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Part of the Bourne Alliance Multi Academy Trust

Writing and Spelling

Linking Sounds to Letters

  • Say the sounds as children write letters
  • Use sound mats or alphabet charts

Building Words

  • Build words using magnetic letters
  • Change one letter to make a new word (cat → hat → hot)
  • Practise writing and spelling tricky words little and often

Sentence Writing

  • Encourage children to speak in full sentences e.g. when answering questions “Who did you play with today?” – “Today I played with….”
  • Get children to say their sentence before writing it (How many words are in your sentence?)
  • Use a capital letter at the start of a sentence and for names
  • Use finger spaces between words
  • Use a full stop at the end of a sentence
  • Introduce commas in lists (Year 2)
  • Use question marks and exclamation marks (Year 1 and Year 2)

Games & Fun Activities

  • Write words in sand, foam, flour or with water and a paintbrush
  • Word building with letter tiles
  • Label pictures or toys
  • Write silly sentences
  • Write instructions for something they have done
  • Write a short diary about what they have done that day
  • Write invitations, postcards/cards/short letters to friends and family
  • Write the shopping list, birthday/Christmas wish list

KS2

Developing Writing Skills

  • Encourage children to speak in full sentences e.g. when answering questions “What was the best part of your day?” – “The best part of my day was…because…”
  • Encourage planning before writing
  • Talk about ideas and vocabulary first
  • Encourage writing for different purposes (stories, letters, reports)
  • Re-read writing to check it makes sense

Spelling Strategies

  • Practise spelling patterns and rules – see Spelling Shed below
  • Break words into syllables
  • Highlight tricky parts of words
  • Say words as they are written

Building Vocabulary

  • Collect interesting words
  • Use dictionaries and thesauruses
  • Encourage ambitious word choices

Grammar & Punctuation

  • Use capital letters and full stops consistently
  • Use commas in lists consistently
  • Use question marks and exclamation marks
  • Encourage paragraphs for longer writing

Editing & Improving

  • Check spelling, punctuation and sense
  • Read aloud to spot mistakes
  • Improve word choices
  • Add detail or description

Games & Activities

  • Spelling bingo
  • Word searches
  • Sentence-building cards
  • Story starters
  • Writing challenges (e.g. 10-minute write)
  • Boggle
  • Countdown

Useful websites to support writing at home

 

  1. Parent Guide Spelling Shed
    PDF File
  2. Tricky Words Phase 2 Jan 2025
    PDF File
  3. Tricky Words Phase 3 Jan 2025
    PDF File
  4. Tricky Words Phase 4 Jan 2025
    PDF File
  5. Tricky Words Phase 5 Jan 2025
    PDF File
  6. Spelling Shed Medium Term Plan - Spelling Shed MTP
    PDF File
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