spelling correctly assignment quizlet

Writing based on Texts

Revising & finalizing your text, the revision process.

Revising is the most important part of the writing process. Although you may feel that you’re done when you finish your draft—a well-deserved feeling of accomplishment—you still need to go back to your draft with “fresh eyes,” after you have set it aside for a short time. Revision actually means “re-seeing.” As a result of re-seeing, you may find that you need to tweak and rewrite portions of your essay draft, to make sure that what you have written is well developed, logically ordered, and clearly expressed. It’s usual to have multiple drafts of an essay, as a result of moving back and forth between writing and revising.

The act of revision asks you to go back and and analyze your draft from a reader’s instead of a writer’s perspective. Revising involves asking questions such as these: Is the thesis clearly identifiable? Does each unit of support have a topic sentence? Are the units of support logically organized, appropriate to the thesis, purpose, and audience? Are paragraphs and units of support fully developed with details, examples, and support? Is language use and sentence structure clear, varied, and correct? However, you don’t—and can’t—consider all of these questions at once. Revision is a process that’s best done in different stages, moving from “big” to “small.”

Bigger concerns tend to interrupt a reader’s understanding of the writing, and that’s why they need to be addressed first. Mid-level concerns tend to interrupt a reader’s full comprehension of ideas. Smaller concerns make the road smooth, so that your readers, like the driver, can concentrate on the content of the journey, and not the bumps in the road.

Revising Stage 1: Seeing the Big Picture

When you first begin your revision process, focus on on your essay at a global level. Analyze the overall idea structure of the essay and whether the essay’s ideas are developed enough overall to make sense to a reader. The following questions will guide you:

• Do you have a clear thesis? Do you know what idea or perspective you want your reader to understand upon reading your essay?
• Is your essay clearly organized, so that one topic sentence and unit of support leads logically into the next? Or do the topic sentences and units of support need a different order? Do parts need to be moved?
• Is each paragraph a building block in your essay—does each explain or support its topic sentence as well as the essay’s thesis?
• Are all topic sentence ideas fully explained and illustrated with examples and details?
• Does your introduction grab the reader’s interest?
• Does your conclusion leave the reader understanding your point of view and understanding the importance of that point of view?
• Does the essay actually say what you intended to say?
• What is the strength of your essay? What is its weakness?

Another method of approach: Reverse Outline

Apply critical reading strategies to your essay draft. One really effective strategy to use is a reverse outline , in which you extract your essay’s ideas and jot them in the margins. Considering your idea structure via a reverse outline can help you see if ideas are in an appropriate order, and see if there are any idea gaps that need to be filled in.

A reverse outline can also help you evaluate your draft for content and point of view , as well as for logic , so you can identify and eliminate any inadvertent logical fallacies.

Revising Stage 2: Mid-View

The second stage of the revision process requires that you look closely at your content at the paragraph level. At this stage, you’re examining the amount and specificity of information in the paragraphs that make up each unit of support. The following questions will guide you through the mid-view revision stage:

• Does each paragraph within each unit of support contain solid, specific information, vivid description, or examples that illustrate the point you are making in the paragraph?
• Are there are other facts, quotations, examples, or descriptions to add that can more clearly illustrate or provide evidence for the points you are making?
• Are there sentences, words, descriptions or information that you can delete because they don’t add to the points you are making or may confuse the reader?
• Are the paragraphs in the right order within their units of support?
• Does each paragraph explore one main idea?  Are any paragraphs or parts of paragraphs redundant and need to be deleted?
• Are there paragraphs that are overly long, or too brief?
• Do you use clear transitions within and between paragraphs and units of support so the reader can follow your thinking? (See more information on transitions below.)

Transitions – because they’re important and often overlooked

Transitions are linking words that show the direction of thought in writing. Transitions can show:

• more of the same type of thought (e.g., another, also, and, in addition)
• a change in thought (e.g., however, but, in contrast)
• sequence (e.g., first, second, next, simultaneously, finally)
• cause and effect (e.g., because, since, therefore, consequently, as a result)
• similarities and differences (e.g., like, unlike)
• examples (e.g., to illustrate, for example, for instance)
• and more…

Consider transitions in the mid-stage of the revision process; they are the link between your essay’s big idea structure and its words, as they are bridges that bind ideas together, directional signs that help a reader follow the sequence of  ideas in your essay. Traditional places for transition words and phrases in an essay include the following:

• at the start and/or end of each unit of support
• as you move from paragraph to paragraph within a unit of support
• as you move from supporting point to supporting point within a paragraph
• as you move into your conclusion

Revising Stage 3: Editing Up Close

Once you feel confident in your idea structure and content, it’s time to focus on language, style, tone, punctuation—the smallest (but still important) items in your essay.

The following questions will guide you through your editing:

• Is the grammar and spelling correct? R ealize that spell-checks, even though their useful, do not always replace a close reading for errors. (The error in the previous sentence is intentional, to prove the point. Can you find it?)
• Are your words as accurate and precise as possible?
• Have you accurately and effectively used punctuation?
• Do you define any technical or unusual terms you use?
• Are there extra words or cliches in your sentences that you can delete?
• Do you vary your sentence structure?
• When using sources and presenting information from other texts, have you accurately presented that information in summaries and/or paraphrases? Have you copied quotations precisely? Have you documented all of the sources’ ideas and information using a standard documentation style?

Finalizing your Text

Once you have revised your draft into more final form, finish formatting your essay. Although format is the least important aspect of revising, it’s still important that your essay be readable and use certain conventions. For essays written for college assignments:

• Make sure to include the essay’s title.
• Include your name, the title of the assignment, and the date of submission in a top corner.
• If the assignment asked for a certain number of pages, it’s usually double-spaced pages (but check with your instructor) in a simple, easy-to-read font (Calibri, Arial, or other sans serif font), 10-12 point.
• If you used sources at any point in your essay, make sure that you have cited those sources 1) within the text of your essay, and 2) at the end of your essay, using the citation format assigned.  If no format is assigned, use a standard citation format  such as MLA (Modern Language Association – often used for writing and humanities) or APA (American Psychological Association – often used for sociology and business).
• Revising & Finalizing your Text, includes material adapted from College Writing and Excelsior Online Writing Lab; attribution below. Authored by : Susan Oaks. Project : Introduction to College Reading & Writing. License : CC BY-NC: Attribution-NonCommercial
• College Writing, section on Revising. Authored by : Susan Oaks. Located at : https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-esc-wm-englishcomposition1/ . License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
• Excelsior Online Writing Lab, section on Revising & Editing Process. Provided by : Excelsior Online Writing Lab. Located at : https://owl.excelsior.edu/writing-process/revising-and-editing/ . License : CC BY: Attribution
• image Microsoft Word document icons. Authored by : Esa Riutta . Provided by : Pixabay. Located at : https://pixabay.com/illustrations/password-text-files-icons-writing-1783007/ . License : CC0: No Rights Reserved
• image maghifying glass held over an image of countries on a globe. Authored by : Gerd Altmann. Provided by : Pixabay. Located at : https://pixabay.com/illustrations/magnifying-glass-globe-world-68204/ . License : CC0: No Rights Reserved
• image of a magnifying glass held over the word Analysis. Authored by : Gerd Altmann. Provided by : Pixabay. Located at : https://pixabay.com/illustrations/problem-analysis-solution-449364/ . License : CC0: No Rights Reserved
• image of magnifying glass being held over words, and magnifying one word. Authored by : Gerd Altmann. Provided by : Pixabay. Located at : https://pixabay.com/illustrations/ball-round-customer-563973/ . License : CC0: No Rights Reserved
• video Transition Words in Reading and Writing. Authored by : Marc Franco. Provided by : Snap Language. Located at : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7aksqJCgAMA . License : Other . License Terms : YouTube video

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What is Quizlet exactly? We start with flash cards. Students can make their own, or choose from millions of flash cards sets created by others. But that’s just the beginning – once you’ve got flashcards, you can use several study modes including multiple choice tests and study games. You can add images and listen to audio, and even study on the go with one of dozens of Quizlet-compatible mobile apps.

