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Reading PK-3 > Strategies > Direct Instruction: Spelling

Direct Instruction: Spelling

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Overview

Formal spelling instruction improves not only students' spelling skills but also their reading skills. Teaching learners how to spell by understanding phonetic and spelling patterns can help improve their Vocabulary and their Phonological and Orthographic Processing.

Use It in the Classroom

Watch how this teacher integrates spelling with Vocabulary using the Word Lab method. She supports students' Phonological Processing skills by going over the syllables and the silent versus pronounced sounds. She also brings learners' Attention to the tricky and interesting parts of the word to help their understanding of the specific word as well as nuances of spelling rules.

  • Teachers can encourage students to spell words in a combination of ways, like using their knowledge of phonics, recognizing patterns, and memorizing sight words. Providing opportunities to use and practice the words they know, as well as trying to spell new words, can help students master specific words and general spelling principles, supporting Speed of Processing and Long-term Memory.

    • Design It into Your Product

    Videos are chosen as examples of strategies in action. These choices are not endorsements of the products or evidence of use of research to develop the feature.

    Learn how Vocabulary SpellingCity helps users practice spelling through games and activities where they see and hear words in context. This interactive exploration can improve Vocabulary, Phonological Processing, and Morphological Knowledge. The app teaches words from ready-made lists from a standards-based curriculum and allows learners and their teachers to make their own lists.

  • Developers can introduce word lists within their apps and provide games to practice spelling, such as fill-in-the blank, word guessing like Hangman, word creation like Scrabble, and sound recognition challenges, followed by positive reinforcement messages.
    • View References

    Resources

    Below are additional examples, research, and professional development. These resources are possible representations of this strategy, not endorsements.
    Examples

    Spelling Instruction and Reading Ability

    Summary of methods for teaching spelling

    Examples

    Why Correct Spelling Is Important

    Strategies and resources for teaching spelling

    Examples

    Word Study

    Reading Rockets tips for teaching spelling based on word patterns

    Research

    Why Teach Spelling

    Summary of research and strategies for teaching spelling and evaluating spelling programs

    Research

    Writing Instruction

    Subtopic that includes descriptions and evaluations of instructional approaches to improve students' writing on Digital Promise's Research Map

    Examples

    Spelling Apps

    Common Sense Media's curated list of spelling apps

    Factors Supported by this Strategy

    Language and Literacy
    Cognition
    Social and Emotional Learning
    Student Background

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