Helping your child improve their spellings

Supporting spellings

June 30, 2024•2 min read

The goal is fun engagement so kids want to participate.

Over the past few days, I’ve spoken to a few parents about spellings. Not just spelling a word in the first instance but also retaining it. So that’s what I’ve just spoken about on the podcast. If you’re interested, here’s the link.

But in a nutshell, my advice is to make the process colourful, creative, and interactive to engage different parts of the brain.

One method is using multiple colours when writing words – a different colour for each letter and varying fonts can help create distinct visual cues.

Drawing related images next to words further strengthens memory by adding context. For active learning, painting with water on outdoor surfaces or using chalk can be effective since it involves larger movements.

Using materials that are temporary like chalk or water means mistakes aren't permanent, which can alleviate pressure. Interactive games also enhance learning: playing Hangman helps children think about letter order; scrambling magnetic letters for them to rearrange teaches word structure; creating coloured-in word searches practices pattern recognition; Battleship-style games with grids encourage strategic thinking while identifying spellings; and 'Lily Pads,' where jumping counters onto words reinforces quick recall.

The goal is fun engagement so kids want to participate. The more they practice in varied ways, the stronger their memories become – leading not just to short-term success but long-lasting spelling retention. I hope these tips prove helpful! Have an amazing day or week ahead.

Helping your child to remember the words they need to spell

Our goal at Clara James Tutoring is to make learning fun and accessible to everyone. If children are engaged in what they are doing they are more likely to want to participate, if they are enjoying it, they are more likely to relax and retain the information.

If they are retaining the information it will help boost their knowledge and with knowledge comes confidence.

If you have a child who enjoys learning through games and being more creative, and you enjoy spending time with them, you might be interested in the Clara James Approach, the membership group we have put together to support you in supporting your primary school aged child with their maths and English.

Interested?

Click here to learn more: The Clara James Approach

Dawn Strachan

For the past 20+ years I have been a firm believer that learning should be an enjoyable experience. I appreciate that traditionally education has revolved around worksheets, textbooks, listening to teachers. But a grounding in early years and working with children who had a variety of learning styles from I learned that it is an individual activity that is personal to all of us. We don’t all learn in the same way. Our influences, our experiences, our capabilities all influence how we retain information. But through it all, I believe that if we can make it enjoyable and engaging, they will want to participate. With participation comes practice which in turn boosts skill and confidence. With an increase in skill and confidence comes a willingness to have a go. This in turn leads to more practice which leads to a positive spiral of success. The moral, we need to make learning fun, engaging, use a range of techniques.

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