Students are the core of Quizlet. High school and college students, language learners, grad students, home school students, anyone studying anything. Quizlet makes it easy to create and share study materials, to study with a few friends or an entire class. And Quizlet is good for studying almost any subject, from languages and vocabulary to history to science and the arts.

This tool has helped me to ace my vocabulary tests when I only have a couple days to study.

Quizlet is an app and website that is designed to help you learn vocabulary. The structure is very simple. You sign up for a free account in the program and then start building vocabulary lists OR search in the thousands of lists others have already created. Once you build your list there are several different methods/games you can use to practice the vocabulary. You can go the traditional route and simply look at the word or definition, see if you can say it aloud and then flip the card and see if you are…

Read more » Use Quizlet to Quiz Your Students On Vocabulary | Tech Tools Daily #150

We use Quizlet in our classes to introduce, study, and reinforce vocabulary. It is unquestionably a better method of studying vocabulary than the traditional method of looking up a word and writing the definition. Students are saturated in the learning process with a variety of methods of learning – spelling, gaming, auditory lessons. I not only would recommend it to a colleague, I regularly praise the use of Quizlet! Students become enraptured with beating others’ high scores with no trace of the drudgery of completing an assignment.

I absolutely love this tool! I use it with my 2nd-grade students and my college-level students. For my 2nd graders, I like to create vocabulary flash cards that include images and definitions to help them better connect to the terminology. In my online college courses, I use this tool to introduce new topics being covered in the module and as a knowledge check at the end of the module. There are so many wonderful uses for this amazing tool! I would definitely recommend this to every educator.

Quizlet is a study tools site for learners in mid-elementary school on up to college level. This site is user friendly, although many students in grades 4 and 5 will need a bit of assistance to set up an account and get started. Once they get going they can use one of the many pre-loaded vocabulary lists, a list that the teacher has loaded for them or they can create a list of their own. The lists are then used to create flashcards, create quizzes, study guides and more. Using a keyboard to create study tools can be a benefit to students who struggle with motor control and organizational skills. It would certainly be beneficial for a teacher in the younger grades to set up the site and then teach a few mini-lessons to share with students how to access the vocabulary and related activities. Parents would also quickly become fans of this helpful site.

This tool is a great way for students to make their own flashcards, or use teacher made ones. I love all of the options for using them: spelling, listening, testing, and games.

This tool would be great for students to review math terms. At the end of each unit I post key math terms for students to access and review before math tests!

I must start off by saying: "What teacher wouldn't love to use Quizlet for their classroom?!" As an English teacher I would use this to implement the use of flash cards to prepare my students for an upcoming test or quiz and also as motivation to keep building on their strengths in the content because they can see how they are progressing with their percentage of questions correct each time they quiz themselves using the tool. A friend of mine who is a Science teacher uses this tool to prepare her students for upcoming tests and as a way for them to master the Periodic Table.

I wouldn't say that it could be used for every subject matter, but certainly the majority of them. I think the main reason they Quizlet has the appeal it does is because of the ease of use for teachers and the ability to create tests/quizzes from it, but also that for students it is not your typical flashcard.

All Language teachers will agree that creating flashcards is one of the most time consuming tasks. However, now we have good news! Quizlet is a great flashcard site that helps you create your own flashcards, and provides you with some great ready-made flashcards as well. As an ESL teacher, I find it to be very useful, especially for students who are not native speakers and do not have anybody at home to help them with their vocabulary. It is so easy to use that I even ask my students to prepare their own flashcards. They can also test themselves, which helps them understand their own weaknesses and strengths. I recommend Quizlet to all ESL teachers, as well as to students who are keen to develop their language and vocabulary skills.

What an amazing, time-saving resource for teachers to use regardless of their students' ages! I have spent a lot of time over the years creating flash cards to be used in conjunction with study guides for tests and as a quick partner/warm-up activity prior to class across the curriculum.

Quizlet allows you to generate cards quickly, while even searching for an exact definition.

I like that the cards can be customized to your own wording if desired, and you can even assign the cards to be made at home for homework or in the computer lab during one of your computer class days!

I highly recommend the flash cards and the generation process, and the self-quizzing process that allows students to study on their own without the assistance of an adult. I literally tell my students that there is no excuse not to study their vocabulary terms if their parents or siblings are unable to assist them since the computer can act as an outside party to generate and quiz them on their terminology knowledge!

Quizlet seeks to help teachers create or use existing flashcards for extra practice on a variety of subjects from languages, vocabulary, standardized tests…etc.

While quizlet is a useful tool for teachers, it is not a resource that I would use for every classroom. As an ESL teacher, I could create a series of flashcards to be used as a study tool for my students outside of the classroom. I would encourage my students to use this tool at home to practice various English vocabulary.

This is a good tool for extra practice for my students!

Quizlet is a great resource and time-saver! I have been able to find several existing sets of flashcards that will help us study and review this year. It is great for high school, as there is a large collection of AP and SAT/ACT cards. I love the art history collections that already have great collections of pictures.

One the features I really like is the multiple print options. Its great that you can print these as actual flashcards, but when you have a really large set, this can be expensive. There is an option to print the terms as a vocabulary list, using less printer ink.

This site produces better-quality flash cards than other similar sites I have visited. There seems to be more structure to the way the application creates the layout. It is also easier to use. I would definitely rate Quizlet as the top site for flashcards.

Quizlet is every English teacher's friend! It has wonderful resources that can be accessed in the classroom, at home, or even on the go, using its mobile app. I have used this web site to compile spelling lists for my students, as well as to show them how to make flash cards for studying. I also really love the fact that it has automatically graded quizzes and games that can be played for some friendly competition!

I use this tool on a weekly basis with my remedial classes in order to review the week's vocabulary. This is one of the best flashcard sites/apps that I have found for lower level students because it is extremely easy to use. Students can create their own cards for their vocabulary words. All their sets are stored online so that cannot lose them. Also students can share and print their cards so they study together or turn in their work to the teacher. My students like Quizlet and use it for their other classes, and they have also used the premade cards on the site.

This site is useful when supporting students with study skills. Students can create their own flashcards or use existing sets. I tell students that they can use Quizlet as a substitute for a regular unit review sheet. Many students enjoy studying using the site rather than writing out a review because they enjoy being on the computer. I have not used the sharing/group feature yet but some of my coworkers have told me it’s a viable way to encourage students to study for exams together. I have only explored the history topics but there are sets of flashcards already created on a great range of content. Overall, a great study tool!

