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So my older daughter is just starting to be able to do some of her DITHOR student book on her own, and I was wondering how others deal with spelling. My daughter makes many mistakes as she writes - and currently I have her fix them all immediately after doing the work - or in the middle, if I happen to be there. Is this what others do?

One thing that Carrie suggested to me when my dd was using DITHOR 2/3 and had difficulty spelling was to have her dictate her answers to me, and I could either write them in her book for her, or I could write them on the whiteboard and have her copy. That way, she could concentrate on what she wanted to say in her answers rather than worry about being able to spell it. Spelling gets worked on year after year through copywork and dictation, and eventually as spelling improves through those avenues, she won't need that help

blessedmomof4 wrote:One thing that Carrie suggested to me when my dd was using DITHOR 2/3 and had difficulty spelling was to have her dictate her answers to me, and I could either write them in her book for her, or I could write them on the whiteboard and have her copy. That way, she could concentrate on what she wanted to say in her answers rather than worry about being able to spell it. Spelling gets worked on year after year through copywork and dictation, and eventually as spelling improves through those avenues, she won't need that help

This is exactly what we did when our sons began DITHOR! It worked so well, and we both enjoyed DITHOR because of this easing into the writing portion. Otherwise, dc begin to write very short answers, as they don't want to make mistakes. Our sons' spelling have improved so much with having them dictate answers as I write them on a markerboard and they copy them. As CM figured out, when dc continually see words spelled right, they become better spellers because they know what "looks right". I'd help your dd out by writing the answers for her, and then ease her into copying some of the answers you've written on the markerboard. After 4-5 genres of this, I'd let her begin to write her answers herself, but sit near her with a markerboard to help out with any words she's not sure how to spell by jotting them on the markerboard as she asks for help. This partnering together will help you ease into DITHOR and be more able to fully enjoy it! HTH!

In Christ,
Julie