Spelling

Our chosen spelling programme is Essential Spelling (ES). The scheme supports the children’s development of their spelling knowledge and linguistic confidence to enable the children to become spellers for life, rather than remember spellings for a week. Throughout each teaching sequence of a spelling rule, pupils are encouraged to articulate their learning. Explaining what they have learned about the patterns and processes of spelling, enables children to secure their understanding. Similarly, words, patterns and processes are revisited regularly. This spaced recall enables knowledge to move from short-term memory to long-term memory - and stick.

Tips for helping your child to spell

• Shut their eyes and try to picture the word in their head
• Repeat the words several times over
• Write out the word a few times
• See if the word reminds them of any others which they can spell
• Compare their version with the correct spelling and, if theirs is wrong, concentrate on the bit they got wrong
• If you and they haven’t got access to the correct spelling, write your version down and see if it looks right
• If the word is familiar but spelled in an unusual way (for example, with a silent letter) try deliberately mispronouncing it in accordance with the way it is spelled to get used to the spelling. An example of this is the word "Wednesday".