Spelling

Spectrum^® Spelling is a phonetically-based spelling program for kindergarten through sixth grade that should require less teaching time for the daily lessons than some other programs. These workbooks are titled by grade level and are attractively printed in full color.

The first workbook, Spectrum Spelling: K, and the first third of Spectrum Spelling: Grade 1 have phonics activities rather than spelling lists. On page 72 of Grade 1, students encounter their first list of six spelling words. The number of words taught each week gradually increases to 15 per week in Grade 4 through Grade 6.

While most of the word lists have common phonetic elements, each workbook includes some lessons with words related in some other fashion such as “food words,” “season words,” and “family words.” Students also learn to spell some sight words. Beginning with Grade 2, each workbook also has a lesson covering words that are confusing or easily misspelled.

The number of lessons varies significantly in each workbook, from a low of 22 lessons in Grade 5 to a high of 32 lessons in Grade 2. All of the workbooks are set up with four pages of activities for each week’s lesson. Two-page review lessons are inserted periodically. There are seven to nine review lessons per workbook.

Beginning in Grade 1, students are given assignments to write sentences using some of their spelling words. The amount of writing gradually increases so that students might be writing one or two paragraphs at the upper levels. All of the other activities have predictable answers.

Each of the workbooks includes a dictionary of that grade's spelling words and an answer key with reduced images of student pages with overprinted answers. That means that each of these workbooks is self-contained, and you do not need a teacher’s manual or separate answer key. Students should be able to complete all of their work in the workbook. You might want to remove the answer key pages to avoid the temptation to cheat.

Very clear instructions for what to do appear on the student's pages. However, there are no specifications at all for giving spelling tests. You will probably want to administer a spelling test at the end of each week, but you might wait until at least second grade to begin spelling tests.

The difficulty increases with each workbook. In Grade 1, the first 56 pages focus on individual letters of the alphabet and their sounds. Students begin to write three-letter words on page 57. The activities in the first third of Grade 1 are like those in a phonics workbook rather than spelling. On page 75 of Grade 1, students are supposed to begin writing a sentence using some of their spelling words. This represents a rapid shift from writing individual letters at the beginning of the workbook to writing complete sentences, so children might need to dictate what they want to say. You might skip over some of the beginning lessons of Grade 1 with a first grader who is ready to write words, or you might start a kindergartner in this workbook, and only go as far as is appropriate, saving the rest for the next year.

The other workbooks also start out easy but quickly become more challenging. For instance, Grade 2 groups words by word families and common phonetic elements. While the first lesson begins with three-letter, short-vowel words, the lessons continue through long-vowel words, words containing ow and ou, words with suffixes, words for family members, contractions, and compound words. The words are appropriate for second grade, but you might be fooled into thinking it’s too easy if you look only at the first few lessons.

Grade 3 through Grade 6 similarly begin with short-vowel words and gradually increase in difficulty. However, the short-vowel words are not necessarily easy words. For example, Grade 6 begins with short-vowel words such as distance, canyon, and pleasant. It continues with words grouped by challenging phonetic components such as ci and ti, compound words, contractions, plurals, possessives, prefixes, suffixes, homophones, and words with Latin and Greek roots.

Summary

Spectrum Spelling is a very inexpensive option for teaching spelling. It should be very easy for parents to administer once children are able to read independently.

The Spelling by Sound and Structure series for grades 2 through 8 is one of the most inexpensive options you will find. It uses a formal academic approach, and the early grades have a strong phonetic emphasis that shifts more toward the study of word structure in upper grades. Students do extensive work with dictionary type phonetic spellings throughout the series.

The level of difficulty of the spelling words is about average. Both word lists and activity content in all Rod and Staff books reflect both Christian beliefs and their view of a kinder, gentler society.

Although student workbook pages use the fill-in-the-blank approach, the teacher's editions offer a number of activities for oral or expanded written work. Consider adding or substituting some of these when appropriate. Student books are consumable up through fifth-grade level.

Teacher's editions are student pages with answers overprinted. There are also sections with additional teaching suggestions and sentences you might use for giving spelling tests.

Grade 2

This workbook divides each lesson into two parts: Part A works on synonyms, antonyms, definitions, picture clues, context clues, and categories of words; Part B works on phonetic patterns and word structure (syllables, plurals, verb forms, etc.). There are 34 weekly lessons with some of those being review lessons. Twelve new words are introduced per lesson.

