Our message this week comes from Mr Catherall, who used to teach at Moortown Primary and now at Scholes (Elmet) Primary. Mr Catherall is our Sphere Federation Writing Leader, and he’s chosen to write about spelling…
Is spelling important?
By now, you’ll be familiar with the new homework arrangements. Every week, as part of their homework, your child is given a set of spellings to learn. But why? They’ll probably just use auto-correct on their computer or tablet when they’re older, won’t they? You, like some others, might have found yourself asking these same questions. However…
Children who can spell more accurately feel more confident about their writing – we want all our children to feel proud and confident of their learning.
Also, research shows us that thinking about spellings takes up a large part of your working memory when writing (or typing). This means, if you’re able to have to think less about spelling, you’ve more brain power to think about other things: word choice, thinking creatively or pitching your written communication at the right level for your reader.
Help at home by helping your child learn their spellings. This doesn’t need to be for long and it doesn’t need to be boring. Here are some practical tips for effectively learning spellings at home:
- ask your child to spell their words on the way to school, driving to the shops or walking the dog
- use some ideas from our Super Spelling Strategies to make learning spellings more creative
- place the words on Post-it notes around the house so your child is reading them regularly
- practise them whilst doing something active (throwing a ball, kicking a football, playing tennis etc)
Most importantly of all, remember that little and often is much more effective than one big session. Practising for five minutes every day will lead to much better outcomes than one 30 minute session a week.
If you’d like any help or advice about how to support your child with their writing, please speak to their class teacher.