Easy to use flashcards. I always tell my students about quizlet if they use flashcards to study or not. The nice thing is that often time there is already a set created on the site for the topic one needs to study. Makes review for students very easy!

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Editing and Proofreading Key

(with mistakes underlined in red )

What this handout is about

This handout provides some tips and strategies for revising your writing. To give you a chance to practice proofreading, we have left seven errors (three spelling errors, two punctuation errors, and two grammatical errors) in the text of this handout. See if you can spot them!

Is editing the same thing as proofreading?

Not exactly. Although many people use the terms interchangeably, editing and proofreading are two different stages of the revision process. Both demand close and careful reading, but they focus on different aspects of the writing and employ different techniques.

Some tips that apply to both editing and proofreading

• Get some distance from the text! It’s hard to edit or proofread a paper that you’ve just finished writing—it’s still to familiar, and you tend to skip over a lot of errors. Put the paper aside for a few hours, days, or weeks. Go for a run. Take a trip to the beach. Clear your head of what you’ve written so you can take a fresh look at the paper and see what is really on the page. Better yet, give the paper to a friend—you can’t get much more distance than that. Someone who is reading the paper for the first time , [if you’re not sure why this comma is a problem, check out our comma handout] , comes to it with completely fresh eyes.
• Decide what medium lets you proofread most carefully. Some people like to work right at the computer, while others like to sit back with a printed copy that they can mark up as they read.
• Try changing the look of your document. Altering the size, spacing, color, or style of the text may trick your brain into thinking it’s seeing an unfamiliar document, and that can help you get a different perspective on what you’ve written.
• Find a quiet place to work. Don’t try to do your proofreading in front of the TV or while you’re chugging away on the treadmill. Find a place where you can concentrate and avoid distractions.
• If possible, do your editing and proofreading in several short blocks of time. Your concentration may start to wane if you try to proofread the entire text at one time.
• If you’re short on time, you may wish to prioritize. Make sure that you complete the most important editing and proofreading tasks.

Editing is what you begin doing as soon as you finish your first draft. You reread your draft to see, for example, whether the paper is well-organized, the transitions between paragraphs are smooth, and your evidence really backs up your argument. You can edit on several levels:

Have you done everything the assignment requires? Are the claims you make accurate? If it is required to do so, does your paper make an argument? Is the argument complete? Are all of your claims consistent? Have you supported each point with adequate evidence? Is all of the information in your paper relevant to the assignment and/or your overall writing goal? (For additional tips, see our handouts on understanding assignments and developing an argument .)

Overall structure

Does your paper have an appropriate introduction and conclusion? Is your thesis clearly stated in your introduction? Is it clear how each paragraph in the body of your paper is related to your thesis? Are the paragraphs arranged in a logical sequence? Have you made clear transitions between paragraphs? One way to check the structure of your paper is to make a reverse outline of the paper after you have written the first draft. (See our handouts on introductions , conclusions , thesis statements , and transitions .)

Structure within paragraphs

Does each paragraph have a clear topic sentence? Does each paragraph stick to one main idea? Are there any extraneous or missing sentences in any of your paragraphs? (See our handout on paragraph development .)

Have you defined any important terms that might be unclear to your reader? Is the meaning of each sentence clear? (One way to answer this question is to read your paper one sentence at a time, starting at the end and working backwards so that you will not unconsciously fill in content from previous sentences.) Is it clear what each pronoun (he, she, it, they, which, who, this, etc.) refers to? Have you chosen the proper words to express your ideas? Avoid using words you find in the thesaurus that aren’t part of your normal vocabulary; you may misuse them.

Have you used an appropriate tone (formal, informal, persuasive, etc.)? Is your use of gendered language (masculine and feminine pronouns like “he” or “she,” words like “fireman” that contain “man,” and words that some people incorrectly assume apply to only one gender—for example, some people assume “nurse” must refer to a woman) appropriate? Have you varied the length and structure of your sentences? Do you tends to use the passive voice too often? Does your writing contain a lot of unnecessary phrases like “there is,” “there are,” “due to the fact that,” etc.? Do you repeat a strong word (for example, a vivid main verb) unnecessarily? (For tips, see our handouts on style and gender-inclusive language .)

Have you appropriately cited quotes, paraphrases, and ideas you got from sources? Are your citations in the correct format? (See the UNC Libraries citation tutorial for more information.)

As you edit at all of these levels, you will usually make significant revisions to the content and wording of your paper. Keep an eye out for patterns of error; knowing what kinds of problems you tend to have will be helpful, especially if you are editing a large document like a thesis or dissertation. Once you have identified a pattern, you can develop techniques for spotting and correcting future instances of that pattern. For example, if you notice that you often discuss several distinct topics in each paragraph, you can go through your paper and underline the key words in each paragraph, then break the paragraphs up so that each one focuses on just one main idea.

Proofreading

Proofreading is the final stage of the editing process, focusing on surface errors such as misspellings and mistakes in grammar and punctuation. You should proofread only after you have finished all of your other editing revisions.

Why proofread? It’s the content that really matters, right?

Content is important. But like it or not, the way a paper looks affects the way others judge it. When you’ve worked hard to develop and present your ideas, you don’t want careless errors distracting your reader from what you have to say. It’s worth paying attention to the details that help you to make a good impression.

Most people devote only a few minutes to proofreading, hoping to catch any glaring errors that jump out from the page. But a quick and cursory reading, especially after you’ve been working long and hard on a paper, usually misses a lot. It’s better to work with a definite plan that helps you to search systematically for specific kinds of errors.

Sure, this takes a little extra time, but it pays off in the end. If you know that you have an effective way to catch errors when the paper is almost finished, you can worry less about editing while you are writing your first drafts. This makes the entire writing proccess more efficient.

Try to keep the editing and proofreading processes separate. When you are editing an early draft, you don’t want to be bothered with thinking about punctuation, grammar, and spelling. If your worrying about the spelling of a word or the placement of a comma, you’re not focusing on the more important task of developing and connecting ideas.

The proofreading process

You probably already use some of the strategies discussed below. Experiment with different tactics until you find a system that works well for you. The important thing is to make the process systematic and focused so that you catch as many errors as possible in the least amount of time.

