Elementary Words to Help Kids With Spelling

Some children struggled with education due to the pandemic shutdown last year. As we prepare for another school year, many parents are trying to ensure their children’s reading, writing, and vocabulary skills are up to snuff.

A solid foundational vocabulary is critical to succeeding in literacy, so kids learn more and perform better across many different subjects. There is no need to make vocabulary learning dull or repetitive.

Students can be engaged in unlocking their meanings through instruction rather than building appreciation for words. There is a chance for pupils to display true ownership of words through the use of words in written and spoken language.

Pupils are asked to use new words to communicate their ideas and demonstrate what they know. Even though they won’t have problems with the pronunciation of the words, they will have problems with the spelling.

In this article, we will look at why pupils have problems with spelling. We also share our list of helpful elementary words that you can use in your classroom.

You can find the list of words at the end of this article if you want to skip to that part!

Why Elementary Grade Kids Have Problems With Spelling of Words?

horizontal photograph of a front windshield of an American school bus.
Photo by Thomas Park on Unsplash

In elementary grade, children begin informing themselves about writing and reading. Main areas of study include the formation of letters to organizing their ideas to correct grammar, punctuation, and spelling of words.

Beginning in grade four, we expect elementary students to move from learning the writing rules to automatically applying those rules. A student should be capable of writing independently by the end of elementary school. Independent writing means providing both formal introductions and supporting evidence and producing multiple-paragraph essays.

It should not be too necessary to be concerned if your student’s writing isn’t perfect. Early learning improves writing ability as children build upon the skills learned in previous grades.

However, you look out for repeating errors and habits, such as incorrect grammar and spelling of words and poorly structured essays. It is also a red flag if your students are constantly frustrated.

It’s hard work and can be a chore, but excessive complaining and procrastination may indicate an even bigger issue. If you don’t address it soon, writing problems can lead to academic problems in other subjects and adversely affect overall academic achievement.

Why Is Spelling Words so Difficult?

So why do elementary grade children have such hard time spelling words in the right way? After all, they already know how to properly speak English, right by that time.

This is because the pronunciation of words in the English language is not consistent. There has never been a concentrated effort to standardize the spelling of words. 

Add this to the fact that the language has borrowed many words from other languages. In fact, even though this English is a Germanic language, most of its vocabulary comes from French and Latin.

Since we borrowed so many words from other languages, their spelling has been inconsistent in our alphabet. Couple this with no effort on a standard set of spelling rules using the alphabet, you end up with the inconsistent spelling of words.

So, how do we overcome this difficulty? You have to get your students to read and find out new words constantly. The more your pupils read, the more words they will be acquainted with. This leads to fewer errors with words!

List of Elementary Words

If you are having problems with having your pupils, use our fun and free table of words that are suited for the elementary grade.

These words are essential for a pupil to know and use correctly. 

list of words for elementary grade students to practice.
list of words for elementary grade students to practice.
list of words for elementary grade students to practice.
list of words for elementary grade students to practice.
list of words for elementary grade students to practice.
list of words for elementary grade students to practice.

To Wrap Up

As elementary school students grow, they might show signs of developing difficulties with spelling some words. It’s a condition known as dysgraphia.

Dysgraphia is the inability to type words on a computer through writing the letter. t is not an ailment that is caused by anxiety, poor effort, lack of motivation, or poor concentration.

Pam is an expert grammarian with years of experience teaching English, writing and ESL Grammar courses at the university level. She is enamored with all things language and fascinated with how we use words to shape our world.

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