Spelling | Throw It All Out!

 



For several years I tried to teach my children how to spell. The results were soupy at best. Every year I would get a new “curriculum” and follow it precisely, but nothing worked.


Finally came up with my own...

1st day: Find 2 words they don't know how to spell. Have them write
those words 7 times. A good source of spelling words is the lists of most commonly used English words you can get on the internet. You can also use words they misspelled in their own writing.
2nd day: Test to see if they know yesterday's words, if they do, add 2
more. If they know one, find another word and have them write that and the
one they missed 7 times.

Keep adding to the list until there are 20 words, then let your child scratch out the oldest words while always keeping 20 words on the list. Do not start a new list. Just keep this one going. This way the child has to keep a word in his memory for two to three weeks instead of memorizing it for the test on Friday (which tends to be forgotten by Friday evening).

 

If they are having a bad day, I limit the words they have to

write to the first two they missed. Seems too simple to be true, but it
works!

Throw in a spelling rule now and then as needed.

Use the same method to build vocabulary words by adding the requirement that the word is used in a sentence.



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