My almost 8yo cannot spell

[oceanbaby]

He can read fairly well, but more by recognition than by phonics. He technically knows the sounds each letter makes, but has a really hard time putting it together. And spelling is even worse. Just now he was asking how to spell "pants" and I asked him to guess, and he just had no clue. He could get the "p", but then he said "e" instead of "a", and had no idea about the "nt."

I really want to address this - any suggestions?

[tinyblackdot]

I would get him evaluated. I have a spelling disability (if yall havnt noticed by my posts lol!) I seriously have about a 4th grade level of spelling. I try and i try but i just dont get it. There are many many simple words that i just cant spell. Trying to write an application, or a letter to someone is emarassing and impossible for me to do alone.

I was never diagnosed with a specific spelling disability, but i am sure that they have come along way with understanding the way some people learn (or dont learn). I would get him a private tutor specifically for a child with spelling difficulties. I wish i had had one, i think it would have made a huge difference in my case.

[Lillian J]

I wonder how he's hearing the words. Could it be that the n sound in pants is just not that audible to him?

And when you pronounce "pants," do you definitely enunciate the n? And might you perhaps put a little bit of an e sound in it? I ask that because I noticed every once in awhile as my son was growing up that he had a few little eccentricities in the way he heard or pronounced some thing, and then realized he was just picking up my own ! So please take those questions with a grain of salt... Lillian

[Lillian J]

Also, my son couldn't spell until he took the Lindamood-Bell Auditory Discrimination in Depth program with a speech and hearing therapist - it had to do with feeling the sounds with his mouth and lips, which seemed to give him the idea - although whether that was really what made the difference, I'll never know - but he became an excellent speller without ever having studied it, just from reading and using his word processor's spell checker. I'd look into having him tested at some point, but keep in mind that it's a rare specialist of 'most any kind, I found, who doesn't seem to think you need their services. I'm really on the run right now, but will get back later. - Lillian

[kittywitty]

Well, he still is quite young. You can get him evaluated or just wait it out and see if he makes any progress. My oldest little brother is dyslexic and it took them forever to diagnose him right.

[tinyblackdot]

Originally Posted by kittywitty

Well, he still is quite young. You can get him evaluated or just wait it out and see if he makes any progress. My oldest little brother is dyslexic and it took them forever to diagnose him right.

I would not suggest waiting. I was diagnosed with ADD at 7, and i went to a special school for kids that had a harder time learning (most where dyslexic or add or adhd) and there where so many kids that had just found out at age 13.14.15 and by that time where so frustrated and fed up with school and learning that the idea of school left a bitter taste in their mouths.

[4evermom]

He'll get spelling down just by reading, imo. He'll eventually notice a word that he has misspelled doesn't look right and try a few different ways until it does look right. That is exactly how I learned to spell. I can't spell aloud to save my life and can't figure out what other moms are discretely trying to tell me by spelling something in front of their young children, lol. I'm visually oriented and can't process auditory input quickly.

[oceanbaby]

Originally Posted by 4evermom

He'll get spelling down just by reading, imo. He'll eventually notice a word that he has misspelled doesn't look right and try a few different ways until it does look right. That is exactly how I learned to spell. I can't spell aloud to save my life and can't figure out what other moms are discretely trying to tell me by spelling something in front of their young children, lol. I'm visually oriented and can't process auditory input quickly.

That's really funny - I am an excellent speller (not necessarily online, however), but when other moms spell things to me I'm always really confused! I have to write something to know how to spell it.

I guess I'm getting to the age where it's getting harder for me to trust that he will get it soon. Dh is dyslexic, and although I haven't necessarily seen any obvious signs of it with ds, it couldn't hurt to get it checked out. I would really have no idea where to start, though.

[MyLittleWonders]

Is he a visual-spatial learner? I know my oldest is (and I suspect my younger two are too, but maybe not to the extent of ds#1). He's still grappling with reading, but I've started incorporating spelling into what we do based on the words he's learning in his reader (whole-word reader instead of a phonics based one). When he does try to spell (he was making birthday cards a lot this month for family and friends), he gets some correct sounds in there but others are way off. I don't think he "sees" the words as distinct phonemic pieces in his head, so trying to take a whole piece (in this case a word) and break it down while writing is very hard for him. My thinking is that he will eventually get how to spell things as he memorizes more and more words (as his visual vocabulary grows).

Here's some websites that might help:
Visual-Spatial Learners and the Challenge of Spelling
Ideas for spelling for visual-spatial kids

[tinyblackdot]

Originally Posted by oceanbaby

That's really funny - I am an excellent speller (not necessarily online, however), but when other moms spell things to me I'm always really confused! I have to write something to know how to spell it.

