Spellcheck is a useful tool, but as Heubeck (2025) references in her article, spelling is integral to the reading and writing process. Student’s spelling provides a ‘window’ into their understanding of language. The ability to spelling accurately drives reading automaticity, leading to improved fluency and comprehension.
Yet, many programs based on the ‘science of reading’ fail to include spelling. The absence if spelling is likened to cutting a leg off a three-legged stool.
It is often argued that the unpredictability of how words are spelled in English, make teaching and learning spelling too difficult. But, only 13% of words do not have a regular pattern, with the majority following common phonic patterns (Williams-Pinnock in Heubeck).
Williams-Pinnock argues that spelling should be taught along with decoding as a part of phonic lessons whereby when students are explicitly taught the sound(s) represented by a particular grapheme this knowledge is applied to both decoding and encoding activities. Along with learning letter-sound relationships, students also need to be taught relevant spelling principles or patterns and spelling rules. For example, when teaching ‘ay’, students should also be taught that this grapheme is used at the end of words.
It is also recommended that:
- Spelling words are included in dictation.
- Teachers model the thought process of sounding out words.
- The focus for students is on first sounding out words and then linking the sounds to the correct letters or letter combinations and NOT on memorising the spelling of words.
- This same process is used for all words that students want to know how to spell even if the words contains graphemes the student hasn’t currently learned. For example, the student might want to know how to spell the word ‘lettuce’ to add it to a shopping list or to use in a story. Even though the student may not yet have learned that ‘ce’ can represent the /s/ sound, they should still be helped to sound out the word, and as it is being written, you can say “remember to double the ‘t’ to keep the /e/ as a short vowel sound…and, you haven’t learned this yet, but the /s/ in lettuce is made by ‘ce’ – the ‘e’ is changing the /k/ into /s/.”
Check out the Cracking the ABC Code spelling programs which not only focus on the sound-symbol relationship, but also include spelling rules and patterns and morphology, as well as including a computer-based activity that reinforces these concepts, providing students with lots of practice.
Reference
Heubeck, E. (2025). Spellcheck won’t cut it: Here’s why kids need spelling instruction. The Bulletin. 61, 10-11.