• Don’t rely entirely on spelling checkers. These can be useful tools but [again, if you’re not sure what’s wrong here, see the comma handout] they are far from foolproof. Spell checkers have a limited dictionary, so some words that show up as misspelled may really just not be in their memory. In addition, spell checkers will not catch misspellings that form another valid word. For example, if you type “your” instead of “you’re,” “to” instead of “too,” or “there” instead of “their,” the spell checker won’t catch the error.
• Grammar checkers can be even more problematic. These programs work with a limited number of rules, so they can’t identify every error and often make mistakes. They also fail to give thorough explanations to help you understand why a sentence should be revised. You may want to use a grammar checker to help you identify potential run-on sentences or too-frequent use of the passive voice, but you need to be able to evaluate the feedback it provides.
• Proofread for only one kind of error at a time. If you try to identify and revise too many things at once, you risk losing focus, and your proofreading will be less effective. It’s easier to catch grammar errors if you aren’t checking punctuation and spelling at the same time. In addition, some of the techniques that work well for spotting one kind of mistake won’t catch others.
• Read slow , and read every word. Try reading out loud , which forces you to say each word and also lets you hear how the words sound together. When you read silently or too quickly, you may skip over errors or make unconscious corrections.
• Separate the text into individual sentences. This is another technique to help you to read every sentence carefully. Simply press the return key after every period so that every line begins a new sentence. Then read each sentence separately, looking for grammar, punctuation, or spelling errors. If you’re working with a printed copy, try using an opaque object like a ruler or a piece of paper to isolate the line you’re working on.
• Circle every punctuation mark. This forces you to look at each one. As you circle, ask yourself if the punctuation is correct.
• Read the paper backwards. This technique is helpful for checking spelling. Start with the last word on the last page and work your way back to the beginning, reading each word separately. Because content, punctuation, and grammar won’t make any sense, your focus will be entirely on the spelling of each word. You can also read backwards sentence by sentence to check grammar; this will help you avoid becoming distracted by content issues.
• Proofreading is a learning process. You’re not just looking for errors that you recognize; you’re also learning to recognize and correct new errors. This is where handbooks and dictionaries come in. Keep the ones you find helpful close at hand as you proofread.
• Ignorance may be bliss, but it won’t make you a better proofreader. You’ll often find things that don’t seem quite right to you, but you may not be quite sure what’s wrong either. A word looks like it might be misspelled, but the spell checker didn’t catch it. You think you need a comma between two words, but you’re not sure why. Should you use “that” instead of “which”? If you’re not sure about something, look it up.
• The proofreading process becomes more efficient as you develop and practice a systematic strategy. You’ll learn to identify the specific areas of your own writing that need careful attention, and knowing that you have a sound method for finding errors will help you to focus more on developing your ideas while you are drafting the paper.

Think you’ve got it?

Then give it a try, if you haven’t already! This handout contains seven errors our proofreader should have caught: three spelling errors, two punctuation errors, and two grammatical errors. Try to find them, and then check a version of this page with the errors marked in red to see if you’re a proofreading star.

Works consulted

We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find the latest publications on this topic. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial .

Especially for non-native speakers of English:

Ascher, Allen. Think about Editing: An ESL Guide for the Harbrace Handbooks. Boston: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2006.

Lane, Janet, and Ellen Lange. Writing Clearly: Grammar for Editing. 3rd ed. Boston: Heinle ELT, 2011.

For everyone:

Einsohn, Amy. The Copyeditor’s Handbook: A Guide for Book Publishing and Corporate Communications. 3rd ed. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2011.

Lanham, Richard A. Revising Prose. 5th ed. New York: Longman, 2006.

Tarshis, Barry. How to Be Your Own Best Editor: The Toolkit for Everyone Who Writes. New York: Three Rivers Press, 1998.

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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Assesment or Assessment? Which is correct?

You are typing a memo and you get to that word. The kind of word you can’t sound out. Is it “assesment” or “assessment,” Which way is correct?

Spelling the word “assessment” with two “S’s” is the correct spelling. “Assessment” is from the root verb “assess,” so spelling the word like “assesment,” with one “S,” is viewed as grammatically incorrect. 

It is easy to misspell “assessment” because the pronunciation of the word can be quick, which can make the word sound like “assesment.” Keep reading to learn more about why “assessment is the correct spelling.

What Does “Assessment” Mean?

Assessment is the noun form of the root verb “assess,” which can mean to evaluate, judge or test.

• We need to stop and assess the situation before we act irrationally.
• They have to assess her academic level before they can choose her teacher.

Notice that in both sentences, the action word, or verb , is “assess,” which you can exchange with “evaluate” in the first example and “test” in the second example.

An “assessment” is the noun variant of “assess.”

• You have to take this assessment before we can hire you for the job.
• She left after she failed the assessment .

Notice that “assessment” in these two examples is a thing, not an action. The “ment” at the end of “assess” changes the word from a verb to a noun .

Why Is It “Assessment” and Not “Assesment”?

You say “assessment” instead of “assesment” because you do not drop the double consonant at the end of “assess.”

The “ss” on the tail of “assess” helps to make the “short e” sound in the word. It also helps to create the illusion of a “z” at the end of the word.

• I couldn’t find the words to express my love.
• The snake likes to hiss when they sense food.
• The children were playing in the grass .

Notice that the vowels preceding the double consonant are all short-sounding vowels.

The double consonant doesn’t go away when it becomes a noun because it has to maintain the integrity of the world.

Final Thoughts

“Assesment,” by all accounts, is a misspelling of the word “assessment.” Although the two words sound the same, that second “s” matters and is necessary to tell the reader how to pronounce the short vowel just before it. So make sure you add that extra “s.”

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Dear Cult of Pedagogy,

Last week, my son brought home a stack of papers from his first-grade class. Some of them had obvious spelling errors, but no one had marked them wrong. Later that same day, I was helping my 10-year-old daughter with a research paper. I noticed a few misspellings on her draft, but when I pointed them out, she said, “My teacher told us not to worry about spelling when we’re drafting.”

What’s the deal? Why don’t teachers seem to care about spelling anymore?

When kids first learn how to write, they grapple with many different skills at once. After they master letters and build them into words, their next step is stringing those words together into complete ideas. That takes a lot of mental work, and trying to spell every word perfectly can slow the whole process way down. For this reason, many teachers in the early grades encourage inventive spelling , also known as temporary spelling — where the child makes his best guess on the spelling of the word, rather than stopping to find out the correct version.

This practice is grounded in research. A number of studies demonstrate that kids who are allowed to use inventive spelling learn to write more quickly, more fluently, and with a richer vocabulary than those who work under more rigid spelling expectations (Kolodziej & Columba, 2005).

Researchers suggest that parents think about inventive spelling the way they once viewed their child’s early attempts at speech:

When the child said “ba-ba,” did the parent say, “No, honey, it is pronounced “bottle”? Parents treasure this developmental step their child took towards conventional speaking by lavishly praising the child and offering the bottle…The child will not call the item a “ba-ba” for the rest of his/her life; rather, when the child is developmentally ready, he/she will be able to say “bottle” (Kolodziej & Columba, 2005, p. 217).

In the later years, spelling does “count,” but it has a time and a place. Most writing teachers use some version of the Writing Process , where students are taught to (1) gather and group their ideas (pre-writing), (2) flesh out those ideas in sentences and paragraphs (drafting), and (3) reorganize the piece so that it accomplishes the writer’s goals (revising). Only then, after the piece has been revised into a shape that’s close to finished , do most teachers tell their students to start the next step: editing. In this stage, final corrections are made to spelling, punctuation, and usage.

The reason spelling and mechanics are de-emphasized in the first few steps is the same as in the younger grades: Too much focus on correctness interrupts the flow of ideas. Furthermore, teachers want students to understand that good writers revise their pieces many times for structure, development, clarity and voice. Although the mechanics are important for polish, correct spelling can’t make up for a poorly structured, underdeveloped piece of writing . And if a piece is going to be revised several times, it makes no sense to keep correcting the mechanics, only to have those words dumped entirely in a later revision.

