Necessary Spelling Basics

Although spelling may not be an actual subject that is taught at length in elementary schools, basics are required in order to improve. Being able to link sounds and letters when writing is an important skill to have and unfortunately, most students today are instead being told to write words the way that they sound. In my opinion, this new way of learning how to spell is only going to cause everyone more grief in the future. Put it this way, if everyone beings writing words the way that they sound, it’ll seem as though everyone will be writing in their own language.

            Spelling used to be one of the top priorities in all elementary schools. Unfortunately, that is not the case anymore. There are very few teachers that are taking the time to enforce proper spelling and grammar and it is making for a lot of confusion for both teachers and students.

           

            Although spelling tests are being given for the most part every week, I find that teachers are not taking them as seriously as they should be. Again, from my experiences with tutoring at Club de Devoirs, I have noticed that students are making spelling mistakes as they practice for their dictations at the end of the week. For example, when the students are told to copy down the words from the board for the upcoming week, they are copying them wrong right off the bat. In my opinion, teachers should be ensuring that the students are properly taking note of the spelling words without any errors or mistakes.

            While discussing basics in spelling, there is a specific tool that students are now in denial of using. Yes, I am talking about the dreaded dictionary. Being taught how to properly use a dictionary was something that we were constantly reminded of throughout elementary school and for most of our generation, it has become a second reflex to look up a word. Today, students are relying on spell check and similar tools to correct all of their spelling and grammar mistakes. What they are not realizing is that these tools will not catch every little mistake, “But until a child has a functional spelling ability of about a fifth grade level, they won’t have the knowledge to choose the correct spelling among the options given by the machine.” (2)

When I was in the fourth grade, I remember having dictionary races with my teacher all to see who could find the word the fastest and come up with the proper definition. Hand a student a dictionary today and they’ll most likely look at you like you have three heads.

            As mentioned in my previous post, spelling and reading go hand in hand. In order to be a good speller, you must be a good reader and in order to be a good reader, you must be a good speller. Once a child learns the basics of phonics as well as the basic rules of spelling, both spelling and reading will become skills that require near to no effort. The repetition of constantly writing out spelling words is the easiest way for a child to remember what the words mean and how to spell them, “…the more deeply and thoroughly a student knows a word, the more likely he or she is to recognize it, spell it, define it, and use it appropriately in speech and writing.” (1)

            In my opinion, proper spelling is one of the most important skills that a child will learn and master throughout their entire education. Although we are learning spelling every day even when we are not in the classroom, I still find it important that teachers give their students a proper spelling base while they are at school.

(1) http://www.spellingcity.com/importance-of-spelling.html

(2) http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/does-handwriting-have-a-place-in-today-s-tech-driven-classrooms-1.1231769

Necessary Basics in Reading

In this post I would like to show the importance of basics when it comes to reading. Like every other academic subject that is taught in schools, there are necessary basics when it comes to reading as well. It is not just enough to know a word when you see it. It is just as important to know the sounds that are put together to form a word as well as what the word really means. (1)

            At the young age of six, I was taught many different syllables in both the French and the English languages. I remember being in Senior Kindergarten and clapping our hands together at circle time as an activity to determine the number of syllables that were present in a word. To this day, that trick is still useful to decode the less obvious words.

Those syllables were taught to us and they built us a concrete base before we began to learn how to read. From my personal experiences of listening to children read at Club de Devoirs at Monseigneur Augustin Caron, I have noticed that learning syllables is no longer a priority before teaching a child how to read. Most students are playing guessing games while reading instead of taking the time to properly decode words. 

Now in most cases, students are just being given a small book to bring home to read for homework in hopes that their parents will teach them the ins and the outs of reading. I find that because children aren’t being forced to learn syllables before they start reading, that they are having a harder time pronouncing words and comprehending what they are reading as they get older. I believe that syllables should be prioritized before children begin to read. Once they have syllables as their base, they are able to read almost every word.

            The lack of basics being taught when it comes to reading is only giving students a harder time as they get older. In my opinion, without a base of syllables, students will find it more challenging when they go to read longer and more complicated words in the future. By giving students a strong base before they learn how to read, it’s only making them more confortable and at ease when they need to read in front of a crowd or a group of people.

            I believe that learning the ins and the outs of reading at a young age is very important in order for students to improve as they eventually explore more complicated forms of writing in the future. Being able to recognize syllables will allow students to become more efficient and more fluent readers. (2) Learning to decode words not only makes the pronunciation easier, but it also helps a child with his or her spelling habits, which leads me into the topic of my next post. (2)

(1) https://www.sedl.org/reading/framework/elements.html

(2) http://www.elementarymatters.com/2012/05/everything-you-ever-wanted-to-know.html

Basics are Necessary in Math

One subject in particular that requires a decent knowledge of basics is math. From the time children begin elementary school, they are already building their base for the future. Although it might have seemed silly to most of us to have to practice additions, subtractions, multiplications and divisions over and over again, they are now things that we are expected to know off of the top of our heads.

