Using the Spelling/Meaning Connection to Develop Word Knowledge in Older Students.

Abstract

By the time most students are beyond the eighth grade, spelling is no longer taught to them as a subject. Vocabulary, on the other hand, continues to be part of the curriculum, but, true to fundamental principles of learning, the words students knew on Friday's quiz are often forgotten by Monday. Although a few vocabulary programs group words for study according to a common base or root, two critical variables are still missing: (1) a systematic sequence of study and (2) informed, active exploration of the spelling/meaning interrelationships across prefixes, suffixes, base words, and root words. This article suggests a sequence and rationale for studying patterns that reflect a spelling/meaning connection.