Spelling Help

[my2beauties]

Hi Carrie!

I am getting ready to start the second half of Bigger with my 8 1/2 yr old son for his "3rd grade" year. He is still struggling with spelling and therefore does not write sentences yet. This is something I really want to work on before starting Preparing. I have not used the spelling lists in our manual. I was using an outside spelling curriculum and just didn't see much results. My son is someone who really needs "fun" to stay engaged and lock into learning. I can add activities if you have any suggestions. Should I start with the word lists in Bigger and go from there? Have any suggestions for me?

Lisa

[lmercon]

How is his reading? Abysmally poor spelling can be a significant sign for dyslexia. That may be something to investigate. However, I would encourage him to write DESPITE his spelling. Spelling is no one's master! Spelling is a useful servant, and composition should never wait for it. My severely dyslexic ds is an avid writer and would profoundly flunk even invented spelling!
hth,
Laura

[my3sons]

As always, Imercon has some wise words to ponder here!!! Thank you for sharing here, Laura. My oldest ds had speech therapy for several years. I spent many years adding additional spelling, only to downsize just to what HOD suggested. The result? My now 9th grade ds rarely misspells anything. I believe these excellent results are due to doing the plans along with the spelling lists, dictation levels 2-8, copywork, and the constant editing working through the written narrations editing lists provided in the HOD Appendices. Keep pressing on - so worth it! For now, I would start the word lists in BHFHG, using the LA box in the daily plans of BHFHG. The lessons are short, and they are not hard for dc to attend to. Be sure to follow the directions of you writing each word in big black letters on an index card, the child studying it, flipping it over, writing it on a marker board, checking it, and immediately erasing it if it's wrong. The mind is like a camera. The more times it sees a word written right, the more times it will recognize when it 'looks right.' So this method given time really works!!! This is the same reason we often jot a word on scratch paper to see if it 'looks right' when we as adults are trying to determine how to spell a word. Reading with the ERS and working through DITHOR through the years helps dc with spelling too - seeing words spelled right over and over again - this all works to help dc become better and better spellers. I'd start at the beginning of either Spelling List 1 or Spelling List 2, and consistently work through the plans. No need to rush and double up to finish early. Quality over quantity here. Also, I'd begin having ds do the writing in BHFHG, but as copywork. On your marker board in big black letters, write the sentences he needs to copy. Have him reference this as he writes. Sit near him to spell on a marker board - again in large black letters- any word he asks for help in spelling. This kind of 'help' is the best because he continually sees words correctly spelled. If you need to draw lines for him, do. If a certain pencil, pencil grip, no lines, wide lines, dotted lines, etc. works better - use that! I'd experiment and see what ds prefers. HTH!!!! Take heart - think of those fine motor skills as using muscles that need to be flexed and 'worked out' to be strengthened - just like taking his 'hand' to the gym to work out! Nobody loves a workout at first, but the results are often worth it when done gradually and consistently. HTH!!!!

In Christ,
Julie

[Nealewill]

I can not second what Julie is saying enough! My oldest had SO many issues with spelling & reading when we first started. So we used dyslexic products. It helped get her moving forward. But now she is to the point she just needs practice with spelling things in general. We are finding that the more she reads, the more she writes and edits he work and the more she copies (copywork and dictation), the more she sees the word correct and she can spell so much better! Dictation works (along with all the other practice).

Thank you HOD for such a great spelling program.

[my2beauties]

My son is actually an excellent reader and I do not believe he is dyslexic. So, the reading issue is actually not an issue LOL. I believe that he needs more sensory input while spelling - things to engage him while learning. He does not do well with lots of repetition or things he considers "boring" because he checks out mentally and doesn't engage in learning.

