Spelling

Sometimes, the biggest issue is a learner's own fear of making mistakes. Encouraging learners to take risks is important in learning a language and spelling is no exception.

Some strategies that your learner may use include:

• Start by trying to write down the first letter of the word.
• Put down any other familiar letters in the word.
• Break the word into syllables for other possible clues.
• Think of rhyming words your learner knows how to spell (i.e. if your learner needs to spell, "Frank" you could brainstorm other words such as bank, tank).
• Read back what she has written thus far (to see what the word now sounds like).
• Ask someone for help.
• Use a dictionary.

Some learners may prefer to learn how to spell a word using visual stimuli - by seeing the word in print, closing their eyes, trying to remember how to spell it and then checking the original word to ensure that it is spelt correctly. Other learners would prefer to write the new word out several times to help them remember. Some learners would rather take a more analytical approach and attack the spelling of the prefix, the base word and the suffix separately.

A: Spelling Activities ¹

1. Word Jigsaws

By cutting a word into smaller pieces and having the learner put it in the right order, we can give the learner additional opportunities to practice spelling.

¹ Jill Bell and B. Burnaby, A Handbook for ESL Literacy. (Toronto, Ontario: The Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, 1984.)