Richmond School
Policy | Policy List | Spelling Policy
SPELLING POLICY
“Spelling is a convention that matters ............... In the first place, confidence in spelling frees children to fulfil their purpose. In the second place, spelling disability is an undoubted social handicap.”
The Bullock Report
Richmond School Governing Body recognises that spelling is an important skill which all students should be taught to develop to their greatest possible potential. The approach to teaching this skill should be co-ordinated throughout the school curriculum in order to reinforce techniques and demonstrate the importance that spelling should be given in the presentation of all work.
It is the aim of the school to:
• increase the competence and confidence of students in the written use of language by knowing the spelling of a wide range of words
• facilitate progression in the spelling competence of students through appropriate learning activities
• present to students a common view of the importance of spelling in each area of the curriculum
• present a co-ordinated and coherent approach to improving spelling across the curriculum
• give extra help to students who experience particular difficulty with spelling
• monitor the standards of spelling across the full age range of students
• provide teachers with training and guidance in effective approaches to improving students’ spelling
• encourage parents to help their children recognise the importance of spelling and improve their competence.
In order to pursue these aims we will:
a) display guidelines on spelling strategies in every classroom
b) administer a diagnostic test to every student on entry to the school and re-test at the end of Year 7; individuals may require further diagnostic tests in subsequent years
c) notify parents of students with particularly severe spelling difficulties, inviting them to participate in schemes to enhance spelling skills organised by the Learning Support Department
d) provide where possible Spelling Workshops run by the LSD for those students who have been found to have severe spelling difficulties
e) provide advice and INSET for departments and teachers about effective approaches to improving spelling
f) make available dictionaries and other appropriate spelling aids throughout the school
g) require that each department includes guidance on methods of correcting and improving spelling in its departmental documentation.
GUIDELINES
Research shows that good spellers possess at least 3 of the following characteristics:
• good verbal intelligence
• good visual perception
• swift handwriting
• careful presentation
• positive self image in relation to spelling
Spelling is learnt best if it is taught. Children do not become good spellers simply by reading. To become competent spellers they need to look at words and write them down. In this way they become familiar both visually and kinaesthetically with the patterns of letter strings which characterise the written language. This takes practice and time.
1. LOOK, COVER, WRITE, CHECK:
for this approach the students will need an allocated space for spelling.
a) the student copies the word correctly
b) the student then follows this procedure:
LOOK The student studies the word with the intention of remembering it. S/he looks at the word until they can see it with their eyes shut, i.e. 'in their mind's eye.'
COVER The student covers the word
WRITE The student writes the full word without stopping
CHECK The student checks the word with the original.
This procedure is repeated several times. The student does not correct individual letters or syllables. They repeat the complete procedure on whole words. They should be tested regularly until they know the word. Take care not to give any students too many words at one time. Where the student has severe difficulties choose the most common of their spelling mistakes as they may be unable to cope with longer more complex spellings to begin with.
2. Interest students in words.
Find root words within a word and get the student to see the connection: e.g. 'musician' is easier to spell if you realise that it contains 'music'
3. Collect word families - e.g. ought, bought etc.
4. Pay attention to letter clusters - e.g. -ant, -sion etc.
5. Encourage students to identify their own errors
6. Use mnemonics - e.g. There is a bus in business
You hear with your ear.
OR
Never eat chocolate eat salmon sandwiches and remain young = necessary
7. Remind students of simple rules - e.g. i before e except after c when the sound is ee
cross off the e when adding ing
8. Break words into syllables - e.g. chem / i / cal - pent / a / gon
9. Any game which develops interest in, or involves looking at word structures (e.g. add - a - letter, scrabble, lexicon, hangman) is good fun as well as useful.
A subject-related crossword or word search helps students to focus on word structures in a way which is fun.
10. A fast flowing hand helps to reinforce accurate motor responses, and so encourage students to use 'joined up' writing.
11. SUPPORT FOR SPELLING/LITERACY DEVELOPMENT
The school utilises a number of ICT packages to assist in the development of students spelling ability. This is especially helpful for those students with significant spelling difficulties or for students who are dyslexic.
'Units of Sound' is provided by the dyslexia institute to improve sound recognition and spelling skills.
School subscribes to www.spelllzone.co.uk. Students can access this at school/home (user password - swale). This is an excellent facility for weak spellers to practice and build up skills.
WORD SHARK - an ICT based game for literacy and spelling.
Key Stage 3 strategy word lists are emphasised within the learning support department linked to spelling activities and 'warm up' activities in lessons and workshops.
January 2004
For Review – September 2006
ADDENDUM 1 - CAUSES OF SPELLING PROBLEMS
1. Brief Historical Background
The history of English as a living language has resulted in a written language which is complicated and - most of the time - non-systematic. Direct sound-symbol relationship (phonetic spelling) occurs infrequently. Letters/digraphs/letter clusters have more than one pronunciation e.g. ea/ow/ough. Changes in speaking habits have led to a point where there is little relationship between sound and visual patter (e.g. should) or redundant letters e.g. gnat. The majority of words have been imported into the vocabulary from all over the world, retaining their original spelling e.g. khaki, whilst changing in sound. Those not imported have a one thousand year plus origin and once again the sounds have changed. Academics have added to the general mayhem, "correcting" spellings, by wrong analogy (e.g. night, originally nite) and imposing them on the written language. As a result, whilst a phonic approach is a useful tool and an essential skill, ability to spell competently in English is largely dependent upon the skills of visual discrimination and visual memory.
2. Causes of Spelling Problems
Spelling is a sophisticated skill. It is dependent upon well-developed speech, auditory and visual skills along with a competent hand/eye co-ordination. Difficulties in any of these areas will reduce spelling efficiency.
2.1 Auditory Problems
These will be caused by any of the following:
• HEARING IMPAIRMENT
• The inability to DISCRIMINATE easily what is heard
• POOR AUDITORY MEMORY
• POOR AUDITORY SEQUENCING
If words are either not heard or misheard - in part or in whole - the comprehension of sound-symbol association will be delayed. If the hearer cannot remember what is heard s/he is in a similar position. Having limited sound-symbol association means that the speller is completely dependent upon remembering the visual pattern. This is effective so long as the visual processes operate successfully. If they don't, the speller has no strategy to fall back on. The result is totally bizarre spelling.
EXAMPLES OF SPELLING MISTAKES DUE TO IMPAIRED HEARING PROCESSES:
• fritn (contraction of sound pattern)
• fird (inability to discriminate between f and th-
• sitem (slippery = totally bizarre)
• word endings are often omitted
• speller cannot decipher own words
Delayed speech/language development and poor articulation are often related to hearing problems and similar spelling difficulties frequently occur in the work of students suffering from these conditions.
2.2 Visual Problems
These will be caused by any of the following:
• SIGHT IMPAIRMENT
• the inability to DISCRIMINATE VISUALLY, and
• POOR VISUAL MEMORY
• POOR VISUAL SEQUENCING
As in 2.1, the limited perception of the word pattern, of its parts or of the ability to register and recall the pattern will lead to spelling difficulties. In these cases the speller will depend upon auditory skills and attempt to reproduce the word phonetically. This is the "best" kind of problem to have: the spelling may often be incorrect but it is almost invariably translatable. The meaning is readily available to the reader.
Weak hand/eye co-ordination will lead to immature and poorly-formed handwriting. This in turn will lead to apparent spelling mistakes e.g. runr (runt).
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