My nine-year-old daughter is in 4th grade and is doing just great in all subjects....except spelling. To give you some idea about how her brain works: She has excelled at math from the beginning, is learning to play the piano almost effortlessly, loves science and related areas, her comprehension and vocabulary are good but she lagged significantly behind "class level" in reading through first and second grade but caught up in 3rd grade and was doing great at the end of the last school year. She is currently in the accelerated math class and the 3-day/week G&T pull-out class sessions.
Her 3rd grade teacher talked to us throughout last year about how hard my daughter has to work at writing, and the result is still sloppy and the spelling is not good at all. The teacher told us that she doesn't improve in these areas in the next year or so, she could be labeled "learning disabled" in writing. I don't have a huge problem with that, since that would mean that the school would allow her to use tools, like a laptop, to take notes with instead of handwriting, which causes her so much effort and takes so much time that she falls behind the rest of the class.
The question I have is, are there any tools/techniques that you've used to help a child understand spelling? She now spells almost completely "phonetically" so that when you sound out her writing, it makes perfect sense, but it doesn't follow the rules, and especially the exceptions, of English spelling.
Thank you for all of your thoughtful responses! I agree with those who said that spelling alone is not a big issue. Her difficulty with writing overall is the issue. It’s beginning to lead to tears of frustration when her homework requires even a little writing. I don’t want her challenge with writing to hold her back in other subjects.
She does read every day, her choice. After her earlier struggles with reading, I just about fainted with pleasure the first time she asked if she could stay up a little later to keep reading! I of course will keep encouraging this.
Our children sometimes seem to be here to challenge and stretch us, as her strengths are about opposite with mine. I find reading and spelling to come so naturally, where I had to work at math…
I looked up and read several articles about dysgraphia and there are enough similarities with what I’ve been seeing that I will ask her Ped about an OT referral at the appointment we have scheduled for next week.
In one of the articles I read, a tool called the Franklin Language Master was recommended. It is a small electronic dictionary device that allows the child to type in a word phonetically and it will suggest proper spellings. Has anyone tried this?
Both www.spellingcity.com and the Spelling Power curriculum look great!
Thanks again!
S.
When practicing her spelling words, sing them out rather then just spell them. I did this with teaching my kids how to spell their names when they were 2 years old... it really does work.
Spelling alone is probably not such an issue - I agree, that most people excel at certain skills, and struggle more with others. However, the handwriting struggle is a red flag for me. I'd suggest you get a referral for an occupational therapy evaluation from your pediatrician. There may be something like dyslexia going on (which an OT can identify and help your daughter learn to work with) or it could just be that there is some basic skill or underdeveloped muscle group or reflex that is holding her back, also things that an OT can help to manage. Handwriting is a fine motor skill, and can be developed.
(My son has been in OT for the past year and a half for ADHD, and it's been such a huge help to him and to our family.)
S.~
I am glad to see your attitude toward your daughter's struggle with Spelling. I was on the other side of this coin. Great in Language arts and Science, Math on the other hand was a struggle for me. We cannot be great at everything. In my opinion your attitude is refreshing.
I homeschool my kids (ages 12 & 8). My son excels in Math, daughter in language arts. I think giving your child the tools she needs to succeed (like the lap top example) is great. Giving her plenty of praise in what she's good at and reminding her that we all have things we have to work harder at than others is reality. Had this very conversation this morning with my son. He was discouraged in reading today. He has to work hard and can't understand why the rules change all the time in pronunciation. :)
I use Spelling Power with my daughter and will use it with my son when it's time. I didn't start spelling with my daughter until 4th grade believing if she read great books (the classics) she would be exposed to seeing words correctly spelled and would find it easier to spell. It has worked beautifully (this is Charlotte Mason's Education theory). We are taught to read phonetically so it's hard to separate that when you start spelling.
As adults when we have something we struggle with we come up with coping mechanisms. I know I'm not great at Math so I use a calculator to balance my checkbook. Could I do it on paper, sure, but why would I. Your daughter will use spell check and the dictionary more frequently than others maybe, so what!?! :)
Blessings to you as you guide your daughter through her education.
L.
