All About Spelling

All About Spelling is a comprehensive spelling program based on proven strategies to teach spelling using the best and easiest method possible. It gives parents, homeschoolers, and teachers strategies that work, including:

• Lessons with crucial concepts explained in easy-to-understand language
• Multisensory methods for different learning opportunities
• Effective techniques to teach both beginner and remedial spelling

Emily and I were sent Levels One and Two of the All About Spelling Program to try out. Each level includes a teacher’s guide and a student packet, which includes sound and phonogram cards, word cards, and key (rule) cards. Also required for every level is the starter kit, which contains letter tiles and a phonogram cd.

I will admit to being a bit disappointed at the levels we were sent, since Emily is a fourth grader and an average speller. Her spelling certainly needs improvement, but I don’t consider her a “remedial” speller either. Level One begins with learning the letter sounds and moves on to short vowel words. Some of the rules and concepts taught include: compound words, plurals, blends, open and closed syllables, and how to determine whether to use “c” or “k” in a word. The author recommends beginning at Level One for beginning spellers or remedial spellers. Children who are older can begin with Level Two, since it does have a quick review of most of the Level One concepts.

We did begin with Level One, completing one to three steps a day. We finished the whole book in about three weeks! Most of the material was very easy for Emily, but I did find a few areas in which she benefited from the review or in which she didn’t understand the “why’s” of spelling patterns, even though she could easily spell the words.

Level Two covers dividing words into syllables, silent “e,” hard and soft “c” and “g,” spelling multisyllable words and much more.

All About Spelling is certainly a unique program that covers much more than “just spelling.” I think the skills learned would be very advantageous in helping children to sound out unfamiliar words. When using the program, we sat on the floor with a magnetic board containing letter, “consonant team,” and “vowel team” tiles. The concept for each day was explained and practiced using the tiles. Only after the concept was mastered, does the child take dictation of words and phrases that reinforce the concept. Review of previous concepts is also built into the program. This approach is excellent for multi-sensory learning. The child practices each step until it is mastered, which may be just one session or up to a week or more.

I think that All About Spelling is a wonderful program that really teaches the rules of spelling, giving children the ability to tackle words that they have not studied before. Highly recommended!

The pricing for All About Spelling is as follows:

Starter Kit (required for all levels) $26.95

Level One (teacher and student) $29.95

Levels Two-Five $39.95

I received this levels One and Two of All About Spelling for review purposes.

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