Producing a finished piece of writing is a lot like putting on a polished musical performance: It requires the synthesis of many skills, some of which need to be handled separately. Imagine if a band conductor brought a brand-new piece of music to her band and expected all sections to play it together, perfectly, the first time. Even someone with no musical training can see that this is an unreasonable approach. Instead, if each instrument section starts by practicing their part separately, the performers will get really solid on their individual parts before pulling it all together to refine the complete performance.

So what should you do if your child comes home with a paper full of spelling or other mechanical errors? Take a cue from the teacher: If the teacher hasn’t mentioned the errors, then  spelling was not a priority for this particular assignment or at this particular stage . Instead, praise the content itself. Here are some specific things to look for, and if they are there, to praise:

Strong, vivid vocabulary : “You chose a really interesting word to describe that monster – ferocious.”

Idea development : “You described how the lizard’s tongue works really clearly. At first I couldn’t understand how a tongue can smell, but this sentence helps.”

Audience awareness : “This introduction really grabbed my attention.”

Organization : “Nice transition here: ‘On the other hand.’ That’s a good way to show that you’re going to talk about a different side of the issue.”

Attempts at sophisticated construction: “Is that a semicolon? That’s a pretty advanced punctuation mark. I like to see you trying new things with your writing.”

If you want to help your child improve his spelling, keep assignments that contain errors in a folder. Later in the year, after a certain kind of word has been taught – say, the difference between there , their , and they’re — have your child go through the folder and see if they can catch some old mistakes with this set of words.

Rest assured, teachers still care very much about spelling. They just recognize that learning other skills — harder, more complex skills — often works best when those skills get a student’s full attention. Single instruments first, then the whole orchestra.

Kolodziej, N.J., & Columba, L. (2005). Invented spelling: Guidelines for parents. Reading Improvement , 42 (4), 212-223.

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What to Read Next

Categories: Instruction , Learning Theory

Tags: English language arts , Grades 3-5 , Grades 6-8 , Grades K-2 , learning & memory , parent-teacher connection

54 Comments

Thank you, Jennifer! I have this very problem with my own kids. I translated your writing into Russian and shared it with my friends (worrying parents, too). They all say Thank you!

Wow! I had no idea this would reach that far away. I’m so excited to hear it. Thanks for letting me know!!

Jennifer I am thankful to you I like to go through your weekly tips

This was so helpful and enlightening 🙂 Thank you!!!

Spelling is a problem – as are grammatical and syntax errors, etc. The actual problem, I have found, is that students rely on the teacher to edit their papers to locate and change the errors. This happens, especially, in the high school. Students have learnt that if the teacher doesn’t mark it there is no error there. I have taken to drawing a line after 5 mistakes in a paper and then handing it back to the student. This goes on and on until they have worked to fix those errors and are able to have pride in what they’ve done; in a perfect world, they would use the lessons learnt from the 1st grade on, and remembered the rules – but they tend to be lazy (I find teachers and, especially, administrators are quite guilty of errors that are glaringly obvious, as well!) and want someone to do the work for them – and why not?! Teachers do it. However, I’ve taught my students I’m not their editor, and when they leave school they should know how to function in this manner on their own. The papers then begin to be written with more care. It does take longer for me to accept them, and the rotating pile seems to move well. It’s when they have 3 – 4 papers in process they begin to tire. Then, voila! With the next quarter, things have changed! Spelling and other errors go down with the first draft!

This is a great idea, Tony. I can imagine that to sustain this, a teacher would need patience and a certain amount of comfort with mental clutter, because there would always be that sense of things hanging out there, unfinished. Still, I think it would be worth it to deal with this discomfort for the sake of changing students’ habits. I have two questions, to help me understand how you worked this:

(1) Did you correct the first 5 mistakes, or mark them in any way? Or did you just mentally count them and draw the line after you got to five?

(2) How did you keep track of where each student was in the process? I’m assuming you had some way of recording that a student had turned a paper in, but was in the re-writing process. How were points/grades given to students who were still in the middle of this cycle? And did there come a point where a grade had to be assigned, regardless of mistakes that were still there?

Thanks for contributing. I look forward to hearing back from you!

I agree Tony, allowing kids to make mistakes is creating bad habits that will require more effort later on to break these bad habits. What sickens me is, I had to learn while I was in school and now it seems like it’s a free for all. Teacher seem to have more excuses why they’re not putting the effort into teaching as they did 4 decades ago. The teachers 40+ years ago got paid a fraction of the money and put 3-4 times the effort into the children as compared to today. I know I will get beat up over this but it only bother the people that can’t run from personal truth. Don’t get me wrong, there are some great teachers out there but it’s like being a parent…..your not there to be their friend, you’re getting paid to teach the right way and not make it twice as hard to learn in later years. All this does is create bad habits and this is why dropout rates in university’s continue to increase.

You’ve never tried to teach kindergarteners or first graders to write!

Totally agree with you!

Did you not read the article??

If creativity is stifled in favor of doing everything “correctly” many kids will view writing AND reading as a chore for the rest of their lives.

Don’t write “ferocious” until 3rd or 4th grade, when you’ve learned to spell it? Just write “scary”?

Further, did you ever learn that you should skip a difficult question on a test and come back to it later? It’s the same idea. Skip the trip to the dictionary, let the thoughts flow first. The trip to the dictionary will come later, when you’re polishing the story.

Well done you how will children learn my daughter aborimary school teacher in Belfast County Antrim Northern Irelandb

A primary school teacher . my daughter teaches ages 10/11 year old boys and girls x

If the research says ignoring spelling errors builds better writers, then I think that’s good. On the other hand, when does a teacher draw the line? My older daughter (now 30 years old) was told by her fifth grade teacher that spelling wasn’t important. My wife and I put an end to that quickly. What do you guys think? When should a student be told to worry about spelling? At some point, it should be important. You should see the spelling in some of the essays I have seen seventh graders write!

Teachers who say spelling isn’t important have missed the message, and they are doing students a disservice by making blanket statements like that. Of course, any teacher will tell you that kids often misquote us completely out of context. Any parent whose child comes home telling them their teacher said something like that should double-check with the teacher, because my guess is that the original message was something more nuanced than that.

For many writing teachers, it makes sense to draw the line at the final copy — when the student has done sufficient revising, editing, and proofreading and declares a piece “done” and ready for grading. This is when misspellings would (and should) be marked off. I want my students to understand that poor grammar and misspellings will cause others to judge it unfavorably, and that it’s in their best interest to represent themselves in the best light possible. In many cases, a piece that is submitted with lots of spelling errors will simply be returned to the student for correction and resubmission. Because a lot of student work is done and saved digitally nowadays, making these corrections isn’t too terribly time-consuming or arduous.

This research summary concludes that direct instruction of spelling is quite effective in teaching students to spell correctly, and it reviews several methods for their effectiveness. Using these methods as part of a balanced literacy program that includes frequent writing and a TON of regular reading should help students become good spellers.

Thanks for letting us know — we’ll look into it.

