Word Study is an implicit (or analytic) method in which students learn to memorize word patterns and apply these patterns as they read and write new words (similar to what students do when they are decoding word families). For a scope and sequence of letter patterns to introduce when teaching analytical spelling, click on the Words Their Way Scope and Sequence.
Explicit Instruction
If you are intervening to support your students' ability to spell single syllable words analytically, you should start by explicitly teaching the skill. This sounds like:
Activity A: Developmental Word Study
During Developmental Word Study, a teacher teaches students new words based on their developmental word knowledge. Teachers obtain this information by giving a short spelling assessment (such as the Words Their Way assessment) and then analyzing the spelling test to determine the student's spelling instructional level. Typically, this level is determined by seeing which word patterns students are 'using but confusing.' Once an instructional level is obtained, students practice reading and sorting word cards as a way of memorizing word patterns. At the end of each week, a 5 word spelling assessment is given to see if the student is starting to internalize the word patterns she is learning. She achieves mastery and moves on to the next word sort when she obtains an 80% or higher (4 out of 5 words correct).
Give the student header cards and a pile of cards to sort. Tell the student to put the header cards at the top of her desk. Then, ask her to read each card, listen for the sounds in the word, and put the card under the appropriate header. Then, ask the student to read down the word list to check that the word is sorted correctly. "Today, you will be sorting words in the 'a' vowel pattern. Read your headers: ran, rake, rain. As you sort, make sure each word you read matches up to the header."
Developmental Word Study in Action
Watch this clip to see how to execute Developmental Word Study. Notice how the student checks her work after sorting each card.
Word Sorts in Room 239.(2008). Retrieved August 2016 from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOwexUqN0pI
Think about the following scenario, which takes place after a teacher has explicitly taught a student the spelling pattern in the word "friend" and given the student opportunities to practice spelling the word:
Teacher: "Sort the word 'pain' under the appropriate header." (ran, rake, or rain)
Student puts the word 'pain' under the word 'ran.'
In such a case, what might you do?
When you are planning your lessons, you should anticipate that your student will make errors throughout. Here is a series of prompts that you can use to respond to errors. Keep in mind that all students are different, and that students might respond better to some types of feedback than others.
| Level of Support | Description of Scaffold | Script |
|---|---|---|
| Smallest Scaffold | Try again! Allow student multiple opportunities to practice new skill. Ask the student to try sorting the word again. | "Read those two words for me." "Ran. Pain." "Can you try again?" |
| Medium Scaffold | Provide Resources. Allow the student to use resources to figure out the answer (including helpful supports such as a visual or a prompt).
|
"What sounds does the vowel say in ran?" "/a/." "What does the vowel say in pain?" "Long a." "Can you sort the words again so that the vowel sounds are the same?" |
| Highest Scaffold | Model, Lead, Test, Retest. Model for the student using this gradual release correction procedure adopted from Carnine, D.W., Silbert, J., Kame'enui, E. J. & Tarver, S. G. (2004). Direct instruction reading (4th Ed). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. | 1. Teacher puts the word pain under the word rain and reads the words aloud, "Rain. Pain." 2. Teacher models: "My turn" (Signal) " Rain. Pain. The vowels sound the same."(Teacher responds) 3. Teacher leads: "Let's do it together."(Signal.)"Rain. Pain. The vowels sound the same."(Teacher responds with the students.) 4. Teacher tests: "Your turn" (Signal.) "Rain. Pain. The vowels sound the same." |
If your student struggles to meet your objective, there are various techniques that you might try to adjust the activity to your student's needs.
| Activity | Description of Strategy | Script |
|---|---|---|
| Developmental Word Study | Shorten it. Use two headers (instead of three or four) if the students are not internalizing the vowel patterns. | "Let's use two headers instead. -ake, and -ain. Which does pain go under?" |
| Sort by sound. Ask students to read the words before sorting them so they can match the sound. | "Say the word first." "Pain." "Now, say the headers." "Ran, Rake, Rain." "Which does pain go under?" | |
| Simplify. Take the words out of the sort that the student is not familiar with, or ask the student to sort fewer cards. | "Let's start with eight cards to sort. We'll add more once these become easy!" |