Reading is fine, but 8 year old’s spelling is terrible. Should I test/worry/resources?

[Anonymous]

I usually come to this forum for my older child, but I’m worried about my 8 year old’s “creative” spelling with all sorts of weird vowel combinations and missing letters. There’s no other way to put it: it’s just really bad.

It was this way in K, but we didn’t worry. Last year was online and this year there is maybe very slight marginal improvement but not much. Teacher is good and working on writing and spelling a lot—the whole class is behind basically—but should I get him tested?
There is dyslexia on my husband’s side but he doesnt have it.

Any other resources/practice you’d recommend?

[Anonymous]

If you want to work with him on it at home, this is a good resource - https://www.allaboutlearningpress.com/all-about-spelling/

My ds was diagnosed with a form a dyslexia that results in horrible spelling. He is able to read very well (decode), but has poor writing (encode). And reading did not come easy to him, but he did eventually figure it out and now reads at a high level.

We paid out of pocket for testing at Mindwell. It showed a very specific phonological processing disorder. It was helpful to understand what was going on with him.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you want to work with him on it at home, this is a good resource - https://www.allaboutlearningpress.com/all-about-spelling/

My ds was diagnosed with a form a dyslexia that results in horrible spelling. He is able to read very well (decode), but has poor writing (encode). And reading did not come easy to him, but he did eventually figure it out and now reads at a high level.

We paid out of pocket for testing at Mindwell. It showed a very specific phonological processing disorder. It was helpful to understand what was going on with him.

Thanks for mentioning this.

Having similar issues with 8 yo DC. Reading came slowly and painfully, but it’s coming. Writing and spelling and still very problematic. Going to Mindwell for testing later this year. Good to hear they were able to pinpoint the problem for your DC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you want to work with him on it at home, this is a good resource - https://www.allaboutlearningpress.com/all-about-spelling/

My ds was diagnosed with a form a dyslexia that results in horrible spelling. He is able to read very well (decode), but has poor writing (encode). And reading did not come easy to him, but he did eventually figure it out and now reads at a high level.

We paid out of pocket for testing at Mindwell. It showed a very specific phonological processing disorder. It was helpful to understand what was going on with him.

Thanks for mentioning this.

Having similar issues with 8 yo DC. Reading came slowly and painfully, but it’s coming. Writing and spelling and still very problematic. Going to Mindwell for testing later this year. Good to hear they were able to pinpoint the problem for your DC.

The testing was very specific. I was impressed. My ds wasn't able to read chapter books until late into first grade. He was my first, I didn't really understand there could be an issue. Something clicked during second grade, and he was reading Harry Potter the summer between 2nd and 3rd. But his spelling was still awful. He could read at that level, but misspelled simple words, and would spell the same word differently on the same page. He's in sixth now and its improving, but still not fantastic.

[Anonymous]

OP here: thank you for that info!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you want to work with him on it at home, this is a good resource - https://www.allaboutlearningpress.com/all-about-spelling/

My ds was diagnosed with a form a dyslexia that results in horrible spelling. He is able to read very well (decode), but has poor writing (encode). And reading did not come easy to him, but he did eventually figure it out and now reads at a high level.

We paid out of pocket for testing at Mindwell. It showed a very specific phonological processing disorder. It was helpful to understand what was going on with him.

Thanks for mentioning this.

Having similar issues with 8 yo DC. Reading came slowly and painfully, but it’s coming. Writing and spelling and still very problematic. Going to Mindwell for testing later this year. Good to hear they were able to pinpoint the problem for your DC.

We live in this neighborhood too. Reading at O level in second. Doing well in Math. Spelling and writing are a challenge. Unsure whether it’s ADHD or “dyslexia” of some sort or both…? Headed to Mindwell next week.

[Anonymous]

I have been worried about LDs because of spelling and writing issues. DS is now in 4th and his writing has really improved, the spelling is massively improved, his spelling is pretty much spot on except that he knows his Teachers don't grade on spelling so he doesn't care when he is writing. If we ask him to spell a word, he will spell it properly for us. We are telling him this is now an effort issue and we expect that he will take the time to spell the words he knows properly.

