My 6yo can't spell.

[Nospellingsnomore]

My 6yo DS can't spell correctly and I need a list of words they need to know by this age so I can work on it at home.

He is one of the youngest in year two and I know the teacher said he was falling behind last year. I was given several hone execises to do with him, which I did.

But this year he is barely getting 1/12 right in his spellings. All the wrong ones are phonetic spelling.

Does anyone have a list of up to year two words, I can use at home.

Any hints on getting him to spell properly rather than phonetically ?

Have you asked the teacher for a list of these words? Ours supplied a list over the summer to practice spellings. Mine isn’t a great speller but I coach her every week for the test. They are put on the fridge and I test daily. First just read them, then write them, then every day at dinner I test a few verbally. It is 2 mins per day and she gets 9 or 10/10. Other way is to get them to read more, then they are seeing the words and it will come more easily. Also for any writing homework, supervise and make corrections.

I can get it to link, but if you Google "year 2 spelling list" a link to the government pdf should come up.

But can't comment on the rest of it, as my y5 is probably worse at spelling than your y2

assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/239784/English_Appendix_1_-_Spelling.pdf

Please consider dyslexia as a possibility for poor spellers, I had many frustrating years with my 2 DC before getting them diagnosed. What's his reading like?

Even if they are dyslexic spelling remains an important skill to try and build up but they need to use different techniques.

spellingframe.co.uk/

Hi. Sorry to hijack OP but I will be in the same boat...from that link irvine I take it there is no statuory list for reception/year 1?
so it is a question of learning phonics and blends and using that vocab as examples? thanks in advance x

Our spelling lists last year and so far this year focus on a different 'non phonetic' pattern each week.

So groups of ate, cake, lane etc to practice a_e for example. This week (Y2) was using 'c' or 'ce' as 's' so circle, lace, icicle

So if you approached it like that it might be easier than a huge list of words?

I'm sure there would be a list of the sounds somewhere - graphemes and the suggested order to approach.

They do for year one too. But it seems like spelling pattern list rather than having selected words list in KS1.

hadleylearningcommunity.org.uk/primaryphase/files/2012/10/Spelling-Lists-Year-1-Year-6.pdf

My poor speller can learn a rule for a test. So he knows all the long a this week are a_e.
But ask him next week, and he has no idea if it should be a_e or ey or ai or ei.

Thanks irvine and the spelling frame is fab too

Have a look at all the printed bumph in the front and back of reading diaries - they quite often squirrel word lists away there.

May I ask how he is doing with reading?

My experience with my 6 year old DD who is in yr 2 has been that the better she got at reading the better she got at spellings. She started yr 2 on grey band and gets all her spellings right every week without us practicing at home.

DD1 teacher in year 2 suggested apple and pears

Used it with all mine. You do placement tests to find where to start- there's lots of writing sentences in it as well as word patterns. It tends to stick more than spelling lists and tests IME.

Rubbish at reading too. He guessing the words and memories the story by the end of the week.

I have an older child and he reads and spells fine.

Thanks for the links and suggestions. I will be looking through the reading diary carefully when we get home from school later.

Our spelling lists last year and so far this year focus on a different 'non phonetic' pattern each week.

So groups of ate, cake, lane etc to practice a_e for example. This week (Y2) was using 'c' or 'ce' as 's' so circle, lace, icicle

That's still phonics - but focussing on an alternative spelling for the /ay/ and /s/ sounds. This process begins in Reception, more explicitly in Year 1 and right up until the end of Y6.

It's teaching the 140+ combinations of the alphabetic code. Some schools call it spelling after Y2, but it's still phonics.

Just wanted to add, spellingframe was introduced by fabulous teacher, Feenie. Thanks!

Cheers, Irvine - no longer free though, which is a shame.

Oops, I didn't realise that. thanks, Feenie. Sorry op, I wasn't meaning to recommend any paid sites.

Get a list from the teacher. Every night do 3-5 words to get his confidence up. Keep the words the same each night. When he is getting them right quickly and easily for 3 consecutive nights you can either change one or two words (to keep confidence Hugh) or change them all for new ones.
Tips to engage in spellings are easily found on google but try rainbow writing (writing over the word in different colours (helps with muscle memory), tracing the word in flour in a table, having all the letters in post- its stuck on a door and child has to run and find correct letters and of course the good old Look, Say, Cover,Write, Check.

To keep confidence high!!