Help! Students decoding and spelling at different levels?
Some students, in the early stages of reading (Foundation and early Year 1), will operate at the same reading and spelling level. Hence the phonic patterns they are learning to read and similar to those they are learning to spell.
Typically from mid Year 1 (and sometimes earlier) students will start to extend their reading but their spelling lags. Hence, the students can read more advanced phonic concepts than they are able to apply to their spelling. This is the slightly more frustrating situation as they decodable reading book and the spelling program are operating at different levels. Or the student is continuing to revise and consolidate their skills in the reading (and build fluency, automaticity and speed) but it is the spelling that is provisioning the larger challenge.
At a Foundation and early year 1, you may align reading, spelling and writing on the basis of the students spelling ability. This has the advantage of being the easiest to manage.
For some students when the difference is extreme, you cannot link the two areas together,
Later in Year 1 (and as students get older) you will likely need to separate their reading and spelling programs into two levels according to their testing.
Typically from mid Year 1 (and sometimes earlier) students will start to extend their reading but their spelling lags. Hence, the students can read more advanced phonic concepts than they are able to apply to their spelling. This is the slightly more frustrating situation as they decodable reading book and the spelling program are operating at different levels. Or the student is continuing to revise and consolidate their skills in the reading (and build fluency, automaticity and speed) but it is the spelling that is provisioning the larger challenge.
At a Foundation and early year 1, you may align reading, spelling and writing on the basis of the students spelling ability. This has the advantage of being the easiest to manage.
For some students when the difference is extreme, you cannot link the two areas together,
Later in Year 1 (and as students get older) you will likely need to separate their reading and spelling programs into two levels according to their testing.
Updated on: 05/06/2020
Thank you!