Spelling or Vocabulary? What’s more important? Spelling or Vocabulary?

You can understand this… I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdnieag. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid! Aoccdrnig to a rscheearche at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh? Yaeh and I awlyas thought slpeling was ipmorantt!

better than this… We’re not doctors! Chlorecyclizine hydrochloride is an antihistamine which is related structurally to cyclizine and meclizine. A combination with hydrocortisone acetate provides anti-inflammatory, antipruritic, and anesthetic properties. It blocks the actions of histamine, antagonizes allergic manifestation, and anestetizes free nerve endings that mediate pain. The combination provides dual and additive effects to combat antigen-antibody reaction. No spelling mistakes but, without vocabulary, the text becomes meaningless... We’re not doctors! (This happens with math, law, sports, etc. …anywhere we don’t know the vocabulary!)

So, vocabulary it is!! “Vocabulary knowledge is one of the most powerful predictors of reading comprehension” (McKeown, 2009).

How Important is Vocabulary? _____ was absent yesterday because he was playing football. He was hurt in the growing area. _____ has been absent because he had two teeth taken off his face. _____ will not be in school cuz he has an acre in his side. Please excuse _____ from P.E. a few days, yesterday she fell off a tree and misplaced her hip. Please excuse _____ from school because he has very loose vowels.

Spelling seldom impacts the meaning but vocabulary often does! The main message… Spelling seldom impacts the meaning but vocabulary often does!

Activity… Copy and then try to fill in the blanks so the passage makes sense? (There are many possibilities.) *Some clues might get you started! Nall was so _______. She was ______ to the _____ with Charkle. She would _____ a _____ _____ so she could _____ out books. Charkle _____ her _____ out the _____. “_____, Charkle,” jibbed Nall _____ly. “Now we can _____ out _____ together!” _____ Charkle _____ly.

One possibility… Nall was so excited. She was going to the library with Charkle. She would get a library card so she could check out books. Charkle helped her fill out the form. “Thanks, Charkle,” jibbed Nall excitedly. “Now we can check out books together!” laughed Charkle happily.

Vocabulary and Comprehension A Flannerby Barp for Nall Nall was so plamper. She was larping to the flannerby with Charkle. She would grunk a flannerby barp so she could crooch out carples. Charkle lanted her gib out the nep. “Parps, Charkle,” jibbed Nall plamperly. “Now we can crooch out carples together!” pifed Charkle trigly. 1. Who are the characters in the story? 2. Where were they larping? 3. Why did she want to grunk a flannerby barp? 4. A good title for this story would be: “Nall and Charkle Together” “Larping to the Flannerby” “Lanting Nall Grunk a Flannerby Barp” “Grunking a Flannerby Barp” *Access to meaning was hindered because we didn't get the vocabulary...like a foreign language!

How to Bartle Puzballs Copy the following passage into your scribbler. There are tork gooboos of puzballs, including laplies, mushos, and fushos. Even if you bartle the puzballs that tovo inny and onny of the pern, they do not grunto any lipples. In order to geemee a puzball that gruntos lipples, you should bartle the fusho who has rarckled the parshtootoos after her humply fluflu.

Nonsense? Let’s check for comprehension… How to Bartle Puzballs There are tork gooboos of puzballs, including laplies, mushos, and fushos. Even if you bartle the puzballs that tovo inny and onny of the pern, they do not grunto any lipples. In order to geemee a puzball that gruntos lipples, you should bartle the fusho who has rarckled the parshtootoos after her humply fluflu. Nonsense? Let’s check for comprehension… Copy and then try to answer each question below: How many gooboos of puzballs are there? What are laplies, mushos, and fushos? Even if you bartle the puzballs that tovo inny and onny of the pern, they will not what? How can you geemee a puzball that gruntos lipples?

How many gooboos of puzballs are there? There are tork gooboos of puzballs. 2. What are laplies, mushos, and fushos? Laplies, mushos, and fohos are tork gooboos of puzballs. 3. Even if you bartle the puzballs that tovo inny and onny of the pern, they will not what? They will not grunto any lipples. 4. How can you geemee a puzball that gruntos lipples? You should bartle the fusho who has rarkled her parshtootoos after her humply fluflu.

Lesson!! *You likely were able to answer most or even all of the questions even though you have very little understanding of what you’ve read. * This illustrates that we can assign reading in our classrooms, give students shallow reading assessments with level one type questions, and have students pass them. But, does this mean they are good readers who are able to read critically and for deeper meaning?

Read “Conversation Piece” which is often considered the world’s shortest detective story See Handout What happened in this story? (Here is a practice opportunity to develop a written answer.) 1 paragraph… well-written… develop by adding detail

Lesson?? Readers who look below the surface, who can apply a little inference, will come up with quite a complex story compared to the few short words on the page. (Even my elementary students who show up with dwindling imaginations love this story and with very little prodding are able to ‘read between the lines’.) That’s the kind of reader we want to help our students become: readers who can move beyond the literal and who can interpret the text. Readers who read way beyond a “puzball” mentality. Readers who can read between the lines to see the real game being played!