A sample of 503 sixth-grade students participated in a study assessing the relationship between modality of inference and spelling achievement. Each student completed the Dictation Spelling Test and the Modality of Inference Instrument; scores from the Iowa Test of Basic Skills were also available. The Modality of Inference Instrument was developed from Hill's Cognitive Style Mapping Instrument; 16 major modality patterns were identified, though 2 were eliminated from the analysis, due to small sample size. Analyses provided some support for the importance of the modalities of inference defined by Hill in relation to school achievement. Subjects with four major modalities achieved significantly higher spelling scores on the Iowa Test of Basic Skills than did subjects with three major modality preferences. Also, subjects with four major modality preferences achieved higher scores on both the Iowa Test and the Dictation Spelling Test than did subjects with only one or with no major modality preference. (Author/AA)