Spelling does not come naturally for all children. In our homeschool, I had one child who studied spelling rules in first grade and naturally excelled at spelling. In later school years, she won 2nd place in the local homeschool spelling bee (without studying). I dropped spelling all together in elementary school to allow her to pursue other interests. But she is not the focus of this article! Nope. Let me introduce you to my second child. This young man worked on spelling from grade school until high school. Bless his heart. This child would memorize rules and complete endless worksheets as he struggled to spell correctly. While spelling never came as easy to him as his older sister, his spelling improved with creativity and effort. If you have a struggling speller, here are a few things that we did at home that you can try.
Elementary
In the elementary years, games and hands on activities were the keys for success. Handwriting was a tremendous struggle for this child also, so I sought creative ways to practice spelling that did not involve putting pencil to paper. Often, he would focus so intently on the correct letter formations, that he lost sight of the goal: correct spelling. One way we streamlined spelling was to use Scrabble (or Bananagrams!) tiles to spell out his words as well as letter tile magnets or letter flash cards. You can inexpensively create letter flash cards using index cards and markers. We preferred different colors for vowels, consonants, and the letter and vowel blends. This gave him the opportunity to show me that he could spell the words correctly without the frustration of penmanship. Another activity that made spelling practice fun was writing spelling words with finger paints or dry erase markers on a white board. When writing his words in this manner, the stress of perfect letter formation was eliminated as there were no lines to follow. My goal was spelling accuracy.
Middle School
Entering middle school, my son’s spelling improved somewhat but not to the degree I hoped based on the amount of effort put into in the elementary years. At this point, he switched from a workbook approach to an auditory-based spelling program. We also added more physical activities for spelling practice. A favorite was to grab a basketball and shoot some hoops. We would take the word(s) that presented the greatest struggle and play a game of “HORSE” using the targeted word(s). Not familiar with the rules of HORSE? You can find a great explanation here.
While not as physical, hangman provided fun spelling practice. Take Hangman to the next level by asking your child to create the game using his spelling words for you (the parent) to guess the word. This adds an additional challenge to the child, as he will need to remember the word and order of letters as the parent solves the word. While it is possible to have a sibling play hangman with your child, if you are working on his spelling words, it is best for the parent to guess to protect the struggling speller’s confidence. This game is available online at Spelling City (for a fee) if computer based learning is beneficial for your learner. In the middle school years, spelling practice can also be accomplished through writing (or typing) a story using all of the words.
High School
At this point of your spelling journey, you and your struggling speller may be getting quite discouraged. We did. While my son learned to spell many words through the activities above, there were still some words that appeared unattainable. At this point, we sought to conquer the most commonly used words using Root Words.
My goal was to make sure he was solid on the most common words he would use in college (and beyond) and give him the tools to understand our English language well enough to break down complicated words and understand them. This methodology helped him with spelling and vocabulary, which helped him tremendously in his basic EMT courses. Root-based programs may be started in middle school as well.
Teens who learn best by doing or moving will find hangman and basketball an excellent method to practice spelling words that will grow with them. Additionally, we began to include more computer work, but limited the spell check program that is included in word processing programs. In the settings of your word processing program, you can set the spell check program to identify a misspelled word but not correct it. This alerts your teen to the incorrectly spelled word and allows them to correct the spelling.
Hopefully this has given you some practical ways to assist your struggling speller. These ideas are great for all spellers as it keeps learning fresh. At Rainbow, our goal is to help you and your child to succeed in learning. We are here to help you. Please reach out with specific questions or struggles. Our curriculum consultants are available via live chat, email, or on the telephone.
