Do your children have spelling tests at school? Do you think spelling tests help your children become better spellers?

According to an article in the Houston Chronicle by Ericka Mellon entitled “Schools take a new direction on spelling“, some schools are getting rid of spelling tests and replacing it with a teaching method known as “word study”. Why is that so? Well, spelling test is more about memorizing words. “Word study” is aimed at increasing children’s understanding of why and how words are constructed. They believe that learning by rote memorization isn’t the best way to go. To be good spellers, children need to learn about letter and sound patterns.

Many parents do not like the idea of “no spelling tests”. What about you? Would you agree or not agree for your children to have spelling tests each week?

As for me, I would prefer a combination of both. Yes, I support the idea that children need to learn how and why letters are combined a certain way to form a word. I also support the idea that children need to be tested to see if they have learned how it works. However, instead of randomly writing down a list of words, I like to put those words to form a story. I guess I’m saying instead of spelling tests, I prefer dictation. So, for example, if I wanted my children to learn the words “cat”, “run”, “this”, and “white”, I would make up sentences for them to write like “This is my cat. It’s fur is white. It likes to run after mice.” If my children are just learning to spell and can’t spell a lot of words yet, then I would do a “fill-in-the-blank” sort of activity.

Tell me what you think about this topic?

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