1. Spelling Strategies for children with Literacy Difficulties Dyslexia Base January 2016

2. Check for what may seem obvious: Quality first teaching – are spelling patterns and rules being taught regularly and consistently? Is this followed up through response marking? Has the child’s hearing been checked? Does the child have any problems articulating words?

3. What is spelling? Spelling starts with sounds and ends with written words It is a cumulative process starting with the first phoneme grapheme link.

4. There are 44 sounds in English and 26 letters Some sounds are represented by digraphs: th, ch, sh, ai, oa, ee Many sounds have a choice of spelling Consonants e.g. (k) c, k, ck, ch, que Vowels e.g. (ā) a, a-e, ai, eigh, ay,

5. Don’t take anything for granted: If you need to start at the beginning, start at the beginning! Echo – Spell – Write – Check The learner: Echoes the word Segments it into phonemes Spells each segment using letter names Writes it Checks against model “ sat ” s- a -t (s) ( ă ) (t) sat sat 

6. Alliterative words make learner aware of common patterns. span spill spot

7. How often does your hand seem to automatically know how to spell a word? Rhyming words - help to establish the rhythm of letter strings in the hand. hand sand stand

8. Initially the learner will be segmenting words into phonemes, but he also needs to learn other segmentation skills that will support weaknesses in memory: Onset-rime: bring > br ing Syllables: contact > con tact Suffixes & prefixes: mended > mend ed

9. But what about irregular spellings such as …. would said because where ?

10. Irregular words do not follow the spelling rules and have to be learned individually. There are various techniques that can be used for this. Visual Auditory Exaggerated pronunciation

11. Strategies - images Exaggerate Image Wed - nes - day mnemonics sally ann is dancing

12. Visual Comparison b/d for letters Visual Mnemonics

13. Multi-sensory Oral Manual Auditory visual

14. Strategies - overlearning Practice makes perfect

15. Writing a sentence? Stuck on a word? Regular word? Irregular word? Segment Yes Single phoneme-grapheme links? No Write the word Spelling choice? e.g. (s) cess s Position in word? B, I, E Rhyming analogy? Handwriting: feel of hand movement Rule: e.g. suffixing? Need mnemonic? other decisions Visual memory. Does it look right? “hot” SPELLING moves from sound SPELLING WORD ATTACK to written word

16. How can we help? Identify early!! Teach: Letter names as well as sounds Segmenting and blending phonemes Onset/rime Syllables Correct letter formation

17. How can we help? Make it fun! Games Games - easy to make, can be adapted for: spelling rules rhyme segmenting high frequency irregular words

18. Games Noughts and crosses 4 in a row Racetracks Snakes and ladders Pelmanism Dominoes Bingo Snap

19. Handwriting

20. The difficulty for the dyslexic learner Writing causes memory overload: thinking of sentence order, spelling, letter formation Handwriting is not automatic Handwriting is the casualty

21. Dyslexia Action Handwriting difficulties: SIGNS Awkward sitting position, squinting or close to paper, hunched over the page Tight or awkward grip, white knuckles! Muscle fatigue Avoiding or delaying tactics Letter-by-letter copying because s/he can’t remember the ‘feel’ of letter shapes Mirror writing, reversals Slow speed

22. Aims in teaching handwriting We should : Teach handwriting correctly first time Aim for automaticity Consider: Grip Paper position Lighting Pressure Equipment

23. Dyslexia Action Grip

24. Paper position Left-hander, more slant Right-hander

25. Pressure Too heavy? Lighten with simple patterns and practice Use a thicker, softer pencil Try a plastic pencil grip Too light Do exercises for muscle tone Draw patterns for confidence

26. Sitting position The table should be half the writer’s height. The seat should be one third the writer’s height. Six legs down. [4 on chair + 2 human!] Non-writing hand holds the paper. This is important as it lessens the strain on the writing hand. It is something we constantly have to remind our young learners!

27. Equipment Pencil rather than pen to begin with Pencil grips, triangular and moulded Triangular pencils and pens Attractive instruments – to encourage the reluctant writer!

28. Lighting Work in a good light Avoid fluorescent lights Pastel coloured paper may be needed for learners who experience ‘glare’ Tinted screen may be needed if working on computer

29. Cursive from the beginning Natural continuous movements Less load on memory every letter begins on the line every letter has a lead in and lead out stroke Aids left to right movement Spacing is improved Letters which are confusable in print, become more distinctive and distinguishable

30. Remember Practice makes permanent

31. Overlearning: Revisit, revisit, revisit Pre-teach subject specific vocabulary Break instructions into manageable chunks Encourage metacognition – thinking about thinking – How might you remember…? How did you do…?