Thursday 19 September 2013

Session 5: Spelling. More than just 'i before e'.


Session 5 objectives: Spelling.  More than just ‘i’ before ‘e’
By the end of this session you will be able to:

  • reflect on the reasons for poor spelling;
  • identify a range of spelling patterns;
  • examine strategies to support learners’ spelling;
  • identify how to assess learners’ spelling;
  • design an activity to use with a group of learners.

Download handouts (http://tinyurl.com/ESOL-lit5) to help you take notes and complete the session.

Task 1a: Look at the questions below.  Have you ever asked yourself these questions about your learners?


1. Why do they have difficulty spelling?
2. What spelling patterns will help my learners?
3. How should learners' spelling be assessed?
4. What information will help me plan my lesson?



Task 1b: Compare your answers to those suggested in this short article about English spelling by David Crystal:

Why is English spelling so bizarre?
 (Adapted from: Crystal, D. (2013) Why Is English Spelling So Bizarre? Available at <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-crystal/spell-it-out_b_ 3491037.html>. Accessed on 18th October 2013.

Blame the alphabet.

English alphabet consists of 26 letters and has 44 sounds.  Sometimes there is a direct relationship between spelling and sound (man, cat, pen) and at other times one sound can have many spellings (the ‘sh’ sound in station, special, charades).  Consider the variety of ways in which ‘ough’ is pronounced (thorough, dough, hiccough, thought, through, rough, plough, cough).  This can create enormous problems for our learners and being aware of this can help us to empathise.

Blame the range of language processing skills needed to spell accurately

For example, we need to be able to:

·         hear sounds correctly

·         pronounce sounds correctly

·         remember the correct order of letters in a word (e.g. was and saw)

·         tell the difference between letters that look similar (e.g d-p-b-q/m-w/n-h/n-u,t-f)

·         recognise the letters of the alphabet and know the sounds they represent

·         recognise common spelling patterns (e.g re/tion/sion/est/er/ed/con/de)

·         copy words directly from another source

·         remember the word’s phonemes in the correct order (e.g capable v cabaple)

Sometimes, there are additional problems.  Learners may have to learn to read from a different direction (learners who have Arabic, Japanese, Hebrew and Chinese read from right to left).  Learners with dyslexia, attention deficit and other memory-related problems face further challenges.


  



How should learners be assessed?

Try to test learners on the spelling patterns you provide them with rather than a ‘disjointed’ list of words.  In this way, if they hear an unfamiliar word they can use their knowledge of the pattern to spell it out. Keep it short and snappy - set weekly assessments of around 8 – 12 words depending on your class.  Motivate and encourage whenever possible.

What information will help me plan my lesson?
Here is a short list of elements you can consider when planning:
  1. The profile of individual learner’s spelling strengths and weaknesses.
  2. Spelling patterns which they have mastered and those which still present challenges.
  3. Varied activities to help maintain focus and interest.
  4. Differentiated tasks to help accommodate different learner needs.
  5. Records of assessments to chart progress.

 ** Try to build up your learners’ confidence and knowledge by providing them with clues about the spelling patterns.

Question you can ask:
  • Is it a short or long vowel affecting the spelling pattern? (pin-pine/pan-pane)
  • Does the position of the new spelling pattern need to be considered? (words never end in qu)
  • Is there a silent letter (l, b)? is it accompanied by another letter (walk, lamb, calm, would)

Develop your own knowledge about spelling patterns and build up your stockpile of questions.

Top tips for helping with spelling!
1
Teach one new spelling pattern a week.

2
Test the weekly spelling pattern soon after teaching it.

3
Don’t forget to keep reviewing patterns on a regular basis.

4
Test 8 – 12 at a time.

5
Reward good work.

6
Encourage learners to keep a separate notebook for spelling.

7
Teach common exceptions along with the rule.

8
Maintain motivation and interest.  Encourage learners to see the value of good spelling.

9
Encourage learners to keep a record of their own progress.

10
Teach learners strategies/games/memory techniques for remembering spelling patterns.


Over to you: Using the activity sheet (http://tinyurl.com/ESOL-lit5-1)  to give you some ideas, design a worksheet or activity to help your learners with a spelling pattern.  You can use one of those from this session or do some research to find out more about other patterns.  Use the task with your learners and reflect on how effectively it helped them to learn a new spelling pattern.  Share it with a colleague.  Good luck!

Further reading
  • Crystal, D. (2012) Spell it out. London: Profile Books
  • Shemesh, R. & Waller, S. (2000) Teaching English Spelling. Cambridge: CUP