Grade 3

New word lists are presented in both printed and cursive forms. Words are grouped by phonetic or structural similarities so children can learn the pertinent rules. There are 34, two-page lessons with 13 words per lesson except in review lessons. Each lesson has three parts: A develops familiarity with word meanings, B teaches the phonetic and structural principles, and C works on dictionary skills.

Grade 4

This worktext is more detail-oriented than most other spelling programs at this level. Lessons are divided into four parts: A "...introduces one or two speech sounds and teaches the most common spellings of these sounds....", B helps familiarize children with word meanings, C teaches dictionary skills, and D works on a variety of other skills such as syllabication. Because the amount of material covered increases at this level, the print is smaller and more crowded. Although the student workbook is consumable, some students might find it easier to do their written work in a separate notebook. A spelling word dictionary at the back is handy for reference. (A revised edition has been introduced since this review was written.)

Grade 5

The fifth-grade level book in this series is very similar in format to that of the fourth-grade book. Although there is a great deal of detail and drill, the word lists reflect an average level of difficulty. (A revised edition has been introduced since this review was written.)

Grade 6

At sixth grade level, the student text switches from soft cover to hardbound textbook. There are 34 lessons with 20 words per lesson except for review lessons. Spelling, pronunciation, meanings, structural patterns, abbreviations, contractions, syllabication, and other concepts are taught and reviewed. Challenge activities are included for advanced students. A Speller Dictionary at the back is handy for reference. The teacher's edition provides teaching tips and answer keys.

Grade 7

The seventh-grade student book is hardbound as is the teacher's edition. The teacher's edition has the student pages printed on the left-hand pages and teaching information/answers on the right-hand pages. It might be possible to work only from the teacher's edition, but since the books are so inexpensive, I suggest getting both books. Although the title at this level is still Spelling by Sound and Structure, the emphasis switches from sound and structure to Latin word elements—roots, prefixes, and suffixes. The content is challenging, but the lessons are quite interesting and thought-provoking. "Old English Dialects," "Abstract and Concrete Meanings," "First Bible Accounts in English," and "Old English Place Names" are typical of the side studies we find in various lessons. Consider using this text with students beyond seventh-grade level because of the quality content.

Grade 8

Latin and Greek roots, etymology, and words from other languages are added at this level.

You might want to check out the premade lesson plans from Homeschool Planet that are available for Spelling by Sound and Structure.

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Research on what methods work best for teaching spelling dictates the methods used in this spelling series for grades 1 through 6. Three strategies used for spelling instruction reflect that research: sound-letter relationships, visual memory, and meanings.

Sound-letter relationships (phonics) are taught first. Then work on visual memory helps students to identify which of the various phonetic possibilities is correct. "Meanings" refers to the fact that many words are related (derived from the same base words), and by studying bases, prefixes, and suffixes, you can identify words of related meaning, thus making connections that also help with spelling. While all three strategies are used throughout the program, sound-letter relationships are emphasized in the first two grade levels.

Word lists are purposely not presented as word families but instead are designed to teach most-frequently-used words as well as spelling rules. Room for the addition of what are called "Home Base" words—extra words that are added to the list by the teacher—is allowed within each lesson along with space to practice writing using those words.

Writing/composition activities are a major part of each spelling lesson at all levels, and a number of these incorporate Bible topics. In fact, strong Christian content is apparent throughout the series.

Teacher's editions are useful for understanding the philosophy behind the program and for understanding such things as the use of the "First Look" test process and "Home Base" words. This "front" information is the same for all levels. Activities, sample sentences, related devotional suggestions, and reduced copies of student pages with answers are also found in the teacher's editions. If sample sentences and an answer key are not important to you, I still suggest purchasing one teacher's edition (even if you are teaching more than one student level) because of the "front" information.

Grade One

In the first grade book, there are no spelling lists for the first twelve weeks' worth of lessons. Instead, attention is first devoted to phonetic foundations. This feature makes this one of the better spelling programs for beginners. Children also work on visual memory and writing activities, where they are encouraged to use invented spellings for words they do not know--a feature that will certainly alienate or attract some parents! Large print and colorful format following a circus theme make the book appealing and easy-to-use. Activities stretch beyond spelling to include practice with alphabetizing, synonyms, sentences, punctuation, capitalization, contractions, and other skills.

Grade Two

At second grade level "The Neighborhood" is the theme. Students work on rhyming words, context clues, definitions, antonyms, poetry, creative writing, and letter writing, in addition to skills introduced at first grade level. Word lists appear in both manuscript and typeset formats but not in cursive. Students are encouraged to begin work on a Dialogue Journal (described in the teacher's edition).