FCPS allowing kids to write what they hear continues for far too long and it makes it harder for parents to figure out if it is a legit learning issue or just kids knowing they can get away with it. It drives me crazy.

The LD concerns are mainly because LDs run strong in my family, 3 generations with the same LDs. My Mom and Grandma were diagnosed the day I was because they had the exact issues that I had. We have been watching for them and the crappy practices for teaching spelling have been driving me crazy.

Hopefully you have the same experience that we have had and things improve for your kids. I know this won't be the case for all of the kids and I fear that the approach the County takes makes it harder to identify legit issues early enough to be able to deal with them more effectivley.

[Anonymous]

I think in the world of "language based learning differences," the issues can manifest in very different ways.

My son has every red flag for dyslexia except that he is a very strong reader, has always been in the highest reading groups, reading is his favorite activity. He is an older high schooler now and around middle school, you could really parse the different skills: so, for example, his reading comprehension was always in the superior range and at a young age so were other reading skills. But by middle school his nonsense word reading had fallen to average. Big discrepancies but still overall fine. Things like that.

We never tested because of reading issues, only because of writing. He was diagnosed at a very young age (7 maybe) with dysgraphia. His is a lot more severe than what you describe, though, way beyond creative spelling. Writing is painful and will always be impractical. His writing has actually gotten more labored and illegible as he has gotten older and tries to express more complex ideas. He is 100 percent on a keyboard now.

In any case, want to also recommend All About Spelling and other homeschool programs. My son definitely learned how to spell with consistent teaching (all outside of school) targeted to students with dyslexia.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think in the world of "language based learning differences," the issues can manifest in very different ways.

My son has every red flag for dyslexia except that he is a very strong reader, has always been in the highest reading groups, reading is his favorite activity. He is an older high schooler now and around middle school, you could really parse the different skills: so, for example, his reading comprehension was always in the superior range and at a young age so were other reading skills. But by middle school his nonsense word reading had fallen to average. Big discrepancies but still overall fine. Things like that.

We never tested because of reading issues, only because of writing. He was diagnosed at a very young age (7 maybe) with dysgraphia. His is a lot more severe than what you describe, though, way beyond creative spelling. Writing is painful and will always be impractical. His writing has actually gotten more labored and illegible as he has gotten older and tries to express more complex ideas. He is 100 percent on a keyboard now.

In any case, want to also recommend All About Spelling and other homeschool programs. My son definitely learned how to spell with consistent teaching (all outside of school) targeted to students with dyslexia.

+1 for All About Spelling (and Reading, if you need it). Although All About Spelling didn't move the dial much for our dyslexic DS, I think it's a great program. We didn't focus on spelling at first and focused mainly on reading. In hindsight, maybe we should have tried to focus on both at the same time but I don't think that would have been possible. Reading is/was our priority and we did the best we could. I do think implementing a program at home like All About Spelling, especially if that's your main concern, will help immensely.

DS is now in 7th and is a fantastic reader and not a good speller. His handwriting has gotten worse over time. Or, maybe it hasn't technically gotten worse but it seems like it because it hasn't improved at all since he was very young. He's been in OT, been in a specialized school, and worked in cursive and in printing. Nothing has moved the dial.

[Anonymous]

My child has dyslexia and for a while her reading was fine but spelling was terrible. She started private tutoring and we found out that the poor spelling should have been a tip off about the dyslexia.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you want to work with him on it at home, this is a good resource - https://www.allaboutlearningpress.com/all-about-spelling/

My ds was diagnosed with a form a dyslexia that results in horrible spelling. He is able to read very well (decode), but has poor writing (encode). And reading did not come easy to him, but he did eventually figure it out and now reads at a high level.

We paid out of pocket for testing at Mindwell. It showed a very specific phonological processing disorder. It was helpful to understand what was going on with him.

