How to improve my DD spelling

[Luna9]

My DD is in year 3; she is doing well a school and is a good independent reader however she still get some spellings wrong; how do I help her improve her spellings.? She does spellodrome; is there any other good resources?; should she be practicing every day?

[Ferguson]

Was she taught to read using Phonics, and if so did she understand and use the various sounds and combinations of sounds as they were taught?

The more she reads, if she really LOOKS at the letters in an unfamiliar word, and tries to commit them to memory that may help. Also she could keep a notebook to write down any words she does not know, and either ask about them or look them up in a dictionary. Does she have her own age-appropriate dictionary? And a Thesaurus is useful too.

Is there any pattern to words she has difficulties with? (I have always had - and still have - problems with 'double letters' but fortunately spell checkers usually pick that up!)

This could help:

An inexpensive and easy to use book, that can encourage children with reading, spelling and writing, and really help them to understand Phonics, is reviewed in the MN Book Reviews section. Just search ‘Phonics’ and my name.

[We 'met' a few months ago regarding roller skating in London. Did you ever go?]

[griselda101]

have you had her tested for dyslexia?

[gallicgirl]

I would say lots of reading.

Do they still do spelling tests in schools?

[griselda101]

sorry I hope that didn't come across as rude, I don't know enough about kids of this age or dyslexia, I just thought it's a possibility if there are spelling issues so it could be worth getting checked.

[TeenAndTween]

still gets some spellings wrong

I think it is expected that y3 children still get spellings wrong. So is it that she still gets really easy y1 words wrong, or just hard words? Does her teacher think her spelling is behind?

[Maroonie]

I would recommend 'the spelling tutor' It was recommended on here somewhere a while ago but can be easily found using Google.
it was about £30 for a year but has been well worth it if you can afford it.
We use it on the kindle which helps encourage DC to use it.
It asks them to write short sentences on paper then mark it on the screen. The incorrect words are then asked for again in the next session so it's tailored to the words they are struggling which are repeated at intervals until it's on the longer term memory.
The website explains it much better than me but its helped us a lot!
It's meant to be used daily (we manage about 4/5 days a week) and you set the sessions to last between 10 and 20 mins.
So the focus is on doing spelling for a set amount of time rather than until you've done it right and allows them to work at their own pace.

[Luna9]

Great. Thank you very much for your advise; will look into the resources mentioned; I think the dictionary and note book is a great idea; will look at the spelling tutor and spelling list. She has not problem reading; it is when she writes that she still get some basic words wrong; I just want to help her improve; school gives a list at the beginning of the term but I don't think they do tests.

[Luna9]

Teacher has not mentioned anything so I don't think she is behind.

Ferguson, we tried the roller skating in Hyde Park; but still want to try some of the other ones you recommended. Thank you very much

[Ferguson]

These are two good educational websites, and in particular Woodlands has a heap of activities for every subject, so could be useful:

//www.ictgames.com/

www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/page/default.asp?title=Woodlands%20Junior%20School&pid=1