What order to teach KS1 Spelling?

[margaritasbythesea]

DCs and I are just starting our second year living abroad but I want to make sure they keep up with their peers in the UK with English spelling.

DD should really be doing KS2 but as she has had difficulties at school due to undiagnosed deafness, I thikn she will benefit from going over the basics.

I´m a secondary school teacher in English so feel quite confident about how to do it. What I am looking for and can´t find is the best order in which to do it. I got the CGP book which is useful to an extent but actually covers fairly few spelling rules. I also looked at the National Curriculum which just seems to be a list of what they should know which does´t help me much.

Could anyone point me in the right direction of a good programme, please? Or have any other suggestions.

I do read to them daily but they themselves are not keen readers, although they both read well if I ask them to read to me. They do a few of their school subjects in English and have English lessons but obviously this is at a lower level than in the UK. My son loves to do dictations, which helps!

Thank you for reading. I would be very grateful for any suggestions.

[user789653241]

dera.ioe.ac.uk/18288/1/English_Appendix_1_-_Spelling.pdf

Our school(And others from what I read on MN goes with this list.)

[user789653241]

Sorry I re-read your OP and you say you had a look in NC already and not happy.
But as for our school, those are the spelling list they go through, not just learn to spell but also to use each words in sentences.

[margaritasbythesea]

Many thanks. That´s very useful to know. It looks like a dauntingly long list! I think I might find that some of it is covered here though so will start ploughing through.

[user789653241]

If you are abroad and want to access English and maths national curriculum, this site is very good. ( £69 pound for English/Maths or £99 for both for year. (Unlimited access to Reception to yr13 skills)

uk.ixl.com/

[margaritasbythesea]

Thanks. I shall have a look.

[Norestformrz]

Key Stage 1 spellings are based on phonics instruction and basically the non statutory guidance is every word in the dictionary.

[margaritasbythesea]

They lean phonetically in the school here in Spanish
Their English reading has improved loads without me lifting a finge really which i didnt expect.

[Norestformrz]

https://www.thereadingcentre.com/2016/01/27/statutory-spelling-lists-syllabified/
This might be useful

[HarveySchlumpfenburger]

That doesn't surprise me. They core principles/skills are mainly the same and can be transferred it's just the sound/symbol correspondences that will change with each language.

Phonics International might be worth a look. It would certainly give you a thorough grounding in the phonics before moving onto the NC lists.

[toomuchicecream]

If you want a good structure to work through, then the Babcock No Nonsense spellings is well liked by a lot of people I know who use it. Trouble is, you can't just buy the year 2 book - you have to buy the whole scheme for over £150 (depending on where you get it from). It has all the resources you need though for several years. As a teacher, you might appreciate using a teachers' resource rather than one for designed for home use, if you see what I mean. It will certainly give you all the rules in a structured way.

[Norestformrz]

Sorry but words fail me! There’s a current discussion on Twitter about the nonsense of no nonsense

[margaritasbythesea]

Thanks. I will have a look at those resources. I´m not very familiar with the phonics reading method as it wasn´t part of my job. I have only done the phonics books they send home from school and some reading tree ones I bought myself. I am sure it would be good to be more knowledgeable about how they have been taught to read before diving in to teaching them spelling.

[HarveySchlumpfenburger]

No nonsense spelling is the one with quite a lot of nonsense in, isn't it?

Pyramid spelling and spelling words backwards?

[margaritasbythesea]

I have no idea I'm afraid. To me, no nonsense spelling is Spanish! There is a little room for confusion but precious little.

[Norestformrz]

Yes Rafa it should be called total nonsense spelling. http://www.paultonjuniorschool.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/No-Nonsense-Spelling-Strategies-for-parents.pdf

[maizieD]

Oh, blimey, mrz!
(Posted at 04.07 a.m! Was that what was keeping you awake )

[Norestformrz]

No a cough and a bug 🤢🙃

[maizieD]

Just as a matter of interest, margaritasbythesea ., what method for 'learning' these spellings were you intending to use?

(Actually, I'm lying when I say 'just for interest' because the method you use for learning and consolidating spellings is very important for most children)

[Feenie]

Yeah, the shape method and the pyramid one are total bollocks.

I'm training some student teachers in spelling next week - these are strategies that will not feature, unless they're in my list of 'don'ts'

[user789653241]

Hope you feel better soon, mrz.

[maizieD]

Really, Feenie, the greater part of that 'advice' sheet is utter bollocks.

Phonics gets a mention of sorts but not in any helpful way at all...
And I saw a reference to 'muscle memory', a constituent of good spelling which rarely gets acknowledged...

[Norestformrz]

Thanks Irvine 🙂

[margaritasbythesea]

Well, really, I was going to try a few different things and see which ones proved most effective with my children, maizieD. I am not wedded to a particular way. If you have any suggestions I would be glad to try them.

My daughter has great problems with both confidence and memorisation. My son finds both extremely easy. I expect the experience will be up and down!

[Norestformrz]

The point maizeD is making is that most of that list is complete and utter nonsense and totally ineffective.

[margaritasbythesea]

Sorry norestformrz. Do you mean the list included in the national curriculum?