a gallon-sized zip-lock bag and seal it tightly!
Then have your child use her fingertip to write the letters of each word
on the paint bag.
Stamp it: Use alphabet letter stamps to ‘stamp’ the spelling words first by looking at the words and then on your own!
23-With magnetic letters or letter cards:
Word Scramble: Scramble up
the letters of each word and have student put them in the correct
order. (Don’t forget to point out patterns and families!)
Word Train: Have your child create a ‘word train’ by using the last letter of the
first word to begin the second word : cat / tap / pan.
24-No prep, no materials:
Spell and Eat: While making
breakfast, lunch, or dinner, have your child spell a word, and after
each word is spelled correctly, reward her with a small, healthy “treat”
from your meal prep.
Examine the Word: Really look at
the words, talk about the tough parts and analyze patterns. Make up
silly ways of remembering the ‘tough’ parts: ‘president’ has an ‘I’ in
the middle because one day I’ll be president.
25-You can use fun spelling games — cards to cut into a Spelling Fun Box for days when you’re stuck, bored, in a rut,or want to leave that day’s spelling excitement up to a little at-home lottery.