Spelling Games

Spelling doesn't have to be a chore.  I don't even focus on it with my Lambies unless they don't develop good spelling naturally by fourth grade or so.  I have seen Charlotte Mason's Dictation method of spelling work well with some of my children.  With others, it didn't.  I have the first Spelling Wisdom book and have used it for spelling and copy work.  I do like it, but it didn't really work for all of my learners as a spelling tool.   

Sequential Spelling was highly recommended and we tried it....really, we did!  It took quite a while to get through a written test every day.  Too much time for me.  Also, my worst speller wasn't improving, despite the repetition of patterns.  I am totally willing to use it again, but it wasn't right for the learning style of the children currently working on spelling.


Currently, for my learners that need basic spelling work, I use Fry Words.  I made a Weekly To-Do List to keep them on track and give them the new word list on Mondays.  I look over their spelling work on Friday and give them a test. Here are their weekly tasks: Monday: write each word 10 times. Tuesday: Use each word in a sentence. Wednesday: Build each word using letter tiles. Thursday: Complete a (mother prepared) puzzle. Friday: show all work to Mom and take the oral spelling test.  Any words that are missed on Friday are rewritten 10 times and retested.


I've seen my struggling speller begin to improve in daily writing.  I love progress!
I make a lot of puzzles for my Lambies.  It's an easy way to make learning fun.  Some of my favorite puzzles can be custom made at Discovery Puzzlemaker.  I recently found a word search generator that I like even better.  I've been making a word search of the week's spelling words using it. I also use these generators for occasional science and history work.


Boggle, Boggle Jr. for Littles, Scrabble and Word Bingo are fun games for spelling.  You won't be able to use a word list, of course, but it develops different skills than looking for known words. 


How do you work spelling into your day? Please share in the comments!

Drills...The Fun Way

Ahhh....it's nearing back to school time! I have every intention of starting Monday (but have given myself until Wednesday, just in case I need more time for something). In the meantime, I am allowing the Lambies to warm up their thinking caps with these fun little games I found. Some mention using the Wii, but they work just fine on the computer, using the arrow keys and space bar, too.

Academic Skill Builders

I love that they can be playing and learning at the same time!

Incredible Progress!!

This masterpiece of writing was penned by my darling daughter, Missy. She was participating in our first day of "Sequential Spelling" Vol. 1. The children were writing "We are all beginning to be good spellers." by dictation. This was her surprising version. Isn't it magnificent??!!



Take THAT developmental disabilities!!!