[Carrie]

Lisa,

One thing that I would definitely encourage you to do is to follow the plans for spelling in Bigger Hearts for the last half of the guide. Spelling is one area in which I had a total mind shift when I read Charlotte Mason's wise advice on this important subject. I'll link you to a thread that has other links within it that will help you begin to slowly shift your thinking is this area too. Link: viewtopic.php?f=6&t=12137&p=87657

There are other links on the board too where we share the reasons why the spelling/dictation plans are designed the way they are within our guides, which I am sure others can post for you if you're still searching. There is definitely a "why" behind the "how" of the way this subject is handled in HOD for the long haul.

Here's one more previous post of mine that also helps explain the methodology a bit:
Spelling in the early years is often quite tied to a child's reading, because kiddos at the early stages of spelling are often sounding their spelling words out as they write them. So, in the early years, as your child's reading progresses, the spelling will lag a bit behind that reading progress in coming along too. That is not to say that in the long haul spelling and reading progress are always linked as that is not necessarily true, as the spelling words get longer and harder.

Another thing to keep in mind is that for kiddos to whom spelling does not come naturally more drill is not really what they need. Regular practice in capturing the correct mental image of a word is the skill that truly needs to be developed in order for the mind to know whether a word that has been written is written correctly. This is the skill that is being developed in Beyond and Bigger. It is also one of the reasons why the other writing the child is doing during that season of learning is kept to copywork or copying from a correctly written model, because we don't want the mind capturing the incorrect image (and having a child inventively spell many words results in the incorrect spelling beginning to "look right" in the mind's eye.) So, to prevent this same thing from happening during spelling lessons be sure to immediately erase any incorrectly spelled word and have the child copy the correct spelling over top of the erased word instead. Think of spelling time as mental training rather than seeking memorization of specific words. In that way, every error is an opportunity to swoop in and retrain the mind. Be vigilant as you do the spelling lessons. As soon as an incorrect letter is written in the spelling of a word, erase it away and redirect to the correct image (showing the index card with the correct spelling upon it). Be sure to use a dark colored marker on a white index card too when writing the spelling words (as directed in the guide), which helps the mind capture the image of the word even more clearly. Over time you will see continued progress.

Dictation builds on the foundation of mental picturing that is practiced in the spelling lists in Beyond and Bigger. It is where kiddos actually start to pay more attention to spelling in the context of sentences. It is the moment where they realize spelling is about writing a string of words correctly. It is mental imaging taken to the next level. This is often where kiddos start doing a bit better in spelling, if they had a hard time in the word lists that they did before beginning dictation. This is because in dictation they are putting to use the mental imaging and beginning proofreading and auditory skills they practiced in Beyond and Bigger and are applying them. Through studied dictation kiddos learn to transfer the skills of capturing a correct mental image of a string of words, auditorily hearing the sentence and repeating it back correctly, writing the words in the correct sequence (including all punctuation and capitalization), and proofreading and correcting their work to make sure the right mental image remains (rather than the wrong one). Over time, these skills transfer to kiddos' proofreading their own written work in other subjects. You can see this is all a part of spelling, but it is a process that takes years to internalize.

This is why I encourage you to keep on going, patiently guiding and diligently correcting. You will see progress as the years pass. Just make sure not to put the focus on word memorization but rather place the focus on the ultimate long-term goal of writing correctly and proofreading in daily work.

My own third little guy struggled with the spelling lists in Beyond and Bigger too. He improved as he headed into dictation, even though he is by no means a natural speller. Now that he is in CTC he is really starting to show some carryover and improvement in his daily written work. He is learning to refer back to his reading material to copy the correct spelling of words within his written narrations. This is another moment where capturing the correct mental image of words (i.e. names and places) and transferring them to paper in this written narrations comes in handy. I share this to encourage you that over time with these methods, even kiddos who struggle with spelling will make gains in the area where it really counts.

Blessings,
Carrie

[queenireneof3]

Lisa,

I would also add, as a recovered curriculum hopper, the spelling lists in beyond/bigger are deceivingly plain. At first glance I wasn't sure they would be enough "pizzazz" either, but after trying it with both my kiddos just as written, it is one of their favorite parts of the day. I am glad I have HOD to guide us, so we don't have to go all over the place!