Introducing Sounds & Letters (phonemes & graphemes)
What are phonemes, and why are they important? Phonemes are the smallest units of sound in spoken English. There are about 44 of them, though the exact number depends on your accent. The challenge is that the English alphabet only has 26 letters, which means we’re working with too few symbols to represent all the […]
S.M.A.R.T. Spelling Overview
If your students’ reading is improving but their spelling is still lagging behind, it’s time to introduce S.M.A.R.T. Spelling. S.M.A.R.T. Spelling is a simple, structured way to teach spelling. It breaks spelling into five key skills that are taught one at a time, in a clear and logical order. Students are shown how to think about spelling, not just guess or memorise.
S.M.A.R.T. Spelling – Segmenting
Segmenting is the foundation of skilled spelling—and for students living with dyslexia, it’s the skill that needs the most structure, repetition, and support. At its core, segmenting means breaking a word into individual sounds (phonemes), then matching each sound to a spelling choice (grapheme).
S.M.A.R.T. Spelling – Morphemes
Spelling isn’t just about sounds—it’s also about meaning. English is a morphophonemic language, we use letters to represent both sounds (phonemes) and meaning (morphemes) if we don’t teach students about morphemes, they are missing out on half of the story of English!
S.M.A.R.T. Spelling – Vowel Choices
Vowel sounds in English are one of the biggest challenges in spelling. The same sound can be spelled in many different ways—and sometimes, letters don’t sound like themselves at all. This part of S.M.A.R.T. helps students think strategically about vowel sounds, instead of guessing or giving up.
S.M.A.R.T. Spelling – Rules
There’s some debate around the value of teaching spelling rules where it’s believed that too many “rules” can overload working memory and in some cases this is true. But from the perspective of a struggling learner, the picture looks different. S.M.A.R.T. isn’t about memorising rules for the sake of it.
S.M.A.R.T. Spelling – Tricky Words
Some words don’t follow typical spelling patterns. They may come from other languages, use rare letter combinations, have pronunciation (accent) differences, or be too complex for the student’s current conceptual framework. These are called Tricky Words, and they need specific, intentional strategies to help them stick.
Daily Reading and Spelling Drills
Building literacy is a process that requires daily commitment, particularly for students living with learning difficulties.
In this post, you’ll discover how to use reading and spelling drills to strengthen phoneme-grapheme correspondences, build fluency, and foster confidence.
Morphology & Struggling Readers
Unlocking Literacy Through Morphology English is a morphophonemic language, meaning it combines sound (phonics) with meaning (morphology). While phonics is vitally important as the foundation of literacy instruction, it’s only half the story. Introducing the idea that words have meaningful parts (morphemes) early on ensures students develop a balanced understanding of our language system. By […]
Literacy Games
Literacy Games: Making Learning Fun and Engaging Incorporating games into literacy instruction can transform the learning experience, making it engaging and enjoyable for students. Games provide a hands-on way to reinforce skills, build fluency, and foster confidence. The Literacy Support Kit (LSK) includes carefully designed games like Chunky Pig and a literacy-focused version of Snakes […]