SYS Readiness

Spelling You See Readiness Guidelines

Spelling You See Readiness Guidelines document

General Guidelines

• All children move through predictable stages as they learn to spell. It's important not to skip stages, or move ahead before your student is ready.
• Do not match student's reading level to an equivalent spelling level. Research has not indicated a correlation between reading achievement and spelling ability.
• Read the guidelines for all levels, and determine which looks the most appropriate. If there is a sample paragraph, have the student write it from dictation and check the spelling of the given words.
  • If your student can complete the page easily and spell all the words correctly, try the guidelines for the next level.
  • If your student struggles with the first dictation, try the guidelines for the previous level.

A - Listen and Write (item #SUS1)
This level is for a beginning reader who is still learning letter names and sounds and how to hold a pencil properly.

• Questions to ask:
  • Can my student focus on a worksheet for at least 10 minutes?
  • Can my student identify most of the letters of the alphabet?
  • Can my student write letters?
  • Can my student write fairly comfortably?
  • Does my student understand that letters make sounds?

If you answered yes to all ... your student is ready to begin Listen and Write.
FOCUS - Listen and Write will provide lots of practice in writing individual letters and in hearing the sounds they make in simple words.

B - Jack and Jill (item #SUS2)
This level is suggested for a student who prints easily with lowercase letters and who knows most letter sounds, including long and short vowels.

• Questions to ask:
  • Can my student focus on a worksheet for at least 10 minutes?
  • Can my student write comfortably?
  • Can my student give the sounds for most letters?
  • Is my student beginning to read?

If you answered yes to all ... your student is ready to begin Jack and Jill.
FOCUS - Jack and Jill will provide practice in writing individual letters and in hearing the sounds they make in simple words. It will also provide opportunities for students to study words in the context of nursery rhymes by marking letter patterns, copying words and passages, and writing from dictation.

C - Wild Tales (item #SUS3)
This level is suggested for a student who knows letter sounds and spells many common words correctly.

• Questions to ask:
  • Is my student becoming comfortable with reading?
  • Can my student comfortably write two or three sentences at a time?
  • Was my student able to complete the diction with relative ease?
  • Was my student able to complete the dictation in 10 minutes or less?
  • When writing the passage from dictation, did my student correctly spell at least eight of the words from this list?
    • sheep, called, horns, they, fight, eat, grass, hills, find, food

If you answered yes to all ... your student is ready to begin Wild Tales.
FOCUS - Wild Tales will provide opportunities for students to study words in the context of factual passages about animals. Students will mark various letter patterns, copy passages, and produce their own compositions or drawings. They will also practice writing the stories from dictation with assistance.

D - Americana (item #SUS4)
This level is suggested for a student who is a proficient reader with gradually improving spelling skills. The student should be able to write an entire paragraph comfortably.

• Questions to ask:
  • Was my student able to complete the diction with relative ease?
  • Was my student able to complete the dictation in 10 minutes or less?
  • When writing the passage from dictation, did my student correctly spell at least ten of the words from this list?
    • fish, like, other, swim, have, curved, neck, small, tail, group, herd, horses

If you answered yes to all ... your student is ready to begin Americana.
FOCUS - Americana will provide opportunities for students to study words in the context of stories about events and people in American history. Students will mark various letter patterns, copy passages, and practice writing the stories from dictation.

E - American Spirit (item #SUS5)
This level is suggested for a student who spells many common words confidently but who may not be ready for the more advanced reading level and content of Ancient Achievements. The student should be able to write complete paragraphs comfortably.

• Questions to ask:
  • Was my student able to complete the diction with relative ease?
  • Was my student able to complete the dictation in 10 minutes or less?
  • When writing the passage from dictation, did my student correctly spell at least eight of the words from this list?
    • young, learned, apple, settlers, planted, simply, house, walked, clothes, people

If you answered yes to all ... your student is ready to begin American Spirit.
FOCUS - American Spirit provides continued practice in the Skill Development level of spelling using the core activities of chunking, copywork, and dictation. Most children require several years of practice at skill development stage.

F - Ancient Achievements (item #SUS6)
This level is for a child who is nearing the end of the Skill Development stage. The student should be able to write complete paragraphs comfortably.

• Questions to ask:
  • Was my student able to complete the diction with relative ease?
  • Was my student able to complete the dictation in 10 minutes or less?
  • When writing the passage from dictation, did my student correctly spell at least ten of the words from this list?
    • interested, science, magazines, studied, electricity, pictures, thought, talked, teachers, chalkboard, television, idea

If you answered yes to all ... your student is ready to begin Ancient Achievements.
FOCUS - Ancient Achievements provides continued practice in the Skill Development stage of spelling with passages of gradually increasing difficulty. At the same time, it introduces students to interesting facts about word roots and more advanced word patterns. It is designed as a bridge to the Word Extension stage of spelling.

G - Modern Milestones (item #SUS7)
This student should be able to complete this skills assessment successfully. Also, the student should be able to follow written instructions and work independently.

• Questions to ask:
  • Was my student able to complete the diction with relative ease?
  • Was my student able to complete the dictation in 10 minutes or less?
  • When writing the passage from dictation, did my student correctly spell at least ten of the words from this list?
    • language, thousands, characters, alphabet, carved, wooden, harden, fastened, iron, thankfully, process, challenge, easier

If you answered yes to all ... your student may be ready to begin Modern Milestones.
FOCUS - Modern Milestones is written for students who are in the Word Extension stage of spelling. It assumes that students can spell most words that they can read, although they may be uncertain about how those words change when adding prefixes or suffixes. While this level incorporates principles and activities from previous levels of Spelling You See, it is written for students who are ready to study specific word patterns and work more independently. A solid foundation in the Skill Development stage is essential for success in Modern Milestones.