Dear G.C.,
Sometimes we overlook the fact that spelling in English requires more than 'sounding out' words. With all the alternate sound rules and rule-breaking words, how do we know that 'photo' begins with 'ph' instead of 'f,' or that 'gone' is not spelled 'gon?' We also need to know what the word is supposed to look like, for the best results in spelling English.
Children--and adults--can develop their ability to 'picture' words mentally to improve spelling skills. We can print a spelling word on paper in bold marker, making it big with plenty of white space around the edges, and encourage learners to take a good, hard look at the word. They might even think of imaginative descriptions for each letter-shape. Then ask them to look away, perhaps at the ceiling, and begin to 'see' the word in their imagination. (It's fine if they want to look back and forth at the printed sample as they construct the 'picture' of the letters in the mind's eye.) In their imagination, they might make the word out of ribbon, lights, purple paint, carved letters . . . the more vividly imagined, the better.
To begin, they might try 'picturing' one letter at a time, returning to the sample and looking away again as they add each additional letter to their mental 'picture.'
Once they can 'see' the letters in their imagination, they can try to trace with their finger the letters they 'see'-- or try to 'copy' them onto paper.
If they struggle at all to ‘trace’ or to ‘copy,’ no problem--just take another good, hard look at the example, then another look at their mental 'picture.' (Do not practice struggling; practice looking at the right answer instead.)
Avoid saying the sequence of letter names aloud during this whole process--you want to be rehearsing in the ‘mind’s eye’ instead of the ‘mind’s ear.’ In other words, you want to be practicing a mental picture of the word, not a mental chant of the letter names. Mental 'pictures' of correctly-spelled words, are easier to keep in memory over time than a chant of the letter-names.
Adding mental 'pictures' to spelling rehearsal, teaches students to develop and pay attention to the mind’s eye for spelling, in addition to the sounding-out spelling cues.
Best Wishes,
Ruth Alice Jurey, M.S., C.C.C.
Speech/Language Pathologist
