Languages can be one’s best friend when the techniques of learning it are taught in the right and fun manner since childhood. Having strong communication skills, half the battle is won and any given task can be achieved. When a child learns English or any other foreign language or even a local language of Dubai or the Middle East, the key to master it, would be to have control over the words that make up the grammar and the meaning and eventually which forms the sentences to be able to write and speak. Bringing several letters together and the formation of words is the main crux of a language and for that it is very important that the spellings of these words are accurate. When children are made to learn in an enjoyable way, they will never forget the spelling of a word however tricky it may be. There are creative methods to teach kids how to spell words. We have listed few below.

Break Down Words

The simplest way to learn spellings would be to break down the main word into two or more parts or syllables. The broken-down parts of the word separately may or may not make any sense in meaning on their own but when the syllables are joined bit by bit, sounded and pronounced together, that is when the entire spelling comes together with the formation of the whole word. It gets easier for kids to remember syllables rather than memorizing a whole word at once. The next time they may forget what was probably mugged up but, the different syllables which are broken down, they will always find ways to connect them and remember their words and never make a spelling mistake.

Jot down tricky words

Usually it is always said, first start with the difficult task and then progress to the easy one. When your child is reading any text, you may often come across certain words that you know they find it tricky to spell and pronounce. They always get stuck with that particular word or similar kind of tough words. The best thing to do would be to jot down those list of words, constructively work on them to learn them and the next time the kids find those words in their text they will read them like a pro, the spelling will be remembered and the pronunciation will too come together correctly. They can jot or note it down in their books, on colourful pieces of paper, on a slate or on their palms. The association of these elements with the written down words will help children to memorize spellings easily.

Pictures Speak a Thousand Words

We have easily heard this phrase and it is indeed a well-known factor that pictures have lasting impressions on one’s mind. To help kids memorize spellings and remember the word, it would be apt to associate certain words with their relevant picture. While reading the text, they may forget the word initially, and would take some time to remember the spelling but while learning, if that same word was connected with a prominent picture, they would easily recollect the word associated with that image and not forget the spelling too. Using pictures, flip cards can also be made. The kids can be made to play a guessing game. Just the first letter of the word could be revealed with the picture and the child has to guess the full correct word present behind the picture of the flip card.

Play Games

Learning is always fun when combined with play. Much as outdoor games are crucial for physical activity, indoor board games prove to be a great stimulator for the minds of the children. Scrabble and Boggle are amazing word games to play with them from a very small age to help increase their vocabulary and polish their spellings at the same time. Apart from board games, parents and teachers can also make the children play word search. They may give them a grid of letters and ask them to search for words hidden in the grid. In that manner, they are going to learn the spellings of the words and remember those better next time. You can also give them newspapers or magazines and have a time-based activity to find certain words inside the text. This way they will again learn words and memorize spellings creatively.

Use of Audio-Video

You have played around with just text, pictures, and board games with your children. Another way to help them memorize their spellings is through videos since it has sound and visuals. You can make videos of your children learning spellings with those same picture cards and textbooks, reciting the spelling of the words loudly. They have to call each word out or mainly the difficult words and you will record it. They will watch their own videos shot by you and will never forget the spellings of words learnt through this activity. Even if you have poems in video format, play them on the screen, the words and sentences of the poem running on the screen like a ticker along with the song playing together, kids retain such learning for a long time and spelling words will never be a worry.

“Reading Eggs” is an online reading programme for kids aged two to 13. Their team consists of highly experienced educators, animators, and web developers. The programme has been used by over 20 million children in 169 countries including the UAE and the GCC region. Their mission is to create better ways for children to learn. The online games and activities motivate children to keep exploring and learning. It is self-paced and highly engaging. By incorporating “Reading Eggs” into your child’s daily routine, you will be helping to prepare them for the same structured learning they will need to succeed and feel confident at school.

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