Tonight's discussion on the importance of teaching spelling and how to go about that task in a way that will be most effective for each individual student had me thinking about two components of my classroom.
First: My class uses Fundations to teach spelling through phonics. I have very mixed feelings about this program. I understand the thought behind teaching students spelling through sounds, tapping out words, and a variety of activities to supplement that learning. Still, I feel that Fundations is not as engaging as a program like Words Their Way could be for my students. I work with a group of eight students who are not as strong at spelling as the remainder of the class. I find that the loose structure of the program and reliance on white boards and magnets works for a certain kind of student, but not very well for my students. The students view these learning tools as both a treat and a distraction. Give a first-grader a white board and the immediate response is "I need to draw a heart right now." I just don't feel that they are getting all that they should out of the program. For students who are so interested in kinesthetic learning, Words Their Way seems like a better solution. In the future, I'll try to supplement Fundations with activities from Words Their Way.
Second: I'm currently assessing my students' sight word knowledge with Dolch lists. After identifying the words that students do not know on the spot, I'm making flashcards for them to work on at home for a week. After a week of practice outside of the classroom, I will go through the words with them to see if they now know the words. If they do, they get another ten words to learn, and continue with this until they have made it through the third grade list. Rather than recall the spelling of these words, students just need to recognize them, but I like the idea of this kind of spelling assessment rather than a traditional test. Students learn "just right" words at their "just right" pace and are not put through the stress of a traditional spelling list/test situation. Something to think about...
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Hey Sarah, I do not know the Fundations program that well but I can definitely understand what you are saying. Students as young as first grade do not need any more distractions than what is already present in the classroom itself. However what they do need, similar to most students learning spelling, is that active engagement that we have been discussing. I think Words Their Way, when used correctly, is a great program for all elementary students because in addition to the engagement aspect, it is also extremely flexible and will allow teachers to continue to teach spelling in fun, creative ways. Great post!
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