With technology being an indispensable part of our lives today, we have developed a tendency to relinquish our human capabilities and exert over-dependence on machines. Now that virtual learning has become ubiquitous, the assistance of its convenient aspects such as spell checks and easily accessible dictionaries have caused students to overlook the importance of spelling. It is a critical component of communication which helps to develop overall literacy and can also have a direct impact on one’s professional life. If your school-goer is struggling to remember spellings correctly, here are some effective tips which will help.
Teach him to use mnemonics
Remembering information can be a mundane task for school-going kids. What would make it more interesting would be to add more information to the meaning. Here is when mnemonic devices come to the rescue, as they help to transform seemingly ordinary information into a picture, sentence, rhyme, or any other form of data which is easier to remember. For example, you can help your kid come up with acronyms for certain spellings.
Encourage her to read more
Reading is one of the most effective tools to sharpen one’s spelling skills. Not only does this visually familiarise the reader with different words, it also is a highly engaging activity. Looking at words directly will help your kid to subconsciously remember the spellings as well. If she is not a keen book reader, encourage her to read other material such as essays, poetry, blog posts, etc. related to topics she has interest in.
Play word games together
Playing word games with your kid is a great opportunity to bond as well as work on his spelling skills in a fun, engaging way. Introduce him to classic board games such as Scrabble and Scattergories which have consistently been a hit with all age categories. Not only do they help test one’s spelling skills, but they are also a great way to learn some new words. Today, it is no secret that there is a plethora of word and spelling apps and games available on the internet. Encourage your kid to spend some time playing those.
Introduce her to the ‘chunking’ method
Understandably, it can be quite a challenge for kids to remember the spellings of particularly longer words. Sometimes, just looking at the sheer number of alphabets it contains can put your kid off. A great way to tackle such words is to break down the word, or separate it in ‘chunks.’ For example, if the word is ‘embarrassed’, break it down into segments like: em-bar-ras-sed. Have your kid learn the spelling chunk-wise, not all together.