Beginning with Braille by Swenson Anna M;

Author:Swenson, Anna M;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: American Foundation for the Blind Press

*Suggestions for Teachers

TEACHING SPELLING TO STUDENTS WHO USE BRAILLE

*  When teaching braille, always spell contractions using the letters of the alphabet rather than pronouncing them as syllables. For example, in spelling the word long, refer to the o-n-g contraction (saying each letter), rather than saying it as the syllable /ong/.

*  Include the contracted and the uncontracted form of words in spelling lists. Students should be expected to know both, since they will use conventional print spelling when they type on a computer.

*  Make sure students learn to spell high-frequency words correctly, especially those with nonphonetic spellings, such as here, because, and they. High-frequency words can be found in students’ personal writing, on classroom word walls, and in published lists like the Dolch basic sight word list (see Appendix B at the back of this book). Many classroom teachers have a list of words that children at a particular grade level are expected to know how to spell. (One teacher calls these “no excuses words!”)

*  Make a note of words that students are consistently misspelling in their daily writing and teach the correct spelling, so that errors do not become ingrained.

*  Focus on homophones, words that sound the same but are spelled differently, such as their/there and blue/blew. Electronic spell-checkers do not generally flag homophone errors, so it’s important for students to learn the spelling of these words right from the beginning.

*  Expect students to use correct spelling if it is accessible. For example, when writing a reading response to a braille book, the student should refer to the book for the spelling of words in the title and the author’s name. Provide spelling resources such as a personalized or commercial braille spelling dictionary (see the Resources section), a specialized word list related to a piece of writing, or an adapted version of the classroom word wall (see Sidebar 11.5).

*  As children move into the early primary grades and enter the Within-Word Pattern stage, discourage an overreliance on invented spelling. Teach them to use an increasing number of spelling strategies, such as those listed in Sidebar 11.6, and expect them to try spelling problem words themselves before asking for help. Dialogue journals, such as the example in Sidebar 11.7, also help children notice and use correct spelling.

*  Monitor daily writing to be sure students are applying the spelling strategies they are learning. If this is not happening, provide explicit instruction through mini-lessons, modeling the thought processes involved in spelling challenging words. Dated samples of student writing provide evidence of a gradual progression toward conventional spelling.

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