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The Teaching Home
E-MAIL NEWSLETTER
Information, Inspiration, and Encouragement
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Number 32
March 28, 2003
Cindy Short and Sue Welch, editors
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You are welcome to forward this newsletter in its entirety.
Table of Contents
15-Part Series on Basic Skills: Spelling
Spelling Lessons & Lists
Cross-Curricular Spelling Study
Methods of Studying Spelling Words
Other Spelling Helps
Recommended Resources
Hands-On Bible Curriculum
The Teaching Home Back Issues
The Captain Magazine
Whitefield College
Timberdoodle Co.
Sunny Side Up: Humorous Anecdote
Greetings!
Much like Eliza Doolittle's speech in Pygmalion, your child's
spelling can mark him as educated -- or not.
This issue is packed full of suggestions and resources to make
learning to spell easier for you and your child!
May the Lord bless you and your family for His glory.
Sincerely,
Pat, Sue, Heather, Holly, and Brian Welch
The Teaching Home is a 22-year-old, home-school family business.
http://www.TeachingHome.com
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Hands-On Bible Curriculum: Easy Preparation for You;
Interesting, Fun, and Life-Changing for Your Children!
Dramatically increase what your children learn,
remember, and use, by actively involving them in the
learning process -- using all their senses.
Each Hands-On Bible lesson:
* Focuses on one specific point for maximum retention
and impact on your children's hearts and lives.
* Uses a variety of activities and everyday objects to
reinforce the message.
* Gives children one life-applicable piece of Bible
truth to remember and use in their daily lives.
For more information or to download a free sample, see:
http://www.handsonbible.com/homeschool.htm
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15-Part Series on Basic Skills
by Cindy Short and Sue Welch, editors
Our 15-part series is written to help you evaluate your
children's skill levels and help them improve in those areas.
Topics are listed with the newsletter number in parenthesis.
These can be viewed in our Newsletter Archives at
http://www.teachinghome.com/newsletters.
1. Listening (#18)
2. Word Analysis/Phonics (#19)
3. Vocabulary (#21)
4. Reading Comprehension: Knowledge (#23)
5. Reading Comprehension (#25 & #26)
6. Reading Comprehension: Analysis & Synthesis (#28)
Reading Comprehension: Application (#29)
Reading Comprehension: Evaluation (#30)
7. Spelling (This Issue)
8. Capitalization & Punctuation
9. Grammar
10. Writing & Penmanship
11. Visual Materials
12. Reference Materials
13. Math: Concepts & Computation
14. Math: Problem Solving
15. Thinking Skills, Logic, and Speech
Why Is Spelling Important?
Good spelling comes naturally to some people, but can be a
life-long struggle for others. Many brilliant people are bad
spellers. So why should you teach your child to spell?
* Poor spelling creates a bad impression and makes your child
look ignorant, uneducated, or lazy.
* Poor spelling can seriously affect your child's confidence.
* Anxiety about spelling can inhibit your child's writing and
limit his choice of words.
* Spell checkers do not recognize errors caused by choosing the
wrong homonym (there or their) or if the misspelling is a real
word (college or collage).
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Practical How-Tos & Teaching Tips
Visit The Teaching Home Website for:
Frequently Asked Questions Concerning Home Schooling.
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Articles on Home-School Basics.
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50 State Organizations with Links (Plus Other Countries).
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123 Classified Suppliers in Our Resource Directory with Links.
http://www.teachinghome.com/resources/index.cfm
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Spelling Lessons & Lists
Christian curriculums provide spelling programs with weekly
spelling lists and activities appropriate for each grade level.
You might also want to use these lists.
