Spellings

At Shanklea Primary School we use Spelling Shed from Y2-Y6- a carefully planned programme which allows children to carry out repeated practice of spellings, be exposed to short-term retrieval and small-step achievement to ensure spelling improvement across school. 

Across school we aim for three spelling spots per week which take approximately 10-20 minutes to complete depending on the activities covered within the session. The content of the spelling sessions match the National Curriculum requirements.

Spelling is taught cumulatively and systematically, with deliberate, focused practice. Constant revision and practice are key to children’s success. Children learn the routines and behaviours necessary for each activity, and practise these until they use them automatically. This allows them to focus on what matters most – learning to spell.

Spelling Shed focuses on orthography, morphology and etymology. Orthography is the patterns of letters used to make certain spoken sounds. This is a continuation from the foundations they have built within phonics lessons. Within this part of the lesson, children will continue to break down spellings into sounds and think about the syllables to enable them to read and write words effectively.

Morphology focuses on how words are structured into groups and their meanings. Within the lesson, children will look at the meaning of words and specific parts of the word. This will feed into discussions around how this affects spelling. All lessons are planned to consolidate children’s existing knowledge of root words, prefixes and suffixes.

Etymology enables teachers to discuss with the children about where the word originated from. By doing this, children are able to see how the English Language has developed, been borrowed or integrated with other languages over time.

Please find attached the programme of study and how this complies with the National Curriculum.