| What Is Sound Spelling?
Sound spelling is also called Inventive Spelling. Simply stated, this is a method of writing that is
encouraged in my Kindergarten class. Young children can easily use this method when they are
familiar with letters. In sound spelling, children write the sounds that they hear when writing, not
the grammatically correct forms of words. This is a process-oriented skill, with the goal being that
the children will hear sounds in both isolation and in whole words. Since Kindergarten children are
just learning about letters and their sounds, it is important to support your child’s writing, even if
incorrect letters are written.
To start out with sound spelling, I work with the whole class in writing only beginning letters to
words. For example, each week when we talk about a specific letter and its sound, one activity I do
with the class is sounding out words with that sound. For letter Bb, students would practice writing
words like baby, bat, block, and big. We would do this as a class, with students sounding and
writing their work on the board, and then in small groups with me assisting, and then finally,
independently.
As the year progresses, we will be learning all the letters of the alphabet in conjunction with
their sounds. It is important to note here that sound spelling is easier for children when they already
recognize letters. If your child does not know letters in the alphabet, please work with your child on
our letter of the week each week at home to build skills slowly over time rather than trying to do this
all at once. This will aid your child when we work on sound spelling at school. If your child can
recognize some letters of the alphabet, encourage your child to write beginning letter sounds to
match pictures.
If you have any questions about sound spelling, please feel free to contact me.
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