Emerging Spelling: Stages and Teaching Strategies Chapter 12

Stages of Spelling Development Stage 1: Emergent Spelling Stage 2: Letter-Name Spelling Stage 3: Within-Word Spelling Stage 4: Syllables and Affixes Spelling Stage 5: Derivational Relations Spelling

Stage 1: Emergent Spelling This stage is typical of 3- to 5-year old children who learn these concepts: The difference between drawing and writing The direction of writing on a page Some letter-sound matches The formation of letters

Stage One: Emergent Spelling Characteristics of Writing Use scribbles, letters, letter-like forms, numbers. Show no understanding of phoneme-grapheme (letter-sound) relationships. Show a preference for uppercase letters. Write from left-to-right, right-to-left, top-to-bottom, or randomly on the page. Know that the print carries the message.

Emergent Spelling: Teaching Strategies Develop interest in print: Read aloud daily, create a print-rich environment, spend time with books. Encourage children to write. Use LEA and teacher/student modeling. Teach letter names with letter forms.

Emergent Spelling: Teaching Strategies, cont. Introduce concepts and terms: letter, beginning/ending sounds, word, sentence. Begin developing understanding of letter sounds, concept of rhyming. Discuss and model directionality. Discuss spelling with children & family members. Find an appreciative audience.

Stage 2: Letter-Name Spelling Spellers are usually 5- to 7-year old children who learn these concepts: The alphabetic principle Short vowel sounds Consonant sounds Consonant blends and digraphs

Letter Name Spelling: Characteristics of Writing Sometimes have not developed directionality: write from left to right, top to bottom. Use letters to represent sounds. Use abbreviated 1, 2, 3 letter spellings; omit some important letters in words. Use letter-name strategy for spelling.

Letter Name Spelling: Teaching Strategies Encourage attempts at writing. Continue to develop phoneme-grapheme correspondence. Do LEA, asking for help with spelling. Model writing. Read daily. Brainstorm words (& spelling) to make word banks prior to writing (sometimes).

Letter Name Spelling: Teaching Strategies, cont. Encourage children to write by representing sounds in the order they hear them. Display words used frequently in writing. Let children see what other children write. Discuss developmental spelling with children and family members.

Stage 3: Within-Word Spelling Spellers are usually 7- to 9-year old children who learn these concepts: Long-vowel spelling patterns Complex consonant patterns r-controlled vowels Diphthongs

Within-Word Spelling: Characteristics of Writing Select letters on basis of sound alone. Spelling represents all essential sound features. Spelling is readable (more or less).

Within-Word Spelling: Teaching Strategies Read daily. Model writing and encourage children to write. Develop awareness of correct spelling, emphasizing visual features of words. Expose children to word families, spelling patterns, word structure. Teach students how to study a word.

Stage 4: Syllables and Affixes Spelling Spellers are usually 9- to 11-year old children who learn these concepts: Inflectional endings Homophones Syllabication Possessives

Syllables and Affixes Spelling: Characteristics of Writing Include a vowel in each syllable. Apply many spelling rules; may overgeneralize. Spelling resembles English spelling. Spelling is easily read.

Syllables and Affixes Spelling: Teaching Strategies Teach how to divide words into syllables / rules fir inflectional endings Teach schwa sound / spelling patterns Teach homophones, contractions, compound words, possessives Sort two-syllable words / homophones Students make words using letter cards Teach proofreading skills

Stage 5: Derivational Relations Spelling Spellers are usually 11- to 14-year old students who learn these concepts: Consonant and vowel alternations Greek affixes and root words Latin affixes and root words Etymologies

Derivational Relations Spelling: Characteristics of Writing Have internalized the alphabetic principle. Have learned basic spelling words. Spell words according to adult standards.

Derivational Relations Spelling: Characteristics of Writing Teach root words / derivational affixes Make clusters with root word in center and related words on rays Teach students to identify words in English, Latin, and Greek spellings Sort words according to roots or language of origin Have students check etymologies of words in dictionary

Analyzing Spelling Development Example of a first grader’s spelling – p. 403 Example of a fifth grader’s spelling – p. 405

References Some of the examples of student writing are from Temple, C., Nathan, R., Temple, F., & Burris, N. (1993). The beginnings of writing (3rd edition). New York: Allyn and Bacon.