The Keys to Spelling Success: Part 3

(POST PART 3/3)

In Part 1 and Part 2 of this series, I discussed the first six keys to spelling success that I ensure to integrate into my instruction:

This post will be about the ways in which multi-sensory practice, new concept reading, dictation, and mnemonic devices play roles in supporting spelling knowledge and fluency.

MULTI-SENSORY PRACTICE

Multisensory learning doesn’t just mean writing in sand or shaving cream! While these activities can be fun and engaging for certain purposes, there are a wide range of activities that can be multisensory AND low prep for all grade levels and content matter.

Multi-sensory instruction is the delivery of information through different sensory modalities. A multimodal approach is highly beneficial for all learners in order to maximize successful instruction. In fact, it has been confirmed with neuro imaging studies that following instruction that is multisensory, there is increased activity in the brain’s information processing as opposed to receiving input that engages only one modality. (Willis).

These are the three different modalities students can engage in to receive multi-sensory practice.

• Visual. Visual practice is learning by seeing. Examples of visual instructional practice include using photographs, illustrations, charts & graphs, diagrams & maps, video, cues, and flashcards during instructional practice.

• Auditory. Auditory practice is learning by hearing. Examples of auditory instructional practice includes conversations, retelling, mnemonic devices, storytelling, singing & rhythms, rhymes, and read alouds.

• Kinesthetic & Tactile. Kinesthetic and tactile instruction is learning by doing. Instructional practice within this modality incorporates textures, writing, manipulatives, and movement.

NEW CONCEPT READING

When students are introduced to a new concept, it is important to practice reading that new concept at both the word and sentence levels. New concept reading is decodable for them and focuses only on the new spelling pattern(s) and previously taught ones. To free up cognitive desk space, decodable texts are imperative so students are not expending energy trying to figure out other spelling patterns in the sets.

DICTATION

In addition to reading new concepts in words and sentences, dictation at the word and sentence levels must also be an integrated part of acquiring and retaining new spelling patterns.

mnemonic devices

A mnemonic device is a method that helps to recall and retain information. It’s a memory tactic. While spelling should not be taught through rote memorization, sometimes a mnemonic device can prove helpful. Here are a few examples:

• The words HERE and HEAR are homophones. The second one can be easily remembered because the word EAR is in the word, and we HEAR with our EAR.

• The word COMFORT can be tricky because of the r-controlled vowel sound that sounds like /er/. What do I tell my students? I ask them to think about the most comfortable piece of furniture in their house besides their bed. They usually guess the couch! Then I ask, “What do lots of little kids like to build using the couch cushions?” Many times, they answer, “A fort!” The word FORT is in COMFORT.

• When remembering the spellings for could, would, and should, a fun way to remember them is to say the first sound its corresponding letters followed by “o u lucky duck!”

It is usually the silliest mnemonic devices that stick, and it’s a good start to getting students in the habit of thinking about these memory techniques to help them along the way in many academic areas.

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The Keys to Spelling Success: Part 2

(POST PART 2/3)

In Part 1 of this series, I discussed the the first three keys of spelling success I ensure to integrate into my spelling instruction:

This post will be about the ways in which homophones, morphology, and etymology play a role in supporting spelling knowledge and fluency.

homophones

Coming from the Greek words meaning “same” and “sound”, homophones are words that sound the same but are spelled differently and have different meanings. These are words like your/you’re; to/too/two; and it’s/its. Homophones can cause great confusion when it comes to spelling and have a valuable place in spelling instruction. Students can learn to differentiate between homophones with practicing writing them in context and studying how and why they are constructed. And sometimes, mnemonic devices can play a role in helping students keep them straight. When a student uses spell check, the computer may not always identify homophones when they are misused. The top nine homophones that I focus on first at the upper elementary level include:

1. Accept / Except

2. Hear / Here

3. It's / Its

4. Passed / Past

5. Than / Then

6. Their / There / They're

7. To / Too / Two

8. Who's / Whose

9. You're / Your

For some fun combining homophone practice while acknowledging seasons and holidays, check out these seasonal and holiday homophone worksheets.

Morphology

Morphology is the study of how words are formed. A morpheme is the smallest unit of meaning. It can be a root or base, a prefix, or suffix. The word distraction has three morphemes: dis + tract + ed. Practice with understanding the meaning of specific morphemes will greatly aid not only vocabulary but improved spelling.

Morphology instruction can begin as early as kindergarten and first grade when students learn about the plural S and identifying base words, and then moving on to more advanced prefixes and suffixes as students advance into second and third grade. By fourth grade, morphology should be heavily woven into the curriculum. You can find a free download here for introducing the prefixes uni-, bi-, and tri-.

Using building bricks like these in the image below is a hands-on way to engage students in visualizing how morphemes work. For more Greek and Latin root activities featured in the bottom right image , click here.

Etymology

Etymology is the study of a word’s origin. The etymology of a word can teach us about how the word has changed over time influencing both spelling and pronunciation. It can help us make meaning of certain words with spellings that stump us.

Let’s look at the word Wednesday. Has that D ever stumped you? Once upon a time, the days of the week were given by the Romans. Sunday and Monday were named for the sun and moon, and the other days were named for the planets which were also Roman gods: Tuesday - Mars; Wednesday - Mercury; Thursday - Jupiter; Friday - Venus; and Saturday - Saturn.

