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Question about Spelling Wisdom vs. typical program
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Hi! I am new here, and I have a question about the Spelling Wisdom books. As far as I can tell, these books do not teach spelling in the traditional way with all the spelling rules listed and then studied ad infinitum… is that a good thing? If it is can someone explain to me why it is ok to depart from this more typical way of teaching spelling? I would love to go with this program for my dc, I am so drawn to it… but I need to know why it is good and right to teach it this way — I hope this question makes sense! Thanks for bearing with me and any thoughts/opinions are welcome. I am especially interested if you have switched from something like Spelling Power or Spelling Workout, and why you prefer this. Thanks very much!
We have used both that you mentioned. We did get good results from SP but I really wanted dictation to be a part of our school time. My boys like it. I enjoy that they are learning from real people or books rather than just a word. It does take longer but I know that they will not forget how to spell the words they have learned like they were with SP or SW.
I am also jumping in here. I currently use Spell to Write and Read. I love the program, but it is very time consuming with all the rules, phonograms, dictation of words ect… I also have Spelling Wisdom, and we use it for dictation. I have been wondering for some time is I “need” to be using SWR, and if SW would be enough. So…I guess I am also interested in others feedback on this approach. Thanks.
If it is can someone explain to me why it is ok to depart from this more typical way of teaching spelling? I would love to go with this program for my dc, I am so drawn to it… but I need to know why it is good and right to teach it this way
Spelling Wisdom teaches the spelling of most of the same words found in traditional spelling lists. In fact, the text incorporates the 6,000 most frequently used words. Traditional spelling methods use a list of words with no relationship to use. In contrast, Spelling Wisdom teaches spelling within quotes from good literature. This allows your child to not only learn the words but learn them in their context of use. As a bonus your child is being exposed to punctuation, grammar, and interesting topics.
Hi. I’m new here too. i’ve been looking at SW and it looks great. What do others do when a word is spelled incorrectly? Do you use it to form a list for subsequent testing or just point out the error and move on?
thanks
kathy
If a word is spelled incorrectly during dictation, it is very important to remove the word immediately. Erase it, mark over it, white it out. If I have a child misspell a word during dictation (I am right there watching him write) then while he erases it, I write the word up correctly on our whiteboard. I ask him to spend a little time visualizing it until he can see it (sometimes I wait to do this after dictation is finished so as not to break up the “flow”) I do note words that they have consistent trouble with, so that I can point them out while they prepare their dictations. If the students prepare properly, and have well-matched selections read to them, then in my experience actual misspellings are rare. BEFORE dictation is the time to have the student spend looking at the word, analyzing parts of it, likening it to words he already knows if possible, visualizing the word until he can see it written with his eyes closed. Does that help?
So bookworm (I cant remember names well.) you have them erase it and correct it immediately? I have been covering them and having them go back afterwards. My only problem with this is I see that my boys get frustrated when they miss a word and have a harder time concentrating on the rest of the passage.
We cross it off immediately as well. I just say, “Oops!”, scribble it out (to emphasize that we do NOT want to remember the incorrect spelling), then write it correctly for them. When we are done, I write the words they missed (normally no more than 2 or 3) at the bottom of the page, and they copy each 5 times. We have only had the same word spelled wrong again once! This helps them cement 2 things: which words they had a hard time with (since these are the only ones we spell 5 times), and the correct spelling.
My boys used to get frustrated too, but I just reminded them that this just helps us know what words they need help on. I also point out all the words they spelled right that they don’t have to worry about 🙂 They’ve mostly gotten over it LOL.
One other thing. I have a 10yods who has really struggled academically. He is an inventor and gifted artist, IOW a detail person! When we started dictation I told him I knew he was going to LOVE this!!! It’s all about attention to detail, and he is REALLY good at that! Approaching it that way showed him where he would excel in it, so making a mistake isn’t a big deal, just a detail to fix 🙂
Debi Z
Hi. I am mostly a lurker here but wanted to ask a SW question as I have been looking at this to use with my soon to be 4th and 5th graders. I love the idea of spelling rules and punctuation rules to go along with our spelling studies. I love using dictation but find rules necessary as for answering the “why” for my children. I understand that SW does not have any rules so would you consider the basis for teaching spelling with the CM format the same as teaching “sight words”? Thanks for giving me an understanding of this.
Charlotte used a combination of phonics and sight words for teaching reading. But she didn’t try to use those same phonics rules to teach spelling because there are SO many exceptions to the rules in the English language. Her main approach to teaching spelling was to help the child develop a habit of looking at how words are spelled as they read.
Now, I believe Bookworm or CindyS posted on another thread about how they incorporated rules in their dictation preparation time. I can’t find that post right now. Bookworm or CindyS, are you around? Could you address this, or am I getting y’all confused with someone else? 🙂
Thanks so much, Sonya for clearing this for me and I would LOVE to see how Bookworm or CindyS are incorporating rules in their dictation.
Well, I know that this is not the unadulterated CM way but I’ll give it a go. When words are missed in dictation or any of the child’s writing, or there are words he just wants to learn to spell, we write them in a book (small notebook, 4×6 or so). The child reads through the lists daily. There are rarely more than 12-15 words added to the book weekly so the child goes through multiple lists for 10 minutes/day. Weekly, I randomly call out words for the child to spell. The words either get marked off the list or stay on. Many people think this is very odd; however it has markedly helped my poor spellers (of which there are two). Now that I think about it, it probably is more CM than I thought, in that she did have times of drill in her classroom.
As for rules, we do that verbally per word. So I will say, for instance, “the word is piece – it follows the rule i before e” or “the word is their – it does not follow the rule i before e.” I am not a hard and fast rule person because there are so, so many exceptions. (Like the time I drilled it into the child’s head aw-at the end of a word, au-in the middle, and the first word was HAWK!!) However, learning that a word does not follow a rule helps them spell that particular word just as much as learning that one does.
For my children that struggle with spelling, I try to have 3 opportunities for spelling per day: dictation (or studying for one), reading their lists or calling words, and computer drills.
Blessings,
Cindy
Hi, everyone! My satellite tower was struck by lightning last night and I’ve been incommunicado all day.
I’m not sure if this is what Sonja means, it’s the only thing I can remember and I didn’t discuss rules specifically, but did discuss how we approach those fun spelling words:
http://simplycharlottemason.com/scmforum/topic/learning-spelling-by-visualizing
I’ve had similar experiences as Cindy, where in the past I’ve laboriously taught rules, only to find that very day a word that defies any rule explanation, which one or more kids would make certain to bring to me with an “Explain this, huh?” look on their faces, and I’d just have to shrug and tell them this is English, and they’d better get used to it, and to be thankful that Spanish and Latin are phonetic. LOL
Anyway, we do have “The ABC’s and All Their Tricks” and while in early reading instruction, I teach . . . the rules that *I* can remember, and as they get more . . . arcane, trying to explain the oddball words, then I just give it up as too much work. So basically, I work on the rules that make sense to me, and then when we get to all the ones on how to tell which pronunciation of “ough” you should do, we just give up the rules and move on. LOL
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