The Art of Studying Words

Making, decoding, and understanding words are very complex tasks, but they can also be a fun process. I believe the readings for this week describe helpful activities for a range of ages and ability levels. The article about the activity involving identifying ten important words in a selection seems to be an activity more for older children (Yopp & Yopp). It does however seem very helpful in further understanding and using more of a variety of words. The article about the Making Words activity (also described in the Classrooms that Work book) thoroughly details how to conduct the activity. It also gives sample letter/word sets and describes how to use the activity with younger and older children. I really think this activity, coupled with invented spelling practice, will be a useful activity to break up the monotony of typical letter and word study in the classroom. Children as young as Kindergarten age (and even some younger) can improve their phonemic awareness as well as begin making the connection between letter sounds and the spelling of words. I have seen an activity very similar to this one done in a Kindergarten classroom and not only did the students greatly enjoy the activity, but they improved their skills tremendously as well. I have also seen teachers plan and allow time for invented spelling practice, which also helps the children. This can initially be frustrating for children who are conscious of the fact that they cannot spell words exactly correct, but once they understand that it is okay to just spell what they hear they are not so frustrated. Here is and example of some invented spelling.

A question I encourage you to consider are when is it important to teach conventional spelling if children have not already began doing so? Also, how do you encourage children who refuse to practice invented spelling?