Grade Three

"Transportation" is the theme for this level, and the emphasis shifts from phonics to visual memory although phonics is not ignored. Word lists appear in manuscript, cursive, and typeset formats. There is more work with words in context, use of the dictionary, and definitions than in earlier levels.

Grade Four

Phonetic principles are reviewed, and visual memory skills are developed. Word lists appear in cursive and typeset formats. New skills are syllabication, accented syllable, the use of the schwa, and higher level thinking skills. This level's teacher edition adds suggestions for small group or partner activities (usually not useful for home educators), and strategies for meeting needs of children with different learning styles.

Grade Five

The emphasis changes to word meaning for fifth and sixth grade levels. In addition to spelling word lists, most lessons also include charts of words related to the spelling words. All basic phonics principles and spelling rules are reviewed through the fifth and sixth grade levels. Exceptions are also studied. Skills incorporated include vocabulary development, use of words in context, word origins, prefixes and suffixes, expanding forms of words, parts of speech, proofreading, dictionary work, and research. The fifth grade book uses the theme "The Word Power Team" with characters such as Captain Consonant and Sam Synonym.

Grade Six

The theme for this level is "Sports." Many writing activities involve Bible-related topics or verses.

Spelling Lab: Learn to Spell Well is a 157-page book designed to help students in third grade and above who struggle with spelling. It uses Orton-Gillingham methodology to present a highly structured, phonetically based method of figuring out how words are spelled, the same method used by many dyslexia therapists. While it should be particularly useful for students with dyslexia, it should work as well for most students who struggle with spelling.

Lessons are taught with continual interaction between teacher and student(s). Students learn to predict the likely spelling of a word based on predictable spelling patterns and learn to identify syllable breaks and accented syllables. Charts are used throughout the book to present the patterns and rules. (The charts are also provided in a consolidated form in an appendix at the back of the book—four charts that are introduced before the first, sixteenth, thirty-first, and forty-sixth lessons.)

The process is fairly simple in the beginning but becomes more complex in later lessons. For instance, Lesson 42 (out of 60 lessons) teaches advanced skills for the spelling of a final /s/ sound in words by presenting four patterns:

In the final position, the sound (s) is spelled ss after a short vowel in an accented syllable (FLOSS rule).
In the final position, the sound (s) is spelled s after a short vowel in an unaccented syllable.
In the final position, the sound (s) is spelled se after two vowels or a consonant.
In the final position, the sound (s) is spelled ce after a long vowel.

As in all lessons, the teacher uses the provided practice words for students to work through each word systematically. Students isolate the sounds, determine their positions in the word (initial, medial, or final), consider spelling possibilities based on information in the chart, consider the influence of syllable breaks, consider whether an accented syllable affects the spelling, and look for open or closed syllables to help determine whether vowel sounds are long or short. The process grows in complexity from mono- to multisyllabic words.

Applying this process to the word loose works like this. The word can be broken down (or unblended) into the sounds (l) (oo) (s). Students tap, write dots or lines, or move objects as they identify each sound. The initial (l) sound is easy—it was reviewed in the fifth lesson. At this point, students have also learned to spell the (oo) sound in Lesson 14. To determine the spelling of the (s) sound they look at the chart and see that the third rule I listed above applies in this case, so the word ends with the spelling se.

Students should be given copies of the charts for reference. The teacher uses the book, and students do their writing in a notebook or elsewhere.

The lessons build sequentially. However, an older student might already be familiar with some spelling patterns, so a pre-assessment is included. If students can correctly spell at least 20 of the 25 words, then you might have them begin with Lesson 31. Otherwise, you should use all lessons in order. Plenty of practice and review is built into the lessons.

Two Post Assessments are included in the middle and end of the course. Two Review Maps help parents identify the lessons covering elements of words that children misspelled on the assessments or in another context. Parents can revisit the pertinent lessons as needed.

The course does not teach vocabulary, but I wouldn’t be surprised if homeschoolers took time to discuss the meanings of unfamiliar words, especially some of the practice words introduced toward the end of the course, such as febrile, recumbent, and misconstrue. Students do not need to know the meaning of the words to be able to spell them, but discussing their meanings might help students remember them.

The amount of time the course will take to complete varies from student to student. If lessons are taught every day, a student might finish in about three months, but six months or longer is more typical.

Summary

Spelling Lab: Learn to Spell Well requires time and effort from both parents and students, but students become familiar with patterns and rules that take most of the guesswork out of spelling. Parents who despair of their children ever becoming proficient spellers really should try this.