Speaking of balanced literacy programs, this post by Angela Peery summarizes the qualities schools should be looking for when evaluating their literacy instruction: https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/literacy-check-up/

I know you mean well but you’re putting us back ten years by promoting a ‘whole language’ approach:-( We’ve had 3 major inquiries about this and your advice contradicts th recommendations (National Reading Panel, USA, Rose Report, UK and AU Inquiry) But, more importantly, we can actually see what is happening in the brains of children who struggle to code (translate speech sounds to print) and we know why. This advice ignores that. We need to teach children to code speech sounds with their representations on paper to increase white matter/ overcome the poor phonemic awareness issues. This advice is a nightmare for dyslexics who actually need their brains rewiring using specific spelling strategies – as seen in clip I will post.

When teachers do not understand how to teach all learners to spell (not by rote/ look cover say- authentically, using the brain!) at an early age prevents them from reaching their potential – it impacts on reading as well.

So just because teachers don’t understand how to teach children to write their thoughts and feelings on paper by hand as quickly as they write, before Year 2, and get 90% of the spellings correct, don’t tell the kids ‘it doesn’t matter’ and t focus on content. Please. Every time they spell the same word incorrectly it makes it harder for the brain to identify what is wrong. And with spelling there is a wrong or right answer. All words are in the SSP King’ Code Book ie the Dictionary – and children who learn using SSP understand how important it is to not only write creatively, but also stick to the code. Most who write similar articles have just never seen students using SSP, or understand that kids WANT to know the right way to spell what they are saying.

Knowing what ‘looks right’ is what adults do when unsure – why deprive kids of that? It’s how the brain makes sense of coding out of context.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FW3uU27oGxk

Miss Emma Wiring Brains Education, Australia.

Hello Miss Emma,

I appreciate you taking the time to share this information with me. I certainly have no interest in contradicting sound research or taking us backward. This piece is written based on my own experience as a middle school writing teacher, my experience teaching my own three children to read and write, how I was trained as a teacher, and the research I did while working on this piece. I would be very interested in seeing the recommendations you mention above (National Reading Panel, USA, Rose Report, UK and AU Inquiry) — can you reply with a few links so I can read up on this?

I really enjoyed the video — your enthusiasm is contagious, and I can well imagine that a child who has been trained in the use of the Spelling Clouds and the keyring would develop strong spelling skills. Because my training is not in early education, I am not familiar with methods like SSP, but I appreciate you sharing it here so that others who are interested in learning new methods can become acquainted with them.

I do have one question, however: While watching the process a child would go through to determine the correct spelling of a word, I couldn’t help but think that doing this many times during the course of a paragraph might take quite a bit of time. I’m curious about when you recommend the child do these steps in the writing process. Should it happen right in the middle of composing a sentence — before moving on to the next word? Based on your initial reply (above), my guess is that you would not advocate for the child writing “sed” first, moving on with the rest of the sentence, and then going to the keyring after getting the paragraph down. I just want to be clear that I do not think a child should never correct a word, but I imagine that stopping so often to investigate the correct spelling might cause many children to forget what they wanted to say in the first place. I think of it almost like riding a bicycle — if you maintain a minimum speed, you can keep the bike upright, but if you slow down too much, you topple over. So I’m wondering if SSP recommends that students stop every time to get the word right, in order to wire the brain correctly. And if this is indeed the recommendation, I wonder if this hampers students’ writing fluency.

I look forward to your response. Thank you for introducing this information here and for helping to further this discussion.

When there is a problem with the spellings, we should question ourselves How did it start? Was there a follow up? And even if it was shouldn’t the children finish the task that was given by the teachers I am not saying I know it all I know its time consuming to follow all the kids Can you suggest how to do it?

I am a dyslexic; I find that many educators do not comprehend the issue. In the end, their instruction becomes useless. They can not see the forest for the trees. (It is my opinion that proofreading should always come last)

Thank you so much for saying this! I am in Canada, in New Brunswick and I am so frustrated and discouraged by how our daughter (finishing grade 4 ) is learning how to spell, that I am really close to homeschooling her next year.

Yes! This happened to my son exactly as described. The whole language program masked his dyslexia early on and he never progressed but was allowed to succeed based on creative spelling. Then in fifth grade they started to penalize him for not being able to keep up. Demoralizing.

Thanks for the article. I was just as stressed about my daughter’s spelling in KG, but her teacher had assured me that building confidence and content was more important at that age. I could see her confidence and willingness faltering the next year when a different teacher insisted that she look up every spelling in the dictionary before using it in her writing. Watching how the two approaches changed her attitude about writing was enough to convince me!

Thanks for sharing this story. Hearing individual families’ stories is especially helpful in deepening our understanding of these ideas. How is your daughter’s confidence (and spelling) these days? How old is she now?

Spell check goes a way towards fixing errors when typing on the laptop but does it teach them to check for their own errors. noticed while helping my son with his project last night by the time he clicked the spacebar the incorrect word was auto-corrected and he just thinks he spelt it right , as I mentioned to him to please check…he said “Look I did spell it right.” Our school gives them word families to learn as spelling words , but the actual weekly test is different words to see if they follow the word/sound rules.

I agree, spell check has significant limitations, and we need to teach students how to use it, but not to rely on it. How do you feel about the word family approach? To me, it sounds like a smart idea to test them on different words with similar patterns — I don’t think I’ve heard that one before, but it makes sense.

When I was in my early school years I wasn’t taught the writing process because the focus was put on word by word spelling and structure. Honestly, I feel like this bit me in the butt. Not only did it not work for me, (I am horrible at spelling and my grammar is even worse), but it also didn’t prepare me for the bulk of my essay writing.

When I first learnt the writing process I didn’t want to look stupid so I edited the hell out of my first drafts and claimed they were always that way. My first draft and final draft were identical and I got horrible marks! My teachers wanted to see that the first draft was vastly different from the final draft because it showed that I was learning the skills they were trying to teach me. Fixing my errors and developing my ideas by editing my drafts meant that I could thoughtfully self critique. This plays into the idea that there isn’t always going to be a teacher with a red pen to tell me when I’m wrong. When I finally got on board I got better marks because the teacher could see me developing and give me better advice on how to improve. This made me a better writer. So maybe I rely too heavily on spell check, but I have a strong sense of how to convey my thoughts, which is what writing is suppose to accomplish.

Example being I read and re-wrote this comment multiple times. It looks nothing like what I originally wrote. I’m sure there are still mistakes, but it is a better expression of my ideas than my first draft which looked more like “GOOD POST! LOVE IT! WRITING PROCESS IS THE BOMB YO! ahfhadfadhf!?”

I’m 49 so, I learned spelling through phonics, lists, and drills. I’m a good speller now, and I’m a good writer now. I’m a high school English teacher now. The thing to remember, though, is that what works for one person doesn’t necessarily work for everyone else. Since I teach in high school, I don’t teach spelling per se, but I do have to find a way to convince poor spellers to work on improving their skills, and different techniques are necessary for different students. Research can tell us best practices, but it can’t trump experience. By that same token, experience tells us not to dismiss research out of hand. It’s all a balance. I think I meandered a bit, but my point is that exposing students to a variety of teaching methods is best.

I taught 8th grade U.S. history for 13 years and have been a school librarian for 16. When teaching history I did have a spelling/grammar component on my rubrics, but did not correct each error in an assignment. I simply circled each error and would then add points if the student did corrections. But I have worked with adults who have spelling and grammar errors in every email. It really lowers my opinion of them as educators. If you don’t respect language, I have a hard time respecting you.