In Nordic countries, the days were then given names after their gods which closely resembled traits of each Roman god. In Norse mythology there was a well-known god named Odin, or Woden, and it was he who was most like Mercury. So today we we have Woden’s Day -- or what we know as Wednesday.

Next time the spelling of a word causes confusion, look into its etymology!

Read keys 7-10 here.

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The Three Types of Spelling Errors

Spelling errors are errors, right? Does the type REALLY matter? Actually, a student’s writing sample can serve as authentic data, acting as a compass to help guide us in the right direction of instruction. When we look at students’ spelling errors, we are looking at valuable pieces of information — information that has the power to inform our instruction to improve their spelling.

Let’s take a look at each of the three types of spelling errors and the information we can take away from them.

Phonological errors

Phonological errors are made when not all sounds are identified in the word the student is attempting to spell. The student is not accurately matching the correct sounds (phonemes) to the correct letters (graphemes).

In some cases, students may struggle to say the correct sounds. For example, a child may say /f/ for /th/, and words like bath or teeth become baf and teef.

In an attempt to spell much, students may confuse the CH and SH digraphs, and instead write mush.

Another example of a phonological error is writing set instead of sent or sip instead of skip, when students are not able to hear all of the sounds in the word.

When phonological errors occur, we need to focus more on phonemic and phonological awareness. We need to give segmenting and blending some more practice. We may also need to put our writers in front of mirrors to show how their mouths move when articulating each phoneme.

Orthographic errors

Orthographic errors are made when incorrect spelling patterns are used to map the sounds, but they are somewhat logical errors. They are not the result of misheard sounds. These errors may happen because the student hasn’t yet acquired the knowledge of specific spelling generalizations, or doesn’t have mastery of the specific phoneme-grapheme relationship for a specific sound they are trying to spell.

With these types of errors, a student may write klap for clap, not knowing that K and L are not blended together. (This is an example of why teaching blends can be helpful.) Other examples of orthographic errors include skool for school and kik for kick. Students who make these errors are able to hear and match each sound made with a grapheme (letter or letters), but may not have learned all of the spelling patterns for a particular sound and when to use which. Or maybe they have forgotten a specific generalization, such as when the /k/ sound immediately follows a short vowel in a single syllable word, the spelling is CK.

When orthographic errors occur, students benefit most from explicit instruction on spelling generalizations, and putting that knowledge into place with cumulative practice.

Morphological ERRORS

Morphological errors occur when the spelling error is with inflectional and derivational endings. These errors indicate the need to focus on how these endings connect with meaning.

An example of a morphological spelling error is spelling catz instead of cats. Students know they want to convey that there is more than one cat, but they hear /z/, and therefore spell the word with a Z.

In this scenario, students can be taught that the letter S is a plural suffix which can sound like either /s/ or /z/, but that when students are conveying that a noun is plural — more than one — it will always be S. To expand on this suffix, the different plural endings can be taught — S, ES, and IES.

The same is true for an error such as washt for washed. The past tense is intended here, but students may not have yet been explicitly taught that whether the ending sound is /id/, /d/, or /t/, it is always spelled ED.

Other examples of morphological spelling errors include helpfull for helpful and vacashun for vacation.

When morphological errors occur, students are ready for explicit instruction on the different suffixes.

When we use our students’ writing samples to inform our instruction, we are using authentic data to drive instruction. When we can break down the types of errors our students are making, we can address the gaps quicker.

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6 Ways to Build Background Knowledge

Background knowledge is a significant driving factor behind successful reading comprehension. Without it, readers struggle to make connections and grasp what they are reading. Students will come with different types of background knowledge, some more than others. This will be dependent upon many factors, such as:

• How language-rich the student’s home environment is (the books read to that student and discussions with caregivers)

• The access students have had to places such as museums, libraries, and other hands-on learning destinations to develop new knowledge and make connections

• Extracurricular and enrichment activities

• Opportunities for travel

• Exposure to other cultures

The above are variables that we cannot control, so we focus on what we CAN control to build a sturdy framework of background knowledge. Here are my favorite ways for helping students build background knowledge regardless of their socioeconomic background:

1. Read Alouds

   Read Alouds using picture books with authentic visual information is a powerful way to pack knowledge and information about a new topic.

2. Field Trips

   Whether virtual or in-person, field trips are fantastic ways to learn about and engage in new topics. Since the pandemic, there is more opportunity now than ever to explore places, history, topics with a click of a mouse, and interact with guides and experts in the field.

3. Guest Speakers

   Guest speakers can range from a child’s family member in a specific field of interest or relevance to someone in the local community.

4. Show and Tell with Intention

   This isn’t the type of show and tell done in the early grades. This type of show and tell is done with a specific intention using an explicit outline to follow. The student would prepare an “expert presentation” about the item’s relevance, and facilitate a Q&A to further engage peers in discussion.

5. Informational and Appropriate Media

   Whether it be a musical performance, famous speech, photographs or other piece of art, or short video, we can use the good that media does have to offer to connect our students with critical background knowledge.

6. Sensory Experiences

   Engage students’ senses to connect more deeply with topics. Studying coconuts? Bring one in to explore. Learning about medicinal plants? Bring in an aloe plant!

Background knowledge should always be presented with rich, academic vocabulary that students become fluent in, both receptively and expressively.

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