You might be thinking, “How can spelling help my child learn to read?” Yes, learning spellings will help your child enhance his/her reading abilities.
But how do you do it? Let’s have a look at today’s article.
How are spelling and reading connected?
Isn’t it true that the child has weekly spelling tests? To pass these weekly tests, you and their teachers need the child to learn to spell. We frequently want children to spell the word alphabet by alphabet to help them recall the spellings. However, this is not always the case. You should realize that a child will be able to recall the spellings of a word only when he/she is familiar with the sounds as well as the alphabets of any given spelling.
If a child is asked to spell the word “dog,” he/she will see the alphabets /d/, /o/, and /g/, which should be translated into separate sounds, recalled, and then spelled correctly.
This is a difficult task since English is a complex language with many distinct sounds associated with each phoneme. The understanding of phonological (sound) and orthographic (written language) knowledge is required for the spelling of a word. Because there are so many ways to spell a sound, reading a word by its pronunciation isn’t always straightforward. For example, the phoneme /k/, can be spelled as k, c, or ck.
Many words in the English language have evolved and originated from various roots over multiple decades, making spellings more difficult. Do you have any idea how the English language became so confusing?
The reading ability of a child depends on how he/she can connect alphabet and alphabetical combinations to sound effectively. Each sound has a unique alphabetical combination depending upon the language of origin, as stated in the above example. 84% of the English Language relies on spelling principles and patterns such as the meaning and history of words in the English language, as researched by Louisa Moats, a well-known researcher, Literacy Expert, and author of LETRS.
If you have ever observed a child who finds it difficult to learn to spell, you should understand, that child finds it challenging to grasp the spelling and structure of the word. As a result, he/she makes spelling mistakes frequently that lower down his confidence while reading. Why does a child find it difficult to read and spell the word? Here’s the answer to it.
Is spelling more difficult than reading?
Reading and Spelling the words have a connection to one another. If the child understands how to spell a word, reading becomes much more enjoyable for them.
Consider the following scenario: as a daily routine you ask your child to identify each fruit in the fruit basket and also spell the fruit for better understanding. You might observe they would be able to identify and speak each fruit correctly but they might have a little difficulty spelling it correctly each time. Try this exercise and let us know your experience.
As previously stated, English words have their roots from various languages. which has resulted in a situation where a single phoneme can have several sounds. To simplify this complexity and to be able to spell any word, a child should understand the structure of words and the various spelling systems interplaying simultaneously, within any given word.
We have placed a greater emphasis on speaking the language comparatively more than mastering its spellings and structure. Because of these factors, a child finds it challenging to read and write English words.
Are you considering how you might make it simple for your child to learn English spelling? Here are the five alternative techniques to assist your child in learning English spelling quickly.
How does spelling help your child to read?
I’m sure you’ve realized by now how crucial it is for your child to master spelling in order to read the English language, and how reading and spelling are interconnected. Let’s take a look at how a spelling program might assist your child in learning English spellings.
Spelling allows kids to focus on the combination of alphabets of a word
You should always observe and guide your child in grasping the sound of alphabets while reading while focusing on teaching him/her how to spell any given word. Because the children tend to just focus on pronunciation while reading.
Spelling make an exception for the context of words
In most cases, a child will recognize a word based on its context. As indicated in the preceding example, a child will quickly recognize the fruits kept in the fruit basket. However, they might not spell it correctly every time. Most of the words in the English language have synonyms, which expands vocabulary and improves public speaking abilities. As we know, if a child does not learn words outside of his/her context, it will hinder his/her ability to learn new words, preventing him/her from enhancing their vocabulary and writing skills.
Spelling help to connect the word and its meaning
A child can relate to a word and also visualize it only when he/she understands the structure of the word.
For example, a list of words that end with -le
Fable
Muddle
Fumble
Title
Skittle
Similarly, you can make a list of words that are related to each other that will help your child highlight patterns in words, understand the word structure, and how to use the word in the language.
Spelling helps kids to learn and speak more fluently
When a child will start learning the linguistic structure of English, you will observe that he/she recognizes the words quickly and speaks them more fluently than before. This is because he/she will be able to decode the word as per the structure of the English spellings more quickly.
Spelling aids comprehension of texts
When a child learns decoding strategies to understand how words are spelled, he or she will be able to read more fluently and accurately. After learning the decoding strategies, a child will automatically be able to implement the strategies to understand unknown words that were not visible to them previously due to a lack of understanding. As a result, he/she is also able to focus more on understanding the text, which is the ultimate goal of reading,
In this article, we have learned about how spellings are important for reading.
Let us summarize what we have learned so far.
- How are spelling and reading connected?
- Importance of spelling in reading
- How does spelling help your child to make reading more enjoyable?
Did you feel overwhelmed with a lot of information, we‘ve got you covered. Enroll your child in the free course to learn more about phonemes and the structure of English spellings.