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Devoted21
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| Posted: Oct 12 2010 at 10:40pm | IP Logged
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You were all such a huge help with my math question, I'm back for spelling advice!
My first grader is not doing any spelling at the moment. Well, nothing that I label as "spelling." We do phonics, of course, so we'll discuss what I suppose would be called "spelling rules," but I don't assign him word lists or test him or anything. Should I be? If so, do I need to buy a program? I'd prefer not to, if possible. He loves to go off and make up his own stories, so I thought about picking some of his oft-used words and focusing on spelling those right. Or should I be more structured about it?
Many thanks in advance!
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Willa
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| Posted: Oct 13 2010 at 2:22pm | IP Logged
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That's what I'm doing with my second grader! I ask him what he wants to learn to spell. I do the "look, cover and spell" method and also encourage him to work on it phonetically using the phonics rules he is familiar with.
Most language arts curricula doesn't start with "spelling" until the phonics course is complete.
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Willa
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ekbell
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| Posted: Oct 13 2010 at 2:34pm | IP Logged
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I can't remember where I read this but I've read that ideally the child's spelling words should be a year or two behind their reading level.
This implies that most first grade children aren't ready for formal spelling.
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LLMom
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| Posted: Oct 13 2010 at 5:32pm | IP Logged
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We don't do spelling in first grade and sometimes not in second depending on how their phonics and reading is coming along. But we do copywork by 2nd grade which helps a lot.
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Lisa
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Mackfam
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| Posted: Oct 13 2010 at 5:39pm | IP Logged
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LLMom wrote:
| We don't do spelling in first grade and sometimes not in second depending on how their phonics and reading is coming along. But we do copywork by 2nd grade which helps a lot. |
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Ditto this exactly!
I'm pretty relaxed about formal spelling instruction in the early years (which is to say...I don't do formal spelling instruction in the early years  ), preferring instead to spend time working on their reading.
I teach spelling through dictation and we don't begin dictations until around the 3rd or 4th grade. Before beginning formal dictations, I might help a child with particular words, but spelling isn't a formal subject. And, as LLMom said, copywork helps their spelling a great deal since they're copying words correctly!
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Jen Mackintosh
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Ramie
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| Posted: Oct 13 2010 at 8:29pm | IP Logged
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I agree with the others that spelling often waits until the child is reading pretty well. That said, when my dd was really struggling with reading, I actually found that some simple spelling actually reinforced what we were working on. If you decide you want to do spelling, what about picking words that correlate with the phonics or the reading lessons that he's doing. Or, let the spelling be a couple of steps behind the reading, but still choose your words to reinforce the reading. I also found that my dd did better when we made it multisensory - which for us meant magnetic letter tiles.
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Devoted21
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| Posted: Oct 14 2010 at 1:16pm | IP Logged
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OK, this all sounds great. Back as I was beginning the school year, I felt confident about not having formal spelling, but then, as seems to be the thing with me, I started to worry. We do have letter magnets, which we use, and it does seem like phonics should be pretty well-covered before throwing spelling in. I think I just started second-guessing myself b/c when he goes off and writes stories, he misspells words I feel like he should know (like he'll put "day" when he means "they"). But that might be more of a speech issue, since he pronounces it that way. I just would've thought that after reading the th- words enough, it would've stuck in his mind that they don't start with d. Patience, patience, I guess. 
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ekbell
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| Posted: Oct 14 2010 at 4:27pm | IP Logged
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I'm impressed that he's confident enough with writing to have misspelled words.
Three children of my children have gone through grade one and none of them were confident enough to write anything past their names without having me spelling for them or a 'word bank' in front of them. (a word bank is simply a box either drawn or actual containing the necessary words)
My inclination would be to pick copy-work sentences which focus on the words that he's getting confused, or just providing him with his own handmade dictionary or work bank. Seeing and writing will help without the stress of formal spelling.
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pmeilaen
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| Posted: Oct 14 2010 at 7:25pm | IP Logged
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If you are interested in some very simple spelling lists, try The Natural Speller. There are many ideas in the book about how to do spelling in the early grades.
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Eva
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Devoted21
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| Posted: Oct 14 2010 at 9:31pm | IP Logged
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Ekbell, that's a great idea about the word bank and also the copywork. I do make up his copywork, and it honestly hadn't occurred to me to try to work in some of those words that trip him up. The obvious often eludes me.
Eva, thanks for the book tip. I just saw that Ruth Beechick recommends The Natural Speller, and I'm a big Beechick fan.
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pmeilaen
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| Posted: Oct 15 2010 at 8:19pm | IP Logged
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Devoted21 wrote:
Eva, thanks for the book tip. I just saw that Ruth Beechick recommends The Natural Speller, and I'm a big Beechick fan. |
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Your are welcome! I've used it for seven years now and still like it.
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Eva
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Topic: spelling for first grader
