Module 11 Blog Entry

Hello again everyone!

Here we are at the end of module 11! Ashleigh and I talked about how much we have learned so far and this week revealed a lot more helpful information! We reflected on what we read about teaching spelling in relationship to reading.

Spelling In Parts (SIP)I thought this was a very interesting article! It highlighted the many issues that a lot of students encounter when learning to spell words. It was helpful to be reminded of different strategies good spellers often use such as sound-to-spelling patterns and visualization. I learned that when it comes to Consonant-Vowel-Consonant and Consonant-Vowel-Consonant-silent e words, it is the children who use sound strategies who are often successful with spelling such words. It was interesting to read about the conversation with Joey. After having some meaningful SIP instruction, it is evident that he did a lot better with spelling. From this article, I noted that the biggest difference lies in a child’s understanding and ability to break a word up into syllables. The article pointed out that successful students often hear a word, apply common spelling patterns, give visual attention to the pattern, and divide the word into chunks. In broader terns, these are known as three major strategies: using visual memory, graphophonic knowledge,and morphemic knowledge. It was interesting to read about how to help students spell big words. Using the SIP strategy seemed to really help the students tackle the bigger words. It was surprising that the class discussed in the article successfully learned how to spell the word communication. For 2nd graders, I can see this being a really big word. I think the Spelling in Parts (SIP) strategy is a great method to use in the classroom. With some practice, I think I would be able to use it to help students in my future classroom. When choosing a word to work on, the strategy ultimately involves clapping out syllables, divide and pronounce each syllable, say the syllable and spell it, circle difficult spelling patterns, identify a mnemonic or analogy to apply to the pattern, CSW (cover, say, and write the syllable), and finally, check and repeat the word.

Spelling Instruction and Assessment PowerPointIt was interesting to begin this PowerPoint with a little test! I did a lot better than I thought but I did struggle with writing the name Abu Ghraib, mainly because I had a hard time pronouncing the word. Although I knew most of the words on the list, I can see how using the SIP strategy to spell would be very helpful. I liked how the presentation pointed out that spelling needs to be taught along with writing. This makes sense because when students write, they HAVE to spell (slide 5). I remember learning in a previous module something about the number of words we have in the English language but it was surprising to be reminded of the rapid growth in words we experience each day. It’s amazing that we already have 1,003,661 words and will add another 14.7 by the end of the day! It was great to learn that the average educated person knows 20,000 words but only uses 2,000 words in a week. However, it is probably true that these people don’t know how to spell a majority of these words. This slide (slide 6) really made me think about how many words I know and use on a weekly basis! The statistics discussed in the PowerPoint indicate that the average American can spell 20% or less of words in the English language (slide 7). When you really think about it, it’s not that much! The presentation also focused on the three major spelling strategies: Sound (phonetic cues), Sight (visual cues), and Meaning (knowing root words, etc.) (slide 8). It makes sense that spelling is often a difficult task because language, especially the English Language, is made up of a complex set of rules and spoken using a lot of different dialects (slide 9). Because of such difficulty, I can see how invented spelling would be encouraged in young children (slide 10). It was great that the PowerPoint gave some ideas of what kinds of words to include in a spelling list for students to practice and eventually master such as high frequency words, homophones, and words from literature or other subject areas (slide 11-12). I reminded that learning spelling patterns can certainly lead us to spell many words slide 13-14). It’s important to understand the meaning behind words before attempting to spell them. The program sequence for teaching spelling highlighted on slide 15 is definitely something to keep in mind, especially when planning to gradually teach harder words. The presentation also gave ideas of activities to use when teaching spelling such as word sorts, spelling inquiries, sound charts, and word webs. It also listed some valuable teaching techniques such as chunking, sorting roots and suffixes, pairing homophones, and doing rhyme reading (slides 16-23). I thought it was interesting to note the importance of knowing Latin and Greek root words in order to spell. A lot of words have the same root word and can mean almost the same thing. If children could identify this concept, then it may help them when learning to spell them (slide 24). As we learned in a previous module, assessment of a child’s spelling is important. It was great to be reminded of how to conduct a spelling miscue analysis. Like any other assessment, it must be an ongoing process (slide 25-31). I like how the PowerPoint gave the different characteristics of effective speller. I learned that they read a lot, are intrinsically motivated to learn words, and use numerous spelling strategies (slide 32). It is unfortunate that a lot of people who struggle with spelling are often good readers but lack the motivation to become good spellers. The presentation pointed out that these people will eventually identify themselves as bad spellers (slide 33-34). I’m glad that the PowerPoint also gave ideas to use to help struggling spellers in the classroom. Teachers can teach proofreading early, have students to reread literature, give fewer words on a test, and use the SIP strategy. More importantly, they must be encouraged and reassured that they can learn to spell. They can learn to become great word watchers (slide 36-38)!

