A large body of research supports the conclusion that early reading instruction in English should emphasize phonics, that is, the teaching of grapheme-phoneme correspondences. By contrast, we argue that instruction should be designed to make sense of spellings by teaching children that spellings are organized around the interrelation of…

Studies have shown that children benefit from a spelling pronunciation strategy in remembering the spellings of words. The current study determined whether this strategy also helps adults learn to spell commonly misspelled words. Participants were native English speaking college students (N = 42), mean age 22.5 years (SD = 7.87). An experimental…

Vowels in Spanish have direct one-to-one letter-sound correspondences, whereas vowels in English usually have multiple spellings. For native Spanish-speaking children learning to spell in English, this transition from a shallow to a deep orthography could potentially cause difficulties. We examined whether the spelling of English vowel sounds was…

It is argued that a more comprehensive, systematic understanding of the nature of the alphabet, its three identities (letters/graphemes, letters/nomenemes, sounds/phonemes), and their specific functions in the teaching of various language skills and subskills should be an integral part of the language arts curriculum and instructional plan,…

Describes efficient spelling instruction as that which makes maximum use of the fact that part of our competence as speakers of English is our knowledge of underlying phonological forms." (Author/SW)

While acknowledging the undeniable differences between a shallow, transparent orthography like that of Spanish and a deep, asymmetrical spelling system such as is found in English, this article asserts that there are also marked similarities between them. Both orthographic systems violate the universal phonemic principle in exactly the same three…

The premise of this paper is that English orthography has formed a system that represents more than phonetic values, but also represents semantic, etymological, and preferential values. The paper notes that English is a fairly regular and complex system in which both sound and meaning share leading roles in determining spelling. Studies are…

The phenomenon of "invented spelling" in young children, observed in many preschool age children who produce written messages using words that are generated through an original system of orthography, was researched with Spanish-speaking children. The following conclusions were made from previous research with English-speaking children concerning…

Finds a significant positive relationship between fourth-grade students' reading ability and their ability to make appropriate decisions about English spelling. Suggests how classroom practice might be modified to facilitate children's understanding of orthographic structure. (FL)

Investigates how the various categories of the German spelling reform proposal will affect the acquisition of German spelling by native speakers of English. The article provides a history of the reform movement in Germany and discusses the pedagogical implications of the movement. (25 references) (Author/CK)

AS OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE LEARNING PROCESS AND OF THE NATURE AND FUNCTION OF SPOKEN AND WRITTEN AMERICAN-ENGLISH INCREASES, SPELLING INSTRUCTION IN THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS IS UNDERGOING A DRASTIC CHANGE. RECENT RESEARCH HAS REVEALED A BASIC LOGIC BEHIND THE SOUND-TO-LETTER RELATIONSHIP HITHERTO THOUGHT TO BE HAPHAZARD. BASED ON THE PREMISE THAT…

The English spelling system and the teaching of English spelling are discussed in relation to students who are learning English as a second (or foreign) language. The systematic nature of English spelling is described and a brief summary is presented of sound-to-spelling correspondences and of other spelling rules. Specific difficulties which may…