Spelling Patterns

     This week's reading was really interesting. I especially liked the information provided in Chapter 5 of "Classrooms that Work" on teaching phonics and spelling patterns. If you think about it when you read and write words, you don't even realize that you are identifying or spelling these words because you have seen or written them so many times before that it has become automatic to identify them and spell them. However, as a teacher it is important to realize that your students will come across words they have never seen before and therefore it is important to teach them spelling patterns so that they are able to make use of words that are "familiar-in-speech" to them and create a meaning for the "unfamiliar-in-print" words. I really enjoyed the different lesson formats that this chapter provided because they all contain a variety of interaction between the students and the teacher. My favorite lesson was the "Using the Words you Know" lesson. I loved this lesson because it teaches students how to use words they already know to spell and decode other words. I liked how it involved separating familiar words in different categories based on spelling patterns and allows the children to practice writing each word after they have seen it written and also allows them to use these spelling patterns to help them spell words they hear without seeing it written down first. 
     The lesson formats provided in this chapter all focus on the importance of modeling as the most direct way to demonstrate to your students what to do when they encounter an unfamiliar word. We use modeling constantly in our day-to-day life to teach a variety of skills. It is much easier to show how to do something rather than explaining it. This is especially important in helping students recognize spelling patterns so that they can apply meaning to words that are unfamiliar to them.

What were some of your favorite lesson formats provided in this chapter?

Do you remember any particular lessons your teachers used to help you learn to spell or create meaning to words that were unfamiliar?

Here is an example of "Using the Words you Know" to recognize spelling patterns.

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