Spelling—What’s All The Fuss?
This document was an interesting read! I learned a lot about what to look for in different student’s writing. Upon first look, I’m sure that most people would think that Carl produced better writing/spelling than Jason. Carl made minor errors while Jason’s spelling indicated that he needed a lot more practice. However, further examination tells us that there is not much difference between each piece. It was revealed that Carl probably structured his writing using what he learned in a reading basal program where he was mostly prompted to write. He limited his writing so he could use more words he could spell. With Jason’s writing, I noticed that he seemed take more risks with writing and attempted to spell words he didn’t know. This is something for teachers to look past since the problem can easily be solved (pg. 1-4).

I thought it was important to note that spelling is basically a continuation of a child’s language development. With anything they learn, it takes time and practice. In order to help them learn to communicate orally, teachers often ask questions, construct shared meaning, and check for clarification. The document raised an interesting point that this should also be done when teaching written language (spelling) (pg. 5). I thought it was very interesting to learn that trying to identify the spelling level at which a student is can be dangerous. Oftentimes, teachers can meet a child at a certain level but forget that the things they learned in previous stages need to be revisited. Children are continually building on their conventional spelling (pg. 5).

I also gained a lot of insight when reading about Sandra Wilde’s principles of spelling: 1) spelling is evaluated using natural writing, 2) spelling is evaluated analytically and not based on right/wrong, 3) spelling is evaluated in terms of children’s strategies, and 4) teachers should evaluate spelling to be informed of student progress—it should not be used as a mechanical test scorer (pg. 6). To add to her principles, Wilde also presents us with five spelling strategies students can use when writing: 1) Placeholder, 2) Human Resource, 3) Textual Resource, 4) Generation, Monitoring, and Revision, and 5) Ownership (pg. 6). Other higher-level strategies include spelling words as the sound, spelling by analogy, and spelling by linguistic content (pg. 6-7). When considering any strategy to use, the document stresses the importance for teachers to understand that no one strategy is better than the other. They are each valuable because each student learns differently! To add to this, the many ways that students learn greatly influence the way in which teachers lead instruction. The document suggests that children learn naturally under conditions such as: immersion, expectation, responsibility, and response (pg. 8).

Of course, it was interesting to read about how all of this looks in the classroom. I liked the opening paragraph that stated “When children are immersed in demonstrations of how texts are constructed and used, the classroom becomes a place where written language permeates the curriculum” (pg. 8). This is so true! The table given on page 9 was helpful because it listed the different functions of languages to use when teaching (instrumental, regulatory, informative, etc.) and gave examples of each. I liked how this section stressed the importance of exposing children to a lot of literature and a variety of authors (pg. 9).

Best Practices—NCTE
Although this was an optional reading, I skimmed through it and thought it would be valuable to save for later. It explained the “best” ideas to use when teaching and learning spelling. It was interesting to read how they compared these ideas to the “not-so-good” ideas as the described them.

Spelling Is More than Lists and Tests
The module guide also listed this item as an optional read but as with the last document, I read through a little bit of it. I can see this being useful for me when I start setting up a spelling program in my future classroom. It touched on a lot of the things we have learned in in previous modules as well as this one. It highlighted the fact that with all of the other things teachers must teach, not much emphasis is placed on spelling. It also pointed out the essential aspects of a spelling program such as phonemic awareness instruction, strategy instruction, homophone instruction, assessment techniques, and more importantly; instruction that encourages students to become word watchers (pg. 3-5). As I mentioned, assessing students in their spelling abilities is essential so it was great to read about the different assessment ideas such as spelling interviews, spelling notebooks, weekly spelling tests, and of course, spelling miscue analyses (pg. 7-9). I also noted how the document talked about using Inquiry techniques for teaching these strategies. It was great to learn about different examples for each grade level (pg. 10-13).

