Some people need to learn just odd words that cause a problem. However, if you are making a fresh start with spelling, perhaps as a student of English as a foreign language, it may help to study groups of words with the same letter pattern.
This section gives ideas for activities to do with word lists:
1. See how many words from each list you can get into just one sentence. As you study each list, trying to think which words to use, you are fixing these words in your visual memory | ![]() |
This example is from Unit 7, Long Vowel sounds:
bind blind find grind hind |
kind mind rind wind |
How many -ind words can you get in one sentence? The kind girl did not mind helping to find the blind man. Can you beat 4 words? |
This example is from Unit 22, Silent Letters:
knack knapsack knee knead knew knit knickers knight |
knoll knot knob knobbly knock know knowledge knuckle |
How many kn words can you get in one sentence? I know I can't knit knickers with a knife on my knobbly knees. Can you beat 6 words? |
This example contains words from Unit 4, Consonant Digraphs:
alphabet apostrophe hyphen phrase pamphlet physical physician physics pharmacy pharmacist dolphin elephant phantom nephew prophet orphan Pharaoh triumph phenomenon |
photograph photocopy photograph paragraph autograph biography geography headphones earphones telephone microphone saxophone phonics spherical atmosphere stratosphere catastrophe emphasis phobia |
How many ph words can you get in one sentence?
Now you try - with all those ph words to choose from, you are bound to beat 4. |
Another way to remember several words with the same letter pattern is to play 'Kim's Game'.
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To play 'Kim's Game' with words, look at a list of words for about
two minutes. Then look away and write down as many words as you can remember.
Try it with these -cle words from Unit 23:
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The full Spellzone course has many more tips like this. |
"Fantastic - the most relevant material/resource ever seen for both dyslexia and teaching spelling rules."
College Lecturer