Learning Partnership
This Week's Learning bulletin: SPELLING
How Children Learn to Spell
Learning to spell is much more than memorising a list of words each week. English spelling is complex, with words coming from many different languages and word histories. To become confident spellers, children need to understand how sounds, letters and word parts work together.
When learning to spell, children first need to hear the sounds in a word, identify the order of those sounds, and then choose the letter or letters that represent each sound. It is particularly important that children learn to identify vowels and vowel sounds, as these can influence the consonant letters used to represent sounds in a word. As children progress, they learn that the choice of letters is influenced by several factors, including the location of the sound in the word, the type of syllable, spelling patterns, morphology (meaningful word parts such as prefixes, suffixes and bases), and the history of the word.
For example, the sound /k/ can be represented by c in cat, k in kit and ck in back. Knowing which representation to choose requires children to understand the patterns and structures of English spelling.
At Armadale Primary School, we explicitly teach these patterns and relationships so that children develop the knowledge and strategies they need to spell unfamiliar words and not simply memorise words they have already seen. Over time, this helps children become independent, confident and accurate spellers.
How Families Can Help
We encourage families to share their child’s Learning Portfolio and take a few moments to consider the recommendations teachers have included in the Bulletin. These suggestions provide practical ways you can reinforce the spelling skills your child is currently developing and help strengthen their understanding and confidence as a speller.
Connie Apostolos
Assistant Principal