Spelling

Why Phonological Awareness Is Important for Reading and Spelling

By: Louisa Moats and Carol Tolman (2008)

Phonological awareness is critical for learning to read any alphabetic writing system. And research shows that difficulty with phoneme awareness and other phonological skills is a predictor of poor reading and spelling development.

Six Syllable Types

By: Louisa Moats and Carol Tolman (2008)

Learn the six types of syllables found in English orthography, why it's important to teach syllables, and the sequence in which students learn about both spoken and written syllables.

Historical Layers of English

By: Louisa Moats and Carol Tolman (2008)

English is a layer-cake language. Not only is it organized to represent sounds, syllables, and morphemes, but its spellings are derived from several languages that were amalgamated over hundreds of years due to political and social changes in Great Britain.

English Gets a Bad Rap!

By: Louisa Moats and Carol Tolman (2008)

English orthography, or the English spelling system, may not be as transparent or easy to spell as Spanish, Italian, or Serbo-Croatian, but it's not crazy! Most English word spellings can be explained and most English words do follow spelling patterns.

The Basic Spelling Vocabulary List

By: Steven Graham, Karen R. Harris, and Connie Loynachan (2008)

This list was devised to help educators know which spelling words should be taught to children. The list contains 850 words that account for 80 percent of the words children use in their writing; the ones they need to be able to spell correctly.

How Spelling Supports Reading

By: Louisa Moats (2006)

Many young readers are puzzled by the rules and exceptions of spelling. Research has shown, however, that learning to spell and learning to read rely on much of the same underlying knowledge. Read this article to learn more about the relationships between letters and sounds and how a proper understanding of spelling mechanics can lead to improved reading.

Spelling and Students with Learning Disabilities

By: Louise Spear-Swerling (2005)

Spelling difficulties can be enduring in individuals with reading disabilities, sometimes even after reading has been successfully remediated. Addressing spelling difficulties is important, because poor spelling can hamper writing and can convey a negative impression even when the content of the writing is excellent.

Spelling: Watch & Learn

By: Reading Rockets (2004)

The following are three short video clips that offer you the chance to watch and learn effective techniques for teaching spelling. The video clips are from Reading Rockets' PBS television series Launching Young Readers.

Five Guidelines for Learning Spelling and Six Ways for Practicing Spelling

By: Susan Jones (2002)

Here are some concrete techniques that children can use to study spelling. This article also shares guidelines teachers and students should keep in mind, because practice makes permanent.

Spelling: Logical, Learnable, and Critical

By: Shane Templeton (2002)

Although occasionally frustrating, spelling is logical, learnable, and critical to reading as well as to writing — but the most important thing is, it makes sense.

Word Study: A New Approach to Teaching Spelling

By: Diane Henry Leipzig (2000)

"Word study" is an alternative to traditional spelling instruction. It is based on learning word patterns rather than memorizing unconnected words. This article describes the word study approach.

Spelling and Handwriting

By: Learning First Alliance (2000)

Learning how to spell and print words conventionally are important aspects of learning to write. Find out about the need for explicit instruction in these areas and applied practice of these skills in the context of purposeful writing.

A Weekly Procedure for Teaching Spelling

By: Bruce Murray (1999)

When students study spelling words, they usually memorize a sequence of letters that they promptly forget once the test is over. Learn about a method for teaching kids spelling words that focuses them on the sequence of sounds in words first. Also learn tips for creating a successful spelling program.

Writing and Spelling: Practical Ideas for Parents

By: Texas Education Agency (1996)

As children learn some letter-sound matches and start to read, they begin to write words and sentences. Seeing how words are spelled helps children in reading and writing.

Learning to Read, Reading to Learn

By: National Center to Improve the Tools of Educators (1996)

Thousands of children have a learning disability, and many more fail in school because of difficulties in learning to read. An analysis of decades of research about how young children can best learn to read indicates that, in most cases, these difficulties can be prevented. The following are concrete strategies teachers can use to help students build a solid foundation for reading.

Putting Spelling in Perspective

By: Donald R. Bear, M.A. Invernizzi, S. Templeton, and Francine Johnston (1996)

There are about 400,000 words in a dictionary. Only 13 percent of these words are truly exceptional, in that they must be memorized by sight.

Invented Spelling and Spelling Development

By: Elaine Lutz (1986)

Children progress through certain stages of spelling development. Knowing this progression allows teachers to compel development through their instruction. Find out strategies for doing so in this article, such as promoting the use of invented spelling in the early stages.

Spelling: Instructional Guidelines

By: Elaine Lutz (1986)

A spelling program has many components. Some of the main components that each grade level should introduce are highlighted below.