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Word Study as an
approach to the
teaching and learning of
spelling.
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Workshop 1
Name
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Word Study
Centre:
Date:
Advisor:
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Objectives
• To provide an overview of English spelling and
the reasons for its perceived complexities
• To inform teachers about current research
findings on how children learn to spell
• To introduce teachers to the concept of Word
Study and how it might be applied to the
teaching and learning of spelling
• To provide practical opportunities for teachers
to engage in word study activities.
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Key Messages
• The English spelling system is described as
opaque or deep
• Knowledge of sound, meaning and pattern
are primary contributors to spelling
• Word Study engages students in guided
self-discovery about how words work,
leading to knowledge and understanding of
why words are written in a particular way.
Promote
Auditory
Memory
Teach and
Extend
Vocabulary
and
Conceptual
Knowledge
Spelling
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Grammar
Free Writing
Genre
(Written Text
Types)
Punctuation
Vocabulary
Handwriting
Create a
Language
Learning
Teach a
Variety of
Spoken
Texts
Environment
Develop
Listening
&
Speaking
Skills
Spelling
Grammar
Free Writing
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Free
Writing
Punctuation
Vocabulary
Handwriting
Table Quiz
• Question 1
If you were to spell out the numbers, starting at one, how far
would you have to go to find the letter A?
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• Question 2
What is special about the word Bookkeeping?
• Question 3
Find a five-letter word that has three different vowels.
• Tiebreaker
Think of a word that has three letters, one after the other, in
exactly the same order as they appear in the alphabet?
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What is your experience of the
teaching and learning of spelling in
schools?
Rules
1. The Queen never leaves home without her
umbrella…
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2. When two vowels go walking the first does
the talking
3. When a word has only one vowel, the vowel
sound is short
I before E except…
• VIDEO CLIP…Stephen Fry
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=duqlZXiIZ
qA
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Why is English Spelling system
complex?
• It represents both sound and meaning
• A single letter pattern can spell many
sounds
• A single sound can be spelt by many letter
patterns
• It is influenced by 350 languages
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It represents sound and meaning
Root
Phonemes
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
SIGN
SIGNal
reSIGN
reSIGNation
/s/ /ai/ /n/
/s/ /i/ /g/ /n/
/z/ /ai/ /n/
/z/ /i/ /g/ /n/
A single letter pattern can spell a
variety of different sounds
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•
•
•
•
•
Bough
Though
Cough
Tough
Thorough
•
•
•
•
Through
Lough
Hiccough
Thought
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A single sound can be spelt by many
letter patterns
/k/ sound
/i/ sound
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Kind
car
choir
duck
quill
Boutique
walk
Bin
Busy
Pretty
Gym
Village
Women
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Activity-Patterns that spell the long
/a/ sound
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Making a word sort for the long ā
sound
English Orthography (Spelling
system)
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• 26 letters
• 40+ sounds (phonemes)
• 250 + spellings (Moats, 2005/2006)
Finnish Orthography (Spelling
system)
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• 23 letters
• 23 sounds (phonemes)
• 23 spellings
It is influenced by 350 languages
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Cow-beef-bovine-(bó!)-ox
Sheep-mutton
Water-aquatic-Hydro..
Horse-equestrian-hippopotamus
Not as irregular as it might seem…
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• Half of all English words are phonically
regular
• Another 34% would have only one error if
spelled using sound/symbol
Hanna, Hanna, Hodges & Rudorf (1966) Moats (2006 )
How do children learn to spell?
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...a number of overlapping developmental
stages:
• using sound-letter relationships
• using pattern
• using meaning
(PSC p. 85)
Components of Spelling
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Knowledge
of pattern
Stored
images of
words and
patterns
Knowledge
of sound
Knowledge
of meaning
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Sound (Phonological knowledge)
• Identifying, discriminating, segmenting and
sequencing phonemes, rimes, letter
strings, syllables and representing them in
written symbols.
