Spelling test using phonetics, discussion

Materials and equipment

Handout 8.2: Spelling Test!
Handout 8.3 or Overhead 8.1: Spelling Test Answers
Overhead projector

Preparation

Decide if you want this spelling test activity to go with the previous activity or at another point in your session.
Copy handouts and prepare overhead.
Be sure you have the answers to the spelling test handy for your own use.

STEP-BY-STEP PROCESS

  1. Tell tutors that this is a spelling activity with a purpose. Their answers are not going to be looked at.
  2. Give out the Spelling Test handout.
  3. Give tutors time to fill in the handout.
  4. Show the Spelling Test Answers.
  5. Talk about the fact that only 85 per cent of English words are phonetically regular, that is, they can be written according to the way they sound. The other 5 per cent will need more than a phonics approach.

Activity E

How do you learn to spell?

This activity puts tutors in the position of having difficulty with spelling. It is unlikely that any of your tutors will spell all of these words correctly. Later in this unit, they will be able to use their answers on this test in other activities that teach various strategies for learning to spell, so be sure to ask them to keep their answers at hand. They will need them for other activities in this unit.

Tutors will also look at how they try to learn to spell words they don’t know so that they will see how individualized the approaches to teaching spelling can be.

Spelling test to learn approaches to spelling, discussion

Materials and equipment

Handout 8.4 or Overhead 8.2: Five Words or your own list of words that are
difficult to spell
The definitions and pronunciations of the Five Words handout/overhead or of your own list of words – these will be for your use only, not to hand out to tutors
Flip chart and markers
Overhead projector