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Help your child at home: with spelling

boy Spelling is an area of learning about which many, many parents are concerned. We are often asked for worksheets on spellings and what can be done to help children understand spelling better. The government has published a document called the National Strategies (Primary) ‘Support for spelling’.

This document helps parents by explaining:

The objectives for spelling
Splits the objectives, with spelling examples, into year groups and terms from Year 2 to Year 6
A sequence for spelling from Transition to Year 6 with teaching methods explained

and will support all the work done in school.

At home it is useful for children to develop a conscious interest in spelling by:

1. Feeling safe about using and writing new words

2. Discover how words can be broken down into syllables e.g.

together = to-get-her; discovery = dis-cov-er-y

3. Look at spelling patterns of words children

4. Think about the start and ending of words especially:

prefixes e.g .appear - disappear

suffixes e.g. short-shorten

5. Understand the meaning of words e.g. comfortable, pamphlets

6. Try and remember useful spelling strategies

7. Enjoy writing for themselves

8. Enjoy reading for pleasure - comics are useful to encourage reading!

Parents must help their children by:

1. encouraging them to look carefully at words

2. using new and different vocabulary in front of children e.g.

at the dinner table discuss menus,
places where food comes from,
food eaten in different countries e.g. pasta and Italy
food names e.g. spicy, curry, fish fingers, desserts, cheeses, cauliflower, lentils, quiche, spaghetti, champagne etc.

try and repeat this process in different venues e.g.

Travelling,
Shopping,
Reading notices in the park,
At swimming pools etc.

3. enjoy playing word games with the children

Scrabble
Boggle
Hangman
Word lotto

4. rearrange letters from his/her name or other known words to

5. make new words

f6. ind words within words, e.g. s/it, b/all, s/end, be/hind, win/dow, sh/out

7. use address books, telephone books and picture dictionaries

8. learn to spell:

colours
days of week
months of the year

9. Help children use Memorising techniques e.g.

10. Encourage good reading habits and spare time reading.

if this is reading a comic, a newspaper, make sure that words are sometimes read out loud.
Visits to the library should be organised
Reading aloud from the computer

11. Correct ‘mistakes’ without criticising. Explain how the word might have been tackled

12. Use spelling sheets to reinforce spellings

Spellings on colours	Spelling list 1	Spelling list 2	Spelling list 3
Key words spelling Free Download	High Frequency words list	Family names	Animals spelling
Toys spelling	Spell your numbers	First and last letter spellings Year 2	Spellings per day for KS1 Free Download

key words

spelling

Spelling and writing are usually learnt together. Painting, colouring and computer games all can reinforce this learning process.

It helps to:

1. Talk about your child’s writing

When children start they have not learnt the conventional spellings. They should however be encouraged to try. Encourage them to listen to the complete sounds of the words.

3. Use their own name and write words start with same letter as your name

e.g. Susan says, sees, sand, send,

e.g. Charles cheese, chum, chirps, chops

4. Let children help you write lists,

5. Always remember to praise your child when they work hard and make attempts at writing and spelling.

6. Look at words together and point words out when you are out shopping, on television and when you read stories.

7. Learn songs and rhymes and read books together.

8. Re-arrange letters from his name or other known words to

9. make new words. e.g. b-at, is like m-at, s-at, h-at

10. Find words within words, e.g. h/it, t/all, b/end, be/hind, win/dow, sh/out, f/arm/yard, car/pet

11. As you read, talk about ways of how to remember to break up words into easier parts, e.g. Mon/ day, hol/i/day, Car/ni/val.

As children progress up through school they will be introduced to;

improving sight vocabulary
word banks of personal words, topic words
vowel and consonant sounds / formations
syllables, e.g. comfortable, weekday
using different word endings in writing, e.g. ing/s/ed
spelling common irregular words e.g. was, said, one,
come, what
words with similar patterns, compound words e.g.
some/one, hand/bag
collect words and phrases that express shades of meaning.

When your child has a firmer grip on spelling you can still help by:

Introducing a simple dictionary
Praise new words that they have learnt to use correctly.
Encourage your child to get the ideas down first when they are writing then check spellings later.
Ask “Does that word look right?”
Use the computer or get them to write to people who like to hear from them such as grandparents!
Use postcards to encourage children to write as they have less space to write.

Postcard about new pet

Postcards for you to send

Postcard for school trip

Postcard on Camping trip

There are plenty of pages on Parents in Touch which will help you and your child with many of the idiosyncrasies of the English spelling.

How words are made	Spelling rules Free Download	Spelling tips 1 and 2	How to teach spelling
Spelling tips	Spelling rules 2	Spelling rules KS2	Spelling tips and rules Free Download
Spelling tips for Year 3	Spelling tips for Year 4	Spelling tips for Year 5	Spelling tips for Year 6

Mnemonics		Stimulate spelling in children Free Download	Teaching spelling
Using a dictionary	Using a dictionary KS2, no1	Using a thesaurus	Dictionaries and spelling