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Learning spelling by visualizing
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I love the idea of using Spelling Wisdom. However, I am struggling with the concept of learning to spell a word just by visualizing the letters in it. I am a strong believer in phonics and want my children to learn why a word is spelled a certain way. How is learning to spell a word by visualizing the letters that make it up different than learning to read by memorizing words by sight instead of phonetically?
Hi!
Just because one uses Spelling Wisdom or tries to use CM methods to help does not mean that you do not teach phonics or phonetic spelling when necessary! For starters, a child taught to read using CM methods will be regularly spelling words as phonics practice during reading sessions.
Do you have the CM six-volume set? It’ll take me a little bit of digging as I’ve misplaced my “cheat sheet” book, Penny Gardner’s, which gives page numbers to read for different topics, but I’ll try to hunt up the exact page numbers.
When we prepare a word during our dictation preparation, we do MANY things. Certainly ONE of those things includes analyzing it phonetically, if applicable. (Some English words are so odd that one needs to manufacture a large number of “rules” just to cover them, and in those cases it’s easier on my old brain to just learn the word. LOL) We also discuss what it means, what language it comes from, other similar words, etc. AND we also use the visualizing method. I find this to be a good “tie it all together” thing at the end. All the other information can kind of “hang” on the visual picture of the word.
I have to admit, that while part of me “likes” the idea of being able to phonetically spell words, that without exception every really good speller I’ve ever known, when I was a student, when I was teaching, and now as a parent, has been able to “visualize” the word. I somehow learned to do this early in childhood. My very bright husband, who is an excellent reader, a successful attorney, very articulate–he has never learned this trick, and he, although he is smarter than I am, he cannot spell. (Good thing for computer spell-check and secretaries!)
Charlotte wasn’t ANTI-phonics. She just viewed it as a tool, not as “reading” itself, or “spelling” itself. Reading is much more than phonics, although phonics skills are necessary, they are not in themselves sufficient. So, too, with spelling. You’ll note that the spellers on TV when the spelling bee is on–they use all these different methods—some phonics, visualizing, comparing to other words, using word origins, etc. Have you ever noticed how many close their eyes or look up at the ceiling? From experience, I can tell you—they are looking to “see” the word so they can spell it. 🙂
Does this help? Let me know if you want me to dig up the relevant Original Series passages.
Michelle D
I would like to add a note from personal eperience. All my life I have been a good speller, I’m not trying to brag, it’s just always come easy to me. I’m sure phonics is a large portion of the reason, and my teaching my children phonics has stengthened it. However, I would attribute spelling success with “seeing” the word in my mind’s eye. Being an avid reader all of my life, I have been exposed to many words. I “see” those words in my head when I need to retreive them. On paper, I determine more if a word is misspelled due to it not “looking” correct than remembering phonics rules.
I do admit that it is easier for a person whose 1st learning style is visual, which mine is, as is my son. Though I know now from helping my daughter, whose visual skills are last on her learning style list, that visual stength in spelling can be emboldened by avid reading and exposure to many words used in context. The same goes for grammer usage.
I hope this gives you alittle reassurance.
(Now having said this, I hope I didn’t misspell any words?!)
Rachel
Thanks for the replies. I thought perhaps phonetic analysis could be one of the methods used to study the word. I agree that a combination of methods is good.
Bookworm-I don’t need the original references right now. My brain is too much on the side of overload to research this further. It was just a question that has been niggling in my brain so wanted to put it out there. Thanks much for the offer.
There, I knew it! I was in such a hurry this morning that I didn’t proofread my post and wouldn’t you know-I had one typo (experience) and an honest-to-goodness misspelling (retrieve). As I reread it tonight, I noticed it! AARGH!! It didn’t “look” right and I fixed it by remembering the phonics rule! How’s that for combining learning tools?
Rachel
Dear Michelle
“Do you have the CM six-volume set? It’ll take me a little bit of digging as I’ve misplaced my “cheat sheet” book, Penny Gardner’s, which gives page numbers to read for different topics, but I’ll try to hunt up the exact page numbers.”
Could you tell me what the Six-volume set is? Also, what is Penny Gardner’s book?
Thanks,
Kara
Yes. The six-volume set I mentioned are Charlotte Mason’s own writings, published today as the Original Homeschooling Series.
The Penny Gardner book is the Charlotte Mason Study Guide, which I find very helpful since instead of just discussing CM methods, it quotes extensively from the series and also gives locations in the series for further reading on a topic. Since the six-volume set is very big! I often need help in locating a passage I know I read, but can’t remember exactly where–often the Study Guide helps me locate this. The Study Guide can be found here: http://www.pennygardner.com/cm_study_guide.html
Michelle D
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