I guess I'm getting to the age where it's getting harder for me to trust that he will get it soon. Dh is dyslexic, and although I haven't necessarily seen any obvious signs of it with ds, it couldn't hurt to get it checked out. I would really have no idea where to start, though.

Just talk to your pediatrician. Or to his teachers (if he goes to a school),they can give you some places to start researching.

Yeah i read all of the time, imof i was honors english all through high school, but i still cant spell.

[elizawill]

i typed a similar post about my 7 1/2 year old a few weeks ago. she also reads much better than she spells. i received great advice in that thread. i did not end up purchasing a spelling curriculum, but i did decide to use some print-off sheets. she really seems to enjoy them & they are helping her. i started with lesson 1 & we're just working our way down. i like them because she writes the words, unscrambles the words, and alphabetizes the words. after each lesson, she takes a quiz at www.spellingcity.com - i just plug in the list for her. anyway, not very creative on my part. bu she likes it and it's working.

here's the link: http://www.superteacherworksheets.co...ng-levela.html

they have other spelling lists as well, if your ds needs something more difficult. i started with the easier words though because i didn't want to discourage my dd's confidence. hth.

[4evermom]

Originally Posted by oceanbaby

I guess I'm getting to the age where it's getting harder for me to trust that he will get it soon. Dh is dyslexic, and although I haven't necessarily seen any obvious signs of it with ds, it couldn't hurt to get it checked out. I would really have no idea where to start, though.

I always feel like whatever you post about your older ds, it's very similar to where my ds is or what he's going through. My guy is definitely a visual spacial learner. The last "late reader" thread had some great info about how that effects reading (and therefore spelling, imo). Honestly, I don't think my ds could tell you how to spell his own name. It's not something we've worked on and I'm really not worried and don't think he has any learning disabilities. He doesn't "do" phonetics although he knows his letters and sounds and will use them as clues for his sight words. He isn't reading independently but is navigating wordy computer games with less and less help. He is coming right along.

[MyLittleWonders]

4evermom - I've always felt like when you write about your ds, it is very similar to my oldest. (And mine is only 1 month older than yours.)

[4evermom]

Originally Posted by tinyblackdot

Yeah i read all of the time, imof i was honors english all through high school, but i still cant spell.

Same here and I'm still improving my spelling. I've probably improved more in the past few years on MDC than I did in all of high school and college.

But sure, people should look into LDs if they are worried.

[4evermom]

Originally Posted by MyLittleWonders

4evermom - I've always felt like when you write about your ds, it is very similar to my oldest. (And mine is only 1 month older than yours.)

It's great meeting people online because it's the only place I run into kids like mine!

[Lillian J]

Originally Posted by elizawill

i typed a similar post about my 7 1/2 year old a few weeks ago.

I almost linked to that earlier, but I was in such a hurry that I didn't even have time to slow down and see if it was even pertinent - but here it is.
spelling help

Here's another I found bookmarked:
spelling resources for interested 7 yr. old - and it has something about auditory processing disorder.

And here's another:
Gentle spelling ideas?

Lillian

[kittywitty]

Originally Posted by tinyblackdot

I would not suggest waiting. I was diagnosed with ADD at 7, and i went to a special school for kids that had a harder time learning (most where dyslexic or add or adhd) and there where so many kids that had just found out at age 13.14.15 and by that time where so frustrated and fed up with school and learning that the idea of school left a bitter taste in their mouths.

I wasn't talking waiting until he's a teen. It's very normal for 8 year olds to have spelling and reading difficulties. Kids are overly pressured at a young age to be way advanced than what many are capable of. I'm just saying that without a proper evaluation by an OT/pediatrician/etc. that it's a little early to say a barely 8 year old has learning disabilities based off of bad spelling.

Good idea about the auditory aspect. I am NOT an auditory learner. After 3 ear surgeries especially I can't process auditory anything to save my life. My son is the same way and he has a lot of visual processing problems he goes to the OT for. We do a lot of hidden pictures, word finds, etc. to help him work on it and it has been a slow but steady process to help him.

[jessicaSAR]

Well, if you want to work on it, "pants" is a hard word to start with, since it has five distinct sounds. If he knows the letter sounds, you could try having him segment simple two sound words like "it." By segmenting, I mean you say the word, and he tells you the two sounds (not letter names) that make up that word. Once he can do two sound words, then move to three sounds with simple short vowel words like "cat" and "mop." The segmenting should help him start to hear the sounds.

I know you may not want a spelling program, but "All About Spelling" does this really well.

[Kiddoson]

we use the superteacherworksheets too. We started with Hooked on phonics spelling which DD really liked and has a fun chart with stickers etc. Preety inexpensive too.

[TEAK's Mom]

Someone once told me that spelling tends to lag about three years behind reading, meaning that most kids can spell at the level they read three years ago. I'm not sure if there is any research to back this, but I've heard a lot of anecdotes.