I could get a backlash for this but, really, spelling is that important? Admittedly it bothers me when I errors, especially my own, but sounds like you may have a differently oriented girl. She sort of sounds like a classic science oriented academic who don't have time or the inclination for such petty things as spelling when a nifty computer will do that sort of work.
For her, the "learning disabled" tag might completely work to her advantage and her interest.
Sounds like she loves learning and it would be a shame if the distraction of something that is less vital in this current world took away her particular passion and gifts.
spellingcity.com has done wonders!
You might like www.spellingcity.com . Another mom here recommended it so I decided to try it with my 8th grade homeschooler (who sounds similar your daughter). He started homeschooling in the 3rd grade because he had about 3 grade levels between his math and reading.
Let me just say - I LOVE spellingcity.com. One of the best things is they SAY the words, and read them in a sentence. Your child can TYPE the words instead of having to throw in another issue like hand-writing (my son has dysgraphia). We work on hand-writing separately. At some point I will merge the two again.
Prior to that I used "Phonetic Zoo" - a homeschooling program. It's great, too, but requires the parent to grade and the child also has to write the words.
My child was a completely phonetic speller, too, and that really doesn't work well with the English language. Not to mention most of the "rules" have numerous exceptions.
What an irony - I was a gifted speller (and a voracious reader) when I was a kid. My son's reading tutor says that spelling is like perfect pitch - you either have it or you don't. She also tells us to not agonize over it.
I'm shooting for the basic 1200-1400 words that he really needs to know how to spell. The rest - he will have to rely on spell check.
Another irony - he's great with vocab, i.e., - he knows the meanings to the words - just can't always spell them correctly.
Good luck . . . I'm right there with you.
I know an excellent student who could never memorize the way words were spelled, so all she could do was write them phonetically. Later she learned to close her eyes and "see" the word as a whole picture. Then she could write it down. It was like a mini-miracle. Perhaps this might help your daughter. Best of luck!
http://www.diannecraft.com/article-002.htm
Read this article. I hope it helps.
Try having your daughter type out her spelling words. At least that may help with the memorization of them. Or see if you can find foam letters (small ones) or letter blocks that she can use to put the spelling words together. More hands on. It obviously doesn't help the sloppy spelling but I found with my kids learning the words was all about repetition. I used to have my oldest son write out his spelling words each 3 times a night and through the week once he knew one, he only had to write it once.
Good luck!
Have you researched dysgraphia? It often presents with exceptional children, making them 2x exceptional. It is a processing issue that results in possible: poor penmanship, pain when writing, spelling errors, capitalization and punctuation errors, reversals, etc. The best thing that can be done for dysgraphia is to provide/allow the use of technology.
Has she been evaluated for dyslexia?
Google - Orton Gillingham method for teaching kids to read and spell.
Have her read more. This needn't be a chapter book either, could be other areas of interest. She likes math and science, what about a science magazine . My son loves cooking and often, he reads cookbooks, no I don't mean the recipes (although he does enjoy reading those) but he will also read up on the history of a specific cuisine or even spice.. While I do like him to read a chapter book from time to time, I also allow him to enjoy reading for something that interests him. This way, it makes reading fun..
I agree that constant reading will help her. She can memorize spelling, and that's how a lot of children have to do it.
English is one of the most difficult languages to spell, because our rules change and have so many exceptions that I have a hard time calling any of them "rules." They're more like "sometimes."
read read read...
Find her a book series that she loves. Not one on the "suggested reading list" but a book series that captures her attention, the kind that you'll catch her with a flashlight under the sheets way past bedtime reading!
My favorite books were the "Ann of green gables" books. When I was in 1st grade and second grade my reading level was not "up to par" - neither was my spelling. My first problem was that I had undiagnosed sight impairment (i needed glasses-sigh). Second, I was bored. I had GREAT comprehension, but I could care less about dot and spot. I needed drama, excitement, romance... a plot- not spot. (oh i crack my self up! hehehe)
The intricacies of the English language are easier to learn through recognition and practice. You know how you read a word that is misspelled and you just "know" it is? That is because your mind recognizes that it looks wrong because it has seen it or similar words many times before- usually from reading.
My second bit of advice- put her in a language course, ideally a romance language like italian, spanish, or french. You learn a lot more about both languages when you learn a second one. and it may get her interested in the origin of words and how they are "built".
Good Luck!
-M.
