Homophones, or homonyms, are words that sound alike but are spelled differently and have different meanings. For example, "toad" and "towed" are homophones. When it comes to student writing, they need to be able to distinguish the difference in meaning and choose the correct spelling of the word. If they don’t, their writing won’t make sense! No worries, though. Most students think … [Read more...]
Word Study Makes Language Learning Fun
Many students find word study to be one of the most enjoyable components of balanced literacy instruction. Teachers find it to be one of the most powerful. That’s because reading ability dramatically improves as students use meaningful games and activities to discover: Letters and the sounds they make How to pick out root words, and how suffixes and prefixes can change the … [Read more...]
How Spelling Instruction Relates to Reading Ability
Spelling instruction is not only an important part of the Language Arts classroom’s writing program, it also benefits students’ reading abilities. Because both spelling draws on the cornerstones of effective reading (phonemic awareness and phonics), instruction in this area helps children become stronger readers as well as making them more proficient writers. While many educators know this to … [Read more...]