Top 100 Most Commonly Used Words
To boost your child's basic spelling, make sure he knows how
to spell these words which make up about half of all reading and
spelling:
A: a, about, all, an, and, are, as, at
B: back, be, been, before, big, but, by
C: call, came, can, come, could
D: did, do, down
F: first, for, from
H: had, have, he, him, his
I: I, in, into, is, it
J: just
L: like, little, look
M: made, make, me, more, much, must, my
N: new, no, not, now
O: of, off, old, on, one, only, or, other, our, out, over
R: right
S: said, see, she, so, some
T: that, the, their, them, then, there, they, this, to, two
U: up
W: want, was, we, well, went, were, what, when, where,
which, who, will, with
Y: you
Top 300 Most Commonly Used Words
These make up 65% of written material.
http://www.rdale.k12.mn.us/ple/instant_words.htm
Top 1,000 Most Commonly Used Words
http://www.johnsesl.com/templates/vocab/1000words.php
Commonly Misspelled Words
http://webster.commnet.edu/grammar/misspelled_words.htm
Your Child's Own Personal List
This list is made up from the following:
* Words that he has misspelled in his writing.
* Words that he selects that he would like to learn how to spell.
Free Online Spelling Lessons
30-Lesson Spelling Course & Spelling Rules
http://www.splashesfromtheriver.com/spelling/courseoutline.htm
Everyday Spelling for grades 1-8
http://www.everydayspelling.com
Spelling Advice and Free Worksheets
http://www.spelling.hemscott.net
20 Lessons with 20 words per lesson for grades 1-12
http://www.edhelper.com/spelling.htm
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Do You Love the Henty Books, History, and Great Literature?
Subscribe to The Captain magazine for only $17.85/year!
From Preston Speed, the publishers of the G.A.Henty books.
*Great stories from Henty, his contemporaries, modern authors.
*History and culture study aides.
*Reviews and recommendations.
http://www.prestonspeed.com (570) 726-7844
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Cross-Curricular Spelling Study
You can combine and/or reinforce several subject areas when
studying spelling words.
Penmanship
* Have your child practice writing his spelling words in his best
penmanship.
Writing & Creative Thinking
* Have your child write a sentence using one or more of his
spelling words.
* Have him write a paragraph or short story using all his
spelling words.
* The above assignment could require some very creative thinking
to find relationships between the spelling words.
Vocabulary Study
For every spelling word, have your child:
* Learn the meaning and perhaps the origin.
* Know how to pronounce the word correctly.
* Use the word in verbal communication.
Other Subjects
* Choose key words to learn from the content area of others
subjects such as math, science, history, or Bible.
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Yes, You Can Earn Your College Degree at Home
Study at home for your Bachelor degree in
Christian Education, Bible, or Philosophy. We also have
a program designed to better equip home schooling moms
to teach. For information order or download your free
Whitefield College catalog online.
http://www.whitefieldcollege.org
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Methods of Studying Spelling Words
There are many methods to choose from here. You might want
to use several on a harder word or ask your child to choose which
method he would like to use from word to word or time to time.
Phonics & Reading
One of the best ways to teach spelling is right along with
reading.
* Use your phonics lessons as spelling lessons by covering up new
words after reading them and asking for the spelling. Repeat
as needed.
* Ask for the spelling of other words that contain the same
sounds and spelling (e.g., night, right, light, bright).
* Include the common spellings of vowel and consonant sounds
including short and long vowels and blends.
Spelling Rules
Besides the specific phonics rules for spelling, the following
need special attention:
* Forming regular and irregular plurals of nouns.
* Adding an ending to a verb.
* Adding prefixes and suffixes.
* I before E, except after C, or when it sounds like an A, as in
"neighbor" and "weigh," plus the exceptions.
* Adding -ible or -able.
Purdue University Online Writing Lab
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/grammar
Pronunciation
Many spelling errors are due to incorrect pronunciation of
the word.
* Be sure your child knows the correct pronunciation.
* Exaggerate a part of the word that is tricky.
* Emphasize the wrong syllable or mispronounce the word so it
sounds the way it is spelled.
Syllables & Word Parts
All good spellers break a word into smaller parts, making
it easier to handle.
* Break the work up into syllables (care-ful, hos-pit-al,
-ni-vers-i-ty).
* All syllables contain at least one vowel; some are only one
letter -- a vowel.
* Syllables usually follow the long/short vowel rules, so that
you can spell each syllable separately like a short word.
* Break the word up into sounds such as consonant and vowel
blends (th-ank).
* Learn common prefixes and suffixes and break them out of the
ord.