Subtracting numbers in
vertical columns.

Students today are not being forced to learn and later on master these basics. From my experiences with tutoring students varying from the first grade to the sixth grade, I have noticed that students can no longer do a simple math problem in their heads. For example, if you told a student to add the numbers 12 and 7, they would have to use their fingers to count in order to come to an answer. At a young age, we were taught how to add and subtract one digit numbers. When that concept was understood, we moved on to two digit numbers and then on to three digit numbers and so on and so forth. We were taught how to add and subtract numbers in vertical columns and now many teachers are encouraging students to stay away from that method because it is easier to make mistakes. A simple problem that should only take five to ten seconds to solve can now take a child up to twenty seconds, if not more. The more uncomfortable that a child is with additions and subtractions, the more trouble they will have with multiplications and divisions when the time comes.

“But there has to be a basic foundation in regards to adding and subtracting, and memorizing math facts [and] knowing how to do math at an early age.”  says Ms. Allan who is the education minister for the WNCP (Western and Northern Canadian Protocol). (1)

A Grade 4 student's agenda at
                Monseigneur Augustin Caron. 

Multiplication tables are more basics that are not being prioritized in the classrooms. From experience of tutoring at Club de Devoirs at Monseigneur Augustin Caron, I have realized that it has become a parent’s responsibility to teach his or her child multiplication tables. A different table is being assigned for homework each week in hopes that students will catch on on their own. With simple one to twelve multiplication and division tables not being mastered at a young age, students are only going to find math even more challenging when they reach high school.

Many universities across Canada are pushing for elementary schools to go “back to basics” instead of teaching this so called “new math” (1). New math is being described as being all of the complex formulas and equations that students are being taught in order to solve math problems. The problem with this new math is that without basics, understanding these complex equations and formulas is near to impossible. This lack of basics is not only causing grief for the students, but it is also causing grief for parents since they are having to teach their children on their own.

As explained by WISE (Western Initiative for Strengthening Education in Math), becoming good at math is like becoming good at playing the piano. To become a great piano player, one must practice multiple times and memorize piano scales. To become good at math, one must continue to practice equations numerous times and memorize these so called “math facts”.(2) This brings us back to the famous saying of “practice makes perfect”. Unfortunately, students who are in elementary school now are not getting the opportunity to practice these basics that will ensure an easier transition to more complex lessons in high school.  

(1) http://news.nationalpost.com/2013/09/13/frustrated-professors-convince-schools-to-step-back-from-new-math-and-go-back-to-basics/
(2) http://wisemath.org

Back to Basics?

Imagine living in a world where less and less people are able to read, write and solve basic math problems such as adding and subtracting. Think about how frustrating it would be to not be able to read something that someone has written due to the horrific spelling mistakes. How terrible would it be if more and more people were not able to tell time or count money? This is where we are headed based on the lack of basics being taught in many elementary schools across Canada.

Some people believe that technology is the reason that children are not grasping the necessary basics at school. Personally, I don't think that technology is at fault. I believe that teachers are not prioritizing the items that become the base of a child’s education.

The 3 R's. 

Teachers used to be told to focus on the three R’s being reading, ‘riting and ‘rithmetic. In today’s society, I find that basics are being overlooked in most primary level schools, “…it is something so obvious that it has been completely overlooked in the search for solutions to the problems that plague many of our schools.”(1). Through teaching habits in elementary schools, it is obvious to me that teachers do not find basics to be as important as they used to be.

Instead of focusing on teaching the necessary basics, teachers are finding ways around it. One of the many ways that I find educators are getting around teaching basic skills is by assigning them to be practiced at home as homework.  In other words, parents have to either teach the basics to their children on their own, or in many cases, they have to hire tutors. Since parents are having no choice but to take on the task of teaching the basics to their children, they are losing out on many hours of family time. Although the curriculum requirements are being met, they are not being prioritized. I believe that the basics should be firstly taught and understood in class and perfected, if necessary at home.

These basics such as learning to read and write as well as simple math equations need to be taught and understood at a young age. If they are not taught when they are young, it only causes graver comprehension problems as time goes on where parents are having no choice but to go out of their ways to hire a tutor. 

In my opinion, it is a teacher’s job to ensure that curriculum requirements are not only being met, but that they are also being understood before the students leave the classroom. Basic skills that were once obligatory to be taught are now being put on the back burner to allow room for more complicated and abstract lessons. After tutoring many students of various ages it is obvious to me that many of these children are struggling due to the fact that they lack basics in all academic subjects. If all students had a strong base from the very beginning, there would be a lot less confusion as they reach higher grade levels throughout their education. In my future blogs, I will be discussing the importance of basics being taught in specific subjects in elementary schools. Whether it be math class or English class, there are always basics that we absolutely need to be taught. 

(1) http://www.appliedscholastics.org/education-issues/the-back-to-basics.html