Spelling It Out, Revised edition crushes the myth that good spelling comes naturally, good spelling comes from good teaching.

Presents a history of English spelling through chapters that cover such topics as the introduction of the Roman alphabet, each letter's origins, and the development of long and short vowels.

Why is there an 'h' in ghost? William Caxton, inventor of the printing press and his Flemish employees are to blame: without a dictionary or style guide to hand in fifteenth century Bruges, the typesetters simply spelled it the way it sounded to their foreign ears, and it stuck. Seventy-five per cent of English spelling is regular but twenty-five per cent is complicated, and in Spell It Out, our foremost linguistics expert David Crystal extends a helping hand to the confused and curious alike. He unearths the stories behind the rogue words that confound us, and explains why these peculiarities entered the mainstream, in an epic journey taking in sixth century monks, French and Latin upstarts, the Industrial Revolution and the internet. By learning the history and the principles, Crystal shows how the spellings that break all the rules become easier to get right.

A recent survey of 200 teachers asking the question ‘spelling is...?’ resulted in the following adjectives: ‘difficult’, ‘complex’, ‘confusing’, ‘random’, ‘confounding’. Spelling for Life offers lucid, accessible tools which help to reveal that, when explicitly and systematically taught, spelling is scientific, law-abiding and even elegant. It explains that spelling is the manipulation of symbols according to agreed-upon patterns that produce predictable results. Spelling errors also fall into sets of predictable patterns. Success in spelling is not a product of intelligence. Many people struggle to spell due to coping strategies developed in place of explicit instruction. What gives spelling its ‘complex’ veneer is the fact that different ways of thinking are required at different levels from word to word. Some words can be spelt as they sound, others have to be visually memorised and some rely on knowledge of core rules about word-structure. A lot of words require more than one strand of knowledge. This book makes clear which strand needs to be applied in different situations. Often pupils who can read and express themselves competently nevertheless find spelling difficult. False assumptions about spelling, such as believing the English language is complex and/or irregular, damage confidence and lead to reluctance to even attempt to spell correctly. Spelling For Life enables teachers and pupils to: learn what the common spelling coping strategies are gain insights into undoing poor spelling habits work together to notice patterns not only in regular spelling, but also in words which on the surface seem to break the spelling rules practise successful spelling strategies, progressing from simple to complex words rapidly and with confidence. Using a synthesis of theory, research and teaching experience, the fascinating nature of English spelling is systematically teased out. The examples and exercises offer an encouraging, accessible way to implement the programme of study and strive to reveal the beauty of spelling. Aided by example lessons, progressive assessments, unique tools and extensive practice lists, this highly acclaimed overview of spelling succeeds in developing critical thinking and confidence when reading and spelling. It can be used in conjunction with any established phonics programme.

If it's worth saying, say it with cross stitch! Why not let the author's alphabets inspire you to stitch whimsical pirates and teddy bears, or elegant creations like art nouveau and redwork stylings? This title features alphabets that set the mood for stitching any thought you'd like to convey.

The effective and fun-filled way to teach spelling to elementary students The Spelling Teacher's Lesson-a-Day gives teachers 180 engaging and ready-to-use lessons-one for each day of the school year-that boost spelling skills in students grades 3-6. These lessons may be used as "sponge" or "hook" activities (five-minute lessons to start off each school day) or teachers may simply pick and choose activities from within the book for the occasional spelling lesson. Fry teaches spelling patterns by contrasting homophones (like-sounding words) to help students recognize these spelling patterns in more complex words. He also boosts students' spelling skills by demystifying contractions, abbreviations, capitalization, silent letters, suffixes and prefixes, and more. Offers an easy-to-use method for teaching spelling that has been proven to be effective Includes 180 ready-to-use, reproducible lessons-one for each day of the school year A new volume in the new series 5-Minute FUNdamentals This book is designed to be used by classroom teachers, homeschoolers, tutors, and parents.