Phonics/Spelling Continuum
Ashleigh and I recall looking at this document in a previous module but it’s great to be reminded of it now since it is so relevant. It’s helpful to read through the developmental stages in which children learn the different vowel patterns, syllables, and combinations. It was interesting to read the module guide explaining that phonics instruction should be complete by the 3rd grade. It makes sense that children should know and understand each item on the list so they can work to improve their spelling throughout school.

44 Phonemes and Spelling Patterns
Ashleigh and I also discussed seeing and using this document in the module about assessing spelling. This is something we both plan to keep in a file for later use. I’m sure this will come in handy not only for my future teaching but for my own information. It highlights the sound, symbols, and possible spellings for different words.

Pinnell and Fountas
Chapter 15 of Pinnell and Fountas’s text Word Matters gave a great description of what interactive writing is and how it is used in the classroom. Ultimately, this type of writing is teacher guided and involves both the teacher and students to share writing by writing a message or text. It was interesting to read that interactive writing can be used to complete simple tasks such as making a grocery list, retelling a story, writing a letter, and giving directions (pg. 191-192). Oftentimes, the process can be spread out for more than one day of instruction. It was great to read about the many benefits interactive writing has on the students. I learned that it engages them into the process of composing stories, describing characters, using spelling patterns, and connecting writing to reading (pg. 192) and allows beginning readers to say words slowly, listen to sounds, remember a known word, and remember how to write certain letters by thinking of how they look (pg. 193). I liked the example given in the text about one teacher using interactive writing in the classroom. She did a lot to help her students during this process because she showed them how to remember by having them to repeat messages and rereading while writing, said words slowly to demonstrate a word solving strategy, and showed them how to take something they already knew and connect it with the writing (pg. 194-195). It was interesting to read about the different examples of how to use interactive reading with the different grade levels. In order to help children learn about words when doing interactive writing, the text suggests for teachers to work on the edge of children’s understanding about letters and words, use it as a resource for studying words, make connections to other curriculum, use demonstration and prompting techniques, and help students learn to write for themselves (pg. 199-203). These are all really great pieces of advice that should come in handy one day!

Chapter 16 presented a lot of information about something we’ve been discussing and learning about in previous modules—The Writing Workshop. This gave a lot of helpful examples of what to do in a writing workshop to help students find and develop their own voices, acquire thinking about writing (asking important questions throughout the writing process), understand the importance of revisiting their work, and helping them see a purpose behind their writing (pg. 207). As I read in the text, it stressed need to analyze student’s spelling and writing. I liked how this chapter included examples of young student’s work as a way to show common spelling patterns in their writing. It was interesting to be reminded that short mini-lessons can be used to address the problems students encounter (pg. 217-219).

The last required reading from Word Matters gave a lot of helpful information regarding the act of guided reading. I like how the opening paragraph listed the two important aspects to becoming a competent word solver: 1) knowing about words and 2) being able to use one’s knowledge while reading words in the text (pg. 233). Pinnell and Fountas talk about using the “before, during, and after” structure when teaching lessons. The “Before” phase includes the process of selecting appropriate text and introducing them to the students. Analyzing the characteristics of different types of text such as number of lines, range of high-frequency words, and amount of multi-syllable words are important things to consider during this time (pg. 234). The “During” phase calls for teachers to observe and support reading to help individuals read text. Prompting one strategy teachers use during this phase. In this case, prompts are often questions or calls to action that help students solve words as they read (pg. 242). As for the “After” phase, the teacher may have a couple of teaching points and reinforce teaching strategies. In addition, students are encouraged to go back into the text to find words they may have had trouble with. Follow-up activities are often introduced to students to help them use the ideas or concepts learned in a lesson. During this additional time, the book suggests that letter work and/or word work activities be available to helps children look at print and think flexibly about words. Everything presented in this chapter was very interesting and I am sure it will be worth revisiting once I begin setting up a writing workshop in my future classroom.


This was another information-filled module! Everything I have learned has helped me to start thinking about the kinds of things I can implement into a future spelling program in my classroom. Ashleigh and I realize that establishing an effective program is essential to information learned this week is very valuable to us!

Thank you for reading my post! See you next week!
Kelsey