by Robin Tidwell

Created on: January 02, 2011   Last Updated: January 04, 2011

In order to teach a child to spell, you must first teach him his letters, or his ABCs.  Rote memorization is best for this, such as by using the ABC Song.  Once he has learned the names of the letters, it’s time to teach him to recognize those letters.

Again, memorization is best and, by first learning the song, the child now knows the order of the letters in the alphabet and can more easily recognize them.

The next step is allowing him to spot those letters, whose names he already knows, in the printed word.  Use children’s book, age-appropriate, and have him point to letters and say their names.  As he becomes more adept at this, show him other books and newspapers and magazines, following the same premise.

Now it’s time to learn sounds, or phonics.  Most letters in the English alphabet have more than one sound, and many can be combined to make yet other sounds.  Start with the vowels, and teach the child to make the sounds and recognize the letters associated with them.  Begin by choosing two or three to work on at a time, then progress to consonants.

Finally, you must teach him how to put these sounds together; this will combine phonics with sight-reading.

Sight-reading is what many people do, unconsciously, long after they have learned pronunciation and sounds.  Words like “a”, “an”, “and”, “the”, “but”, and “so” are easily recognized and don’t have to be “sounded out”.  Common words, such as “try”, “fly”, or “mom” or “dad” become familiar and are easily remembered.

Once a child is shown how to “sound out” these simple words, he is ready to begin reading.  As before, start with simple children’s books and use your finger to underline each word as you read.  Don’t forget to read with inflection; in other words, not in a monotone, or the child will start reading in this same manner and this is a hard habit to break.  You will simply read more slowly, pointing out the words.

As the child learns, he will be eager to point out and say the words he recognizes.  Allow him to do this, correcting pronunciation when needed.  It does a child no favors to have him “guess” too many times or to let him say words any which way he chooses; children must learn, from the beginning, to be good spellers and good readers.  This will open up many, many worlds for him, both formally and informally in his education.

Make a game of spelling – have the child see how quickly he can spell a word you give him, or make a list and have him spell for a prize; encourage competition among several children, or an entire class.  Competition is not bad, it often can spur many to greater knowledge and understanding.

Spelling and reading go hand-in-hand, each complement the other.  Spend no longer than 15 minutes a day on teaching a child to spell, and praise him often and sincerely when he does well.  Soon he will be able to spell and sound out even the most complicated, lengthy words.

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