Assessing+Spelling

Assessing Spelling**
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(Hill, 2006, p. 270). || Children can aid their own spelling by using a dictionary to check the spelling of words or to help them recall the correct spelling of words. Word building is a gradual process.
 * Children’s spelling can be assessed by closely examining their writing and analysing their spelling errors and trying to determine what types of mistakes they are making.
 * It is best to teach children not only the sound each letter makes but also the letter name too! ||

Children go through stages of learning to spell. They learn:  v  Compound words, eg. Playground  v  Inflected endings, eg. ‘ed’ and ‘ing’  v  Adding a double consonant to words that have a short vowel when adding ‘ing’, eg. Running  v  They learn homophones, eg. See and sea (Hill, 2006, p. 273) Learning these particular rules help children develop their spelling as they begin using new words.

Some of the most common causes of spelling mistakes as explained by Hill (2006):  µ  Reliance on limited phonics knowledge (sent for cent)  µ  Omission of letters (ballon for balloon)  µ  Insertion of letters  µ  Confusion of homonym (sea for see)  µ     Auditory acuity