Meh. This is how it was when I was in school… and it makes sense to me.

First grade is when reading, writing and spelling start being actively tested and graded. However, Children need to learn these things granularly and gradually. Thus, they are given a list of very specific words each week that they are then tested on at the end of week (or whatever their teacher’s schedule is).

How are we to expect children to suddenly be able to write every word they may want to use correctly? Should we limit their creativity to only the words they can spell correctly.

Additionally, these children have to learn all of the ‘rules’ of English… Which is notorious for having inconsistent and even arbitrary rules.

In my experience, it has been that teachers will bring up when something like ‘ba-ba’ is written for ‘Bottle’… but they won’t mention incorrect spellings if it’s phonetically spelled out in a way that makes sense with the ‘rules’ they’ve been taught so far… Unless, of course, that word is actively on the spelling list that they’re being tested on.

But yeah, I think the main thing here is that you can’t expect children to suddenly know how to spell every word they might want to use while they’re still learning the various and aribitrary rules of English. There’s a reason why English is often considered one of the hardest languages to learn to write.

But hey, you’re their parent… I suppose you can take it upon yourself to tell them not to writing words they don’t know how to spell… even if they’re simply trying to follow the rules they’ve learned thus far to write out a common phrase they’ve heard.

I found this really interesting,as we have bilingual children (English and Welsh), especially as my 6 year old is now practicing independent writing. It is something that I have learned just comes with practice, there is no point in getting uptight about it. I quite enjoying seeing the inventive spellings!

This was fantastic to read, due to the fact l’m working with children with literacy and writing. Maybe you can give me more helpful hints encouraging children getting interested in writing

Thank you very much for sharing the research. My own experience in writing was terrible because my primary teachers focused more on spelling, handwriting and presentation rather than the writing ideas which was given to us in order to present good writing. As I started my secondary school I found that I have to find my own ideas for writing, it took me a while to get the balance between good spelling and good writing.. As a teacher for early years I completely agree with you. When children are obsessed about spelling it often delays the flow of writing. Keeping the balance between encouraging writing, flow of thoughts and to love writing on one side and presenting good spelling, punctuation,etc., is a challenge for the child and the teacher. I would say it is mostly in the teacher’s hands (and parents) to wisely encourage, support and discuss next steps in a positive way. Building a child who is confident and can reflect on his/her own work and consider mistakes as ways forward is the key to it from my experience.

Wow, Jennifer, you are a true master of dealing with parents.. You should be a superintendent. It’s reached far BTW. I have a small English school in Bangkok and if I were half as good at talking to parents as you I would be a rich man.

This is what I do with my Grade 1 students. I teach them Science and I don’t deduct points for wrong spelling if it is not part of the learning objectives (and usually, it’s not). However, when they submit their papers for grading, I do write the correct spelling of the words they’ve misspelled. Some students take note of my corrections and no longer commit the same spelling mistakes in future activities, but it takes a while for most of the students. Is this practice acceptable?

I am a product of “Whole Language” which included inventive spelling. Although I love to read and write, spelling is still a struggle for me and I’m an English teacher! I think there needs to be a healthy balance between inventive spelling and correcting spelling mistakes.

I agree, Lindsay. In this post, I’m trying to emphasize the timing of the corrections, rather than pushing the idea that they aren’t important. Thanks for sharing your experience.

Inventive spelling eventually becomes a problem. When my stepdaughter’s 11th grade English teacher told us that she allowed “inventive spelling” on final papers, it was a problem. As a long term HR Dir. I can tell you inventive spelling gets your resume thrown away. So, please ensure that this stops long before the high school years.

As a new entrant teacher with 20 years experience, I have seen children begin school with a range of abilities . Some are able to write a variety of words and others are unable to hold a pencil, have no alphabet or phonemic knowledge and are not able to recognise let alone write their own name.

When teaching new entrant children to write, I encourage them to use inventive spelling with their emerging phonemic knowledge as it also gives them a feeling of success. As their writing knowledge and confidence develops I insist they spell the Essential Spelling list 1 words/high frequency words correctly.

This practise continues through to year 3. By year 4 we expect children to spell the Essential Spelling lists 1-8 correctly, which is taught by not only using the look, cover, say, write, use in authentic sentence strategies but also by Phonological, Visual, Morphemic, and Etymological.

Because we insist on spelling those high frequency words correctly children aren’t training their brains to spell these words incorrectly. Words they use inventive spelling for are words like Clidesdale (Clydesdale) hoorses (horses) etc.

I was surprised to read Miss Emma’s comments calling this is an outdated practise.

As far as I have seen, it has been successful and matches the stages of a child’s writing development.

I particularly liked your quote – ‘Single instruments first, then the whole orchestra’, it sums up what I’m saying.

Thanks for a great read.

I’m curious what would be said of misspellings on a science assignment. One sentence answers full of misspellings? Is that ok? In a writing assignment, I see the value. In filling out every day paperwork or other assignments, not so much. I happen to be a band director.

Hi Katy! This is Debbie, a Customer Experience Manager with CoP. This is a great question. Here’s my thinking … kids, regardless of the content area in which they’re writing about, should always be thoughtful and purposeful with their communication. That includes spelling. It should be an expectation that kids apply previously taught word study strategies to words they don’t know. But spelling shouldn’t hold them back from writing what they want to say. What we don’t want to happen is have kids limit their voice based on limited spelling abilities. If spelling interferes with the reader’s ability to understand what the writer is even talking about, then of course that’s a problem. The teacher may need to work with that student individually. Otherwise, if misspellings don’t interfere with readability, then after checking the work for content understanding, the teacher can have kids go back to fix up words they actually knew or use resources such as a classroom “Words to Know” anchor chart to fix others. Bottom line: If it’s science or some other assignment, then first assess that. Work with spelling afterwards.

I believe that every point they’re making is wrong. This “inventive” spelling doesn’t stop past the first few years. They continue to make these incredibly stupid spelling errors well into their 20’s. If it stops at all. It doesn’t do anything to “enrich” their vocabulary or make them more creative. They just express themselves in what looks like an incredibly uneducated way. Because those of us that bothered to actually learn are extremely irritated by what looks to be childish writing from those who are too old to still be doing it. They don’t go on to learn how to actually spell, they remain in a world that tolerates laziness on the part of the people supposedly educating them. Just read comments online to see what I mean. Spell check isn’t going to tell someone that new isn’t correct when they were trying to say knew. So if the goal is to dumb down younger people, they’ve already been doing a spectacular job. Spell check doesn’t work at all when you’re using real words inaccurately.

So. Much. Yes.

How about the future of everyone “voice dictating” everything? That ought to be very peaceful in the classroom…and most certainly creative, as well.

Excellent response. In addition to tutoring, I’m a proofreader for several independent authors. After they get their draft finished, they consult with an editor who helps with structure, story line, and other facets of the book. I get it after those edits are done. I look for spelling and grammar and punctuation. When I have my students write, I tell them that a draft is just that, a draft. When it’s ready for others to read, they need to use “book spelling” so that their readers don’t get confused. I help them with that.

You don’t need to deduct points in all cases but should still show the correction. If you let them misspell the same word hundreds of times, the repetition makes it harder to fix later.