• ... an awareness of phonemes is key to
understanding the logic of the alphabetic
principle and thus to the learnability of
phonics and spelling. (Literacy in Early
Childhood Education 3-8 years)
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Pattern (Orthographic knowledge)
• Knowledge that a single sound may be
spelled in many ways (e.g. the long / a/
sound can be spelled by the letter patterns
ay, ae, ey, eigh, etc.)
• Knowledge that a single letter pattern can
spell many sounds (eg. bough, though,
cough, tough, thorough etc.)
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Meaning (Morphological
Knowledge)
• Knowledge of root words, compound
words and their relatives (e.g. walk, walks,
walked, walker, walking, sleepwalking,
walkway, boardwalk, walkabout) prefixes,
suffixes
• Knowledge of short forms: we’re, I’ve,
don’t
• Homophones (to, too, two)
Stored images
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Knowledge
of pattern
Stored
images of
words and
patterns
Knowledge
of sound
Knowledge
of meaning
What should good spelling
instruction look like?
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When I walk into a classroom and the teacher
has a research-based curriculum of word
study, and she is conducting a teacher-led
word sort to help children understand a
pattern or an important spelling principle,
that is spelling instruction that works.
(Richard Gentry, 2000)
All the evidence shows that systematic teaching
of thinking skills raises standards.
(David Blunkett 2000, GB Minister for Ed)
What is word study?
• A guided self-discovery of how words work
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• Promotes student thinking – not just
memory
• It leads children to an understanding of why
words are written in a particular way
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Word Sorts
The practice of doing Word Sorts is a
differentiated, collaborative problemsolving approach that generates rich
discussion.
Homework
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• Think of words with different patterns for
the long /ē/ sound for next week.
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Key Messages
• The English spelling system is described as
opaque or deep
• Knowledge of sound, meaning and pattern
are primary contributors to spelling
• Word Study engages students in guided
self-discovery about how words work,
leading to knowledge and understanding of
why words are written in a particular way.
Overview of PDST Primary Supports for Leading Learning in the 21st Century
PDST Leadership Programmes
PDST Websites
Misneach.....New Principals
Tánaiste.......New Deputy Principals
Tóraíocht.....Aspiring Leaders accredited by
Maynooth University
Forbairt .......Experienced Principals & ALNs
Spreagadh...NAPD & PDST collaboration
www.pdst.ie
pdsttechnologyineducation.ie
scoilnet.ie (portal for resources)
teachercpd.ie (on-line courses)
www.pdst.ie/schoolsupport
School-Self Evaluation
Teaching & Learning Framework; 6 Step SSE Process; gathering, collating & analysing relevant data; implementing the SIP for
literacy, numeracy and any other area of teaching & learning.
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Literacy
SSE & strategies for improving
oral language, writing, reading and
the use of broadcast /digital media.






Numeracy
SSE & strategies for improving
numeracy. Supporting the
development of Mathematical
thinking.
Health and Wellbeing
SPHE including Child Protection and Stay Safe
Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE)
Active Learning Methodologies
Anti Bullying-Procedures and Policy, Awareness
Raising, Intervention, Prevention and
Intervention Strategies
PE
Wellbeing for teachers
Gaeilge
Tacaíocht chun Curaclam na Gaeilge a chur i
bhfeidhm i Scoileanna T1&T2,
Féinmheastóireacht Scoile, chomh maith le
tacaíocht lán Ghaeilge a sholáthar do
Ghaelscoileanna agus scoileanna sa
Ghaeltacht.
Integrating ICT - Primary
Active Learning Methodologies- Key methodologies of the primary
curriculum through the effective use of ICT.
Literacy & Numeracy – Creating, developing and using ICT to create
teaching resources in all areas of primary literacy and numeracy.
SSE – Online tools for gathering, collating & analysing relevant data.
eAssessment & ePortfolios – Assessment of / for learning with ICT.
ePlanning & Collaboration – Google Apps for Education.
Tablet Technology Integration – Pedagogy, Curriculum & SEN
Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) – Google Classroom, Edmodo
Models of support:in-school support (in-class modeling, meeting principal/groups of teachers, Croke Park hrs), seminars, workshops, clusters