What and Why?
Many students - and many native English speakers - find English spelling difficult. Since English has been influenced by many other languages, it does not have a completely consistent 'fit' between the way it is spoken and the way it is written. In addition, the invention of printing in the 15th century had the effect of 'fixing' the spelling of English at a time when the language was undergoing many changes.
'Good spelling' is important. It influences the way people think of you, and your ability to communicate clearly. However, it is important not to over-emphasize spelling. For many students, spelling is something that takes care of itself as they get more exposure to English. In the initial stages of learning, a stress on correct spelling may discourage students from using the language to try to express what they want to express. Some students may have problems in spelling in their own language, and drawing attention to this in English may strengthen their feeling of failure. The best approach is probably to draw the students attention to spellings, and to do a little practice frequently.
Practical ideas
- There are two 'Help yourself with spelling' units in the workbook.
- Ensure that the students understand that there is little or no relationship between pronunciation and spelling in English. You can make this fun by saying, for example, 'We say two [tu:] but we write [twu].' You get them to count in 'spelling English': [literal ipa] [au-ne], [t wu], [t h re:] and so on.
- If all your students share the same mother tongue it is likely that make the same spelling errors. Make a list of them and, if possible, put the correct version on a poster on the wall. Students can then refer to this when they are writing.
- You could give the students groups of words to learn, grouped around sounds. For example, [e:] words: sweet, feet, meat, heat, etc. Point out to students how the same sound is spelled in different ways.
- Do the spelling errors fall into groups? For example, perhaps they have trouble remembering the double consonant in some comparatives and superlatives, or perhaps they confuse 'ei' with 'ie'. With the students, you could try up a checklist of their common errors. They can then use this checklist everytime they write something.
- Encourage the students to check spellings in the wordlist/index at the back of their Student's Book.
- 'Good spelling' probably comes with reading. The more the students read, the more it may help their spelling. After the students have read a text, you could ask them to go back and focus on the words. Ask them to write down (or underline/circle) any words which they think they will have trouble spelling correctly later. Discuss with the group their choices and find out why they chose those words.
- To encourage students to look closely at common letter patterns, after they have read a text, write some two- or three- letter patterns on the board. (For example, -ea-, -ough-, -th-. Then individually or in teams ask them to find as many examples as possible in the text of those letter patterns.
- Students can test each other in groups.
- Play 'Spelling Snap!', in groups of 3-4. Write on one side of some cards, words which they know but may find difficult. Make sure there are at least three examples of each of the letter patterns. Shuffle the cards. Each student has 10 or so cards. Students take it in turns to put one of their cards in the centre of the table and say the word on the card at the same time. If the card which follows has the same letter pattern they must shout 'Snap!'. The person with the most cards at the end is the winner.
Researching the Classroom
- To find out if students who have problems with spelling in English also have problems in mother tongue spelling, ask their other subject teachers if your can see some of their work. Alternatively, you can dictate a short text in the mother tongue to the students (perhaps about a CES theme). Collect in the papers and make a note of the errors and the students who made them. Give another brief dictation in English and compare the results.
- To find out the nature of spelling problems that your students have, make a list of the words that they misspell when you correct their work. After a few weeks, see if you can put the words into groups. Are there particular sounds that they consistently misspell? Are there words that they confuse? (e.g. right and write)
- Does pressure of time affect the students spelling? Give them a short period of time and ask them to write as much as they can about a topic. Some time later, suggest another topic and divide the time up: 15 minutes to write, 5 minutes to check and change. Compare the results.
- Are your students aware of their spelling difficulties? When they write something, ask them to underline the words they are not sure how to spell. Compare this with the mistakes they make.
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