SO glad to read this post! This is the first year I have implemented this approach and, for my reluctant writers (75% of may class), it has freed them up to be creative and write stories. Several have said, “I don’t hate writing anymore,” or their parents have approached me and said, “It is so nice, we haven’t had any tears over this writing assignment!” We will absolutely emphasize the importance of spelling and grammar AFTER the revision process. I want them to have the freedom to explore and express their wonderfully creative ideas and not be stilted by the grammar and spelling police. In my career I have assisted millionaire CEOs and entrepreneurs with brilliant minds. Some had atrocious spelling and grammar – but brilliant minds for ideas and inventions, as well as amazing business acumen. I partnered with them to help their communication skills. I thought no less of them because of their spelling and grammar. I wished my mind had the skills theirs had! And while the two are not mutually exclusive, we live in a world full of opportunities for partnership and collaboration. It’s not that we don’t want to always try to improve the areas where we are weak – it’s that we must learn to work with people, with grace and humility, building each other up and helping each other be better every day.

YES! At first I was taken aback that my kindergartener was being encouraged to spell “inventively,” but it totally makes sense AND is grounded in research. Thanks for the post!

What is your intake on Spelling Test? What about on paper? Google Forms? I’m in my third year of teaching and it took so much time doing it on paper and saying the words out. The past few years I did it on Google Forms. Some students like it online, some don’t. I had a few talked to me and think it doesn’t help them when done online. Just curious on what you think.

Hi Garrett, We were able to respond via email to your question and thought that some of the resources that we shared with you may benefit others who visit this post!

Here are some resources that may be useful to use in the classroom for many content areas, including spelling and vocabulary:

6 Powerful Learning Strategies 4 Research-Based Strategies How to Use the Reciprocal Learning Strategy

We also have a couple of Pinterest boards that have a ton of resources for Spelling and Vocabulary: Grammar, Mechanics, and Spelling Vocabulary and Word Study

Here are some other fun, easy and quick ways to assess: Crumple and Shoot Kahoot! Quizlet Plickers Quizziz

I would like to add a little perspective to the discussion by mentioning that Germany has struggled with inventive spelling (aka “Lernen nach Gehör”) for the past decade and more. It became standard teaching practice in many federal states but has since been criticised/ abolished again in many.

As a parent of three children from Kindergarten through late middle years and a teacher librarian for MYP and DP I can only stress that the method – while having its merits as to children writing early and more expressively – will create havoc if not applied consistently and systematically in practice. Numerous and for that matter more recent studies show this. I believe that a combination of exposing children to word clouds/ lists and a consistent approach to handling misspellings can leverage the advantages of inventive spelling at the same time. The emphasis being on “consistent” here, leading to teachers having to be schooled in the right application of the method but again only in combination of equally important and (more) established approaches.

In addition I will say that learning to write through inventive spelling is a highly individual experience and teachers need to work at student level – not class level – in order to find the right approach and it pains me to even have to say this. My 13 year old is a prefect example for that. He learnt to spell German by said method applied inconsistently and struggles with spelling to this day. He then went on to learn English (Gd. 5) and French (Gd. 7) at different schools without inventive spelling (but with a toleration for early misspellings) and is since close to perfect spelling and grammar in these. He never picked up on the “corrections” offered by his teachers in German, committing his spelling to memory and reinforcing the connection of visual and motor skills related to the specific misspelling. To this day, he is more frustrated with his native German language skills than with his foreign language skills. On the other hand our 9 year old went through a similar process and makes less spelling mistakes all around. I will add that they are both avid readers and writers with a strong vocabulary in all languages.

So my recommendation is for parents to have a close eye on how your child’s teacher applies the method (is it clearly communicated, is it consistently applied, when does your child get a chance to realise their spelling mistakes and how many repetitions of individual misspellings happen without correction) and how your child reacts to the method.

And my recommendation to teachers would be to be very attentive to individual students’ needs and proficiencies. Don’t just stick with a method that makes it seemingly easier for you or the child just because it’s trendy but will mess with a child’s aptitude for years to come if misunderstood and the driving approach. As for my own experience, I will stay as far away from inventive spelling as a method as I can while being open to early misspellings and keeping a watchful eye on repeated misspellings for my youngest child. As for my MYP/DP students, I also practice the “rule of 5” mentioned above for most writing stages, offering recommendations mostly for systemic misspellings and emphasising the importance of correct spelling in coordination with English teachers etc..

All in all I think that relying on the method as the central teaching method for writing post second grade is a called for nightmare and recent studies in Germany seem to agree (with some caveats on methodology across studies). YMMV.

A very worrisome and ever-increasing reality in my 40 years experience as an educator: Far too many current teachers are not capable of recognizing blatant grammatical and spelling errors. If the teacher has not mastered second grade English, they do not know how to help their students edit written work. Trendy research aside, think of writing in terms of an athlete, a musician, or a surgeon. In addition to requiring regular practice and preparation to strengthen personal knowledge and skills, the only way to progress to the next level, and ultimately achieve excellence, is by developing one’s ability to recognize and solve problems as they arise. It is a lifelong process, and tossing children into the deep end of the ocean, without any correction or instruction along the way, will prove disastrous. A healthy guide-on-the-side strives to nurture their students’ greatest potential, and knows how to encourage each unique voice while making useful corrections along the way, so that students understand the purpose behind their writing, and why it matters. That doesn’t mean the instructor has to deduct points while the student is learning, but provides an opportunity for the student to figure it out and correct the mistake on their own. Waiting until the final draft is too late! Ignoring grammatical errors, misspelled words, and sentence structure in early elementary school might explain why we have high school graduates who cannot read or write; school administrators and young university professors who cannot communicate effectively. I have the glaring consequences of the “look the other way” method, hanging on my wall of shame. Course documents written by Ivy League English Comp and Literature professors, which were provided to students over the past two decades (online course syllabus, weekly reading and writing assignments, open-book quizzes, etc). From incorrect usage of common homophones (to-too-two, their-they’re-they’re), to a failure to spell authors’ names, straight off the cover of books they have assigned. Dr. Flake should be more than a little familiar with well-known poets, given it’s the content area they “teach.” One English prof has (for 20 years) misspelled “Emilie Dickensin”…..WTF? I have to question their “mastery” of the subject. What is more disturbing and shameful – that these professors do not bother to proofread and correct their own work, or that they do not know any better? There was only one person (a 52 yr old grad student) who dared to bring this to the professor’s attention, after the student’s correct spelling of Emily Dickinson was marked “wrong” and her brilliantly written essay marked down to a “C” for no apparent reason. The majority of other students reported using the incorrect spelling on written quizzes and final exams because they assumed the teacher must know better than the textbook. When misspellings and writing errors are not addressed along the way, students might set the incorrect versions to memory, and do not realize how this can negatively impact their future. How many times should a math teacher overlook 2+2 = 5, before getting around to explaining why it is incorrect? Students can easily be taught how to use dictionaries and style books the moment they start learning to read, so that it becomes a habit. How many seconds does it take to check spelling online? Teaching laziness and mediocrity only sends students the message that if you don’t care – why should they?

Well I like Jennifer’s post so much it has taught me how to go on my teaching

I feel if this kind of method was used in the schools it would be helpful and it would improve us how to use this method in teaching

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