Posted in Homeschooling

For years I searched for a spelling program that would work for us & not bore us to tears (literally!). I would typically use workbooks for Storyman, which he didn't mind, but I didn't think they were helping him too much with the various rules & such which can be confusing.

I've been using All About Spelling with Butterfly for over a year now, & so far it has been just what we needed. I'm really happy with the program, & moreover, so is Butterfly.

The website (link below) gives a great deal of information including articles on strategies for teaching spelling, developing Phonemic Awareness, teaching spelling in your homeschool, among others. They also have a spelling newsletter one can sign up for, & a free report on the “20 Best Tips For Teaching Spelling”.

This program does not work by grade level, which is all the better for an older child struggling with spelling. There are four levels, and the website gives information about choosing the appropriate starting level for a child.

There are some necessary, & some just helpful, extra items such as letter tiles, tokens, phonogram cards & optional magnets, a phonogram audio CD-ROM, & spelling games. I hope to utilize the games more this year.

I am typically not crazy about lots of preparation in my homeschool, & there is quite a bit of cutting out of various cards. I have to admit it was very worth the bit of extra effort to get it going, because once that’s done it really is easy to just open up & go to each daily lesson.

All About Spelling is a great multisensory approach to learning spelling, & ideal for “wiggle worms” who have trouble focusing & staying on task (like my Butterfly). She loves to alphabetize the letter tiles. The lessons use them to build words & demonstrate rules. For example, step 5 in the Level One book is about choosing the correct vowel sound. I would pull down the letter tile “m”, put a blank letter tile next to it, & then next to that the letter tile “t”.

Since we had already been learning letter sounds, vowels & consonants, I would then talk about spelling the word “mat” & about what sound goes between “m” & “t”, & insert the letter tile “a” to complete the word. She would then get multiple practice at doing this herself, where I would bring down the letter tiles, say the word we want to spell, & she would replace the blank tile with the appropriate letter to make the word.

Here are some pictures demonstrating an early lesson in the Level One book:







There are also exercises where I give her words she builds herself using the letter tiles.

We did a lesson on “consonant teams”. There are letter tiles of consonant & vowel teams, (& many others) as well as headings to show the child more clearly what they’re learning. The vowels are in red, & the “y” tile comes in both blue & red because it can be used as both a consonant & a vowel. The “q” is “qu” because that is the correct pronunciation for reading & spelling purposes.

Below is an example of a lesson with the consonant team "ck", with the "c" & "k" being on a letter tile together:



Each lesson also includes dictation of words & phrases, which makes for good handwriting practice as well.

There are multiple cards included: word cards, which include all the words they will learn through dictation, key cards, sound cards, & phonogram cards. Each has a “future lessons”, “review”, & “mastered” card for organization of skills. If she is having trouble with a particular rule, sound, etc., I can put that card under “review” to remind me of what we need to practice.

 

It also comes with a progress chart & "Certificate of Achievement":



Butterfly & I have finished working through Level One. We’ve been working on reading & phonics as well, of course, & she’s improved so much in just a few months time. I feel this program really helped her reading skills improve; things began to “click” quicker & there has been a noticeable difference.

We’ve begun Level Two recently & I have Storyman sitting in on the lessons now. He’s already picking up things that have been missed throughout the years of using various popular spelling workbooks.

This is one program I can really say I’m very happy with & will continue to use consistently. I’ve been happy enough with this curriculum to become an affiliate, which means I really like it! It may not be for everyone, but the flexibility & variety of programs available is part of the beauty of homeschooling. For anyone struggling to find a good spelling program for your kiddos, this is worth a look.

Check it out here if you’d like, or click the graphic below.