Spelling, Reading, and Writing are Interconnected

Many children have trouble with spelling. The cause is most likely genetic. Because state assessments often pair spelling standards with other skill areas, it is not obvious how many children children experience significant difficulty in this area. It is also not easy to measure the impact of spelling difficulty on written expression. Children who need to spend time thinking about how to spell a word can lose track of their thoughts. To compensate, many of these children learn that writing less means less spelling errors. Spelling difficulty affects a child’s writing performance. Spelling and writing are interconnected.

Progress in spelling can have a positive impact on reading and writing. Current research links spelling to reading. It is easy to assume that a child with who has difficulty with reading will improve their spelling skills as they make progress in reading but this is not necessarily true. A common misunderstanding about spelling difficulty is that this problem is a result of a visual processing issue, however, current literature supports a more important connection between spelling and language. Children who struggle with phonemic awareness and letter naming also have spelling and reading problems. Poor spellers do not understand the relationship between letters and sounds. Spelling, reading and writing are all interconnected.What do poor spellers need? These children need an explicit, structured, systematic spelling program focusing on sounds and letters. The best spelling program for these children should follow a logical framework rather than an arbitrary list of rules. The child’s teacher/tutor should monitor the his/her progress. Improved spelling will result in improved writing and reading.

What doesn’t work? It is a mistake to focus on teaching children to memorize common irregular words, to focus on all of the rules of spelling, or to teach spelling skills arbitrarily for the goal of passing a weekly spelling test. Children need to transfer the skills they learn to their written work. Proofreading practice is one way that children can practice with transferring spelling skills. Keeping a personal list of spelling words collected from student writing is also helpful and more meaningful. Children need to learn to spell words for the purpose of writing.

Spelling difficulty is interconnected with reading and written expression problems. Poor spelling is an inherited trait and is not necessarily related to intelligence. Children who experience significant spelling difficulty can improve this skill with the help of understanding adults and the right kind of help. Poor spellers need adults who advocate for working around spelling difficulty along with focused help to improve spelling skills. Positive results will follow.