October 28, 2014

Hello Parents & Guardians:

It's been a while since my last post.  It seems like time is flying by these days.  I wanted to touch base with you about another writing activity that I have been using with some of my students.  So far, I have found it to be effective and enjoyable for the kids.  As we know, many of my students (your children) have difficulties with spelling.  I have been trying to squeeze in some extra spelling skill work whenever possible and I will continue to do so throughout the year.  Some students have specific IEP goal objectives in spelling and others may not but certainly do benefit from some extra practice.  I call the activity "Copy, Cover, Compare." I am not re-inventing the wheel here, but I thought it would be helpful to explain the activity in some detail.  Perhaps this could be a "rainy day/ snow day" activity?  This activity could also be modified to use for practicing math facts.  I will cut and paste it below along with a worksheet that I made up.  The worksheet is a simple three-column table which can be folded in thirds the long way to cover up words or math facts.  If the child spells/answers incorrectly, they can use the "b" space. The third column can be used for extra practice to reinforce automaticity.  Please contact me with any questions or concerns.

Finally, I wanted to thank you for reading my blogs and for trying out some of my suggestions.  In particular, several of you have utilized the pre-IEP meeting questionnaire.  I cannot tell you how helpful it is for all of us if you have some concerns, ideas, questions, etc. in writing prior to a meeting.  It just seems to make our conversations about your child's progress so much more focused.  Thanks to all who have used it and I encourage any of you with upcoming meetings to consider using it as a tool.  Feel free to email it to me ahead of our meeting if you would like.  Again, please let me know if you have specific questions or concerns regarding the questionnaire.

Have a wonderful evening!

All the best,
Patrick

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Copy, Cover, Compare

Appropriate Grade Level:  All grade levels

Brief Description: This method of teaching and learning spelling words allows the students practice at visualizing and producing the weekly spelling words through a sequence of easy to remember steps.  This is a reasonable intervention to implement on an individual level, as self-monitoring is facilitated by having the correct spelling of the word readily available.

Materials Needed:

        Spelling list or list of math facts

        Pencil

        Paper (or prepared worksheet)

Steps for Implementation

1. Provide students (or targeted group of students) with a list of spelling words
2. Instruct each student to study a word carefully and then copy it down.
3. Cover the copied word with a sheet of paper and write it from memory
4. Check the word and correct if needed
5. If the word was correctly spelled from memory, move onto the next word
6. If the word was misspelled, repeat steps 2-4.

Evaluation:

Compare percent correct scores on weekly spelling tests for the entire class or the selected group of students before and after implementation.

Comments/Tips:

Periodically check students’ self-corrections

Implement reward system for demonstrated improvement on spelling tests.

Source:

Murphy, J., Hern, C., Williams, R., & McLaughlin, T. (1990).  The effects of the copy, cover, and compare approach in increasing spelling accuracy with learning disabled students. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 15, 378-386.

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Student:___________________________________________  Date:_____________________

1.	1a.	1a.
copy:	1b.	1b.
2.	2a.	2a.
copy:	2b.	2b.
3.	3a.	3a.
copy:	3b.	3b.
4.	4a.	4a.
copy:	4b.	4b.
5.	5a.	5a.
copy:	5b.	5b.
6.	6a.	6a.
copy:	6b.	6b.
7.	7a.	7a.
copy:	7b.	7b.
8.	8a.	8a.
copy:	8b.	8b.
9.	9a.	9a.
copy:	9b.	9b.
10.	10a.	10a.
copy:	10b.	10b.