Visualize the Word
* Visualize the word in black, lower-case letters on a white
background in front of you.
* Break the word into groups of letters by syllables or phonetic
nits.
* Say each letter slowly several times in a regular sing-song
rhythm, all the time seeing the letter and pointing to it in its
group or tracing it in the air.
* Gain speed and practice spelling the word faster several times.
Specialties
* Draw a line under the tricky part of the word and concentrate
on that bit.
* Count the letters.
* Find a word that rhymes with it if the spelling is the same.
Tactile
* Write the word over and over on paper.
* Write the word with your finger in the air or in sand.
* Trace over the letters with a finger several times, saying the
letters.
* Type the word.
* Spell the word with magnetic letters on the fridge door.
See & Hear
* Carefully look at the word and say it distinctly.
* Cover the word.
* Now write the word.
* Check to see if it is correct.
Mnemonics
These might help with especially long or hard words or words
that are exceptions to the normal phonics and spelling rules.
* Invent memory devices to help remember the correct spelling of
a word. (the vowels in spaghetti are in alphabetical order;
t + here = there.)
________________________________________________________________
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We emphasize hands-on learning, personal product
reviews, and quality selections; enabling you to
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interests, abilities, and learning styles.
360-426-0672; fax 800-478-0672; emailbag@timberdoodle.com
http://www.timberdoodle.com
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Other Spelling Helps
Play Spelling Games
* Board games: Scrabble, UpWords, Boggle.
* Pencil & paper: Hangman.
* Online:
http://www.Funbrain.com/spellroo/index.html
http://www.funbrain.com/spell
Corrections
To help your child see what he did correctly and where his
difficulty is, correct his misspelled words by:
* Crossing out incorrect letters.
* Adding correct or missing letters.
* Have your child write each word three or more times.
Dictionaries & Spell Checkers
* Make sure your child has easy access to a dictionary.
* Get a spelling dictionary.
* Get your child an electronic dictionary or spell checker which
can guess at misspelled words to find the correct spelling.
Writing
* Encourage your child to try new words and put in the words he
wants to use, rather than those he knows he can spell.
* Add misspelled words to his personal spelling list.
Help Your Child To:
* Develop an interest in words by talking about them with him.
* Feel safe about trying new words without being criticized.
* Write for his own enjoyment.
* Read (a lot!) for pleasure.
Homonyms
Your child should learn to spell homonyms, words that are
pronounced alike but which are spelled differently and have
different meanings. These are very conspicuous mistakes that
a spell checker can not catch.
* Here are a few common homonyms:
knew - new; deer - dear
Its, It's; Their, There, They're
To, Too, Two; Your, You're
240 sets of homonyms. http://www.cooper.com/alan/homonym.html
Homonym tests. http://a4esl.org/q/h/homonyms.html
One or Two Words?
These are a few examples of words that can be spelled as one
or two words with different meanings:
All ready/already; All right/alright
All together/altogether; Any one/anyone
Any way/anyway; A while/awhile
May be/maybe
American and British Spelling
Your child should be aware that there are some differences, so
that he does not think that a book printed in England (or U.S.A.)
contains misspelled words.
http://www.spelling.hemscott.net/diffusuk.html
Spelling Links
Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee
http://www.spellingbee.com
Free PDF download of Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Prefixes,
Suffixes, and Combining Forms.
http://www.spellingbee.com/pre_suf_comb.pdf
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Please Thank & Support Sponsoring Advertisers!
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Sunny Side Up
Jeremy, our 4-year-old, asked me to do something with him.
I told him I needed to think about it. After about 25 seconds he
asked, "Have you thinked?"
I said, "You mean thought."
He responded, "Did you thought?"
Sent by Tom Williams, B.C.
You are also invited to submit your humorous anecdote.
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God Loves You.
Because we were separated from God by sin, Jesus Christ died
in our place, then rose to life again. If we trust Jesus Christ
as our Savior and Lord, He will give us eternal life.
"For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that
not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of
works, that no one should boast" (Eph. 2:8, 9).
http://www.TeachingHome.com/about/salvation.cfm
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