Poor Spelling and Your Child

A second grader is excited about his first creative writing assignment for school. He's busy writing a story about his new puppy, and feeling pretty good about it. As he writes, he pictures the pup's soft fur and floppy ears. He is eager to relate these details. But then he freezes: he's faced with spelling the word floppy.

He feels he has two choices: try to spell the word the best way he can from memory, or choose a different word so he isn't caught botching the spelling. He doesn't want to be wrong, so he opts for an easier word: big. Sure, his dog's ears are big, but that wasn't the description he was looking for.

Now he's a frustrated writer—he knows what he wants to say, yet he can't spell it and therefore can't express it. "I'm not good at writing," is the feedback he gives himself. In fact, he is feeling like he isn't a very good student either, and he begins a trend of avoiding writing.

How did this happen?

This student has not mastered the basics of spelling. He's still approaching his reading and writing efforts in a "hit or miss" way. Does this mean he is learning impaired, he just "isn't getting it," or maybe he's not trying? Absolutely not. In a situation like this, the student has not received the proper amount of training and practice needed to become a good speller.

Many of the current spelling programs that are widely accepted and used by homeschooling parents fall short for several reasons.

• They fail to teach the fundamental rules of spelling. They don't supply students with the knowledge needed to become good spellers.

• The spelling material is presented in a way that makes it difficult for parents to teach without first having some measure of teacher training or supervision.

• They do not address the unique challenges faced by dyslexic, ADD, ADHD, and remedial readers. Concepts are presented in a disorganized way, thereby making it difficult for students to relate one lesson to the next.

• Their spelling rules don't always hold true in every situation. The many "exceptions to the rule" appear to negate the rule, confusing and discouraging the student.

• The techniques they recommend are faulty, such as memorizing strings of letters or word shapes as a means of learning how to spell.

• They lack structure and don't employ methods that facilitate concept mastery and long-term memorization. Students “learn” a list of words, then forget them by the next week.

What is the solution?

Make sure that your student understands the foundations of English spelling.

The All About Spelling series teaches the above fundamentals by way of thorough and direct step-by-step instruction. With each new lesson, your student learns a new spelling concept and corresponding words. He is given multiple opportunities to practice and eventually master that concept by writing phrases and sentences from dictation. The lessons help your student become very familiar with common spelling patterns so he can take what he has learned and apply that knowledge to more words.

Imagine if the frustrated creative writing student from the story above was able to apply reliable rules as a means of problem-solving spelling challenges on his own? Just think what such knowledge might do for that student's confidence level. It's more than just spelling mastery—it's empowerment that begins in the early years.

Spelling is a skill that's used in just about every other subject. In the future, your child will be taking written tests and writing letters, essays, and book reports in reading, English, science, history, health, and many other subjects. Junior high and high school will require even more of the same type of effort—and this is where many students who fail to master the basics fall behind. Wouldn't it be wonderful to know that your child is well prepared for a lifetime love of learning?

This coming school year, provide your student with the best possible start. If you are working with a beginning student, teach him the concepts that will allow him to become a successful writer. If you are working with an older student, help him build the foundation that he is missing and give him the tools he needs to succeed.