Thanks for mentioning this.

Having similar issues with 8 yo DC. Reading came slowly and painfully, but it’s coming. Writing and spelling and still very problematic. Going to Mindwell for testing later this year. Good to hear they were able to pinpoint the problem for your DC.

We live in this neighborhood too. Reading at O level in second. Doing well in Math. Spelling and writing are a challenge. Unsure whether it’s ADHD or “dyslexia” of some sort or both…? Headed to Mindwell next week.

Just chiming in to say I also have an 8 yo 2nd grader reading at level O, diagnosed with ADHD in first grade, went back this year due to continued challenges in writing/spelling and just diagnosed with dyslexia and dysgraphia. I knew something wasn’t write when learning basic reading was so hard, but DC was able to learn to read at grade level by the end of first grade so didn’t retest until this year when the spelling was not improving.

We used Mindwell both times and really pleased with the level of detail in their testing for the dyslexia and dysgraphia.

[Anonymous]

Not sure where you child is in school, but our ES never taught vocabulary or spelling. We had to work on it at home.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you want to work with him on it at home, this is a good resource - https://www.allaboutlearningpress.com/all-about-spelling/

My ds was diagnosed with a form a dyslexia that results in horrible spelling. He is able to read very well (decode), but has poor writing (encode). And reading did not come easy to him, but he did eventually figure it out and now reads at a high level.

We paid out of pocket for testing at Mindwell. It showed a very specific phonological processing disorder. It was helpful to understand what was going on with him.

Is there a name for that type of dyslexia? I have dyslexia in my family and have wondered about myself because I just can’t learn to spell although I have always been a good reader. Probably doesn’t matter at this point but it’s been back on my radar as I’m noticing a real difficulty in learning letters for my younger one (bizarrely numbers are fine).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you want to work with him on it at home, this is a good resource - https://www.allaboutlearningpress.com/all-about-spelling/

My ds was diagnosed with a form a dyslexia that results in horrible spelling. He is able to read very well (decode), but has poor writing (encode). And reading did not come easy to him, but he did eventually figure it out and now reads at a high level.

We paid out of pocket for testing at Mindwell. It showed a very specific phonological processing disorder. It was helpful to understand what was going on with him.

Thanks for mentioning this.

Having similar issues with 8 yo DC. Reading came slowly and painfully, but it’s coming. Writing and spelling and still very problematic. Going to Mindwell for testing later this year. Good to hear they were able to pinpoint the problem for your DC.

We live in this neighborhood too. Reading at O level in second. Doing well in Math. Spelling and writing are a challenge. Unsure whether it’s ADHD or “dyslexia” of some sort or both…? Headed to Mindwell next week.

Just chiming in to say I also have an 8 yo 2nd grader reading at level O, diagnosed with ADHD in first grade, went back this year due to continued challenges in writing/spelling and just diagnosed with dyslexia and dysgraphia. I knew something wasn’t write when learning basic reading was so hard, but DC was able to learn to read at grade level by the end of first grade so didn’t retest until this year when the spelling was not improving.

We used Mindwell both times and really pleased with the level of detail in their testing for the dyslexia and dysgraphia.

Are you sure you’re not talking about my kid? Wow. Too similar sounding!

We will see what the evaluation uncovers. Which person at Mindwell did you use? Curious. TIA.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you want to work with him on it at home, this is a good resource - https://www.allaboutlearningpress.com/all-about-spelling/

My ds was diagnosed with a form a dyslexia that results in horrible spelling. He is able to read very well (decode), but has poor writing (encode). And reading did not come easy to him, but he did eventually figure it out and now reads at a high level.

We paid out of pocket for testing at Mindwell. It showed a very specific phonological processing disorder. It was helpful to understand what was going on with him.

Is there a name for that type of dyslexia? I have dyslexia in my family and have wondered about myself because I just can’t learn to spell although I have always been a good reader. Probably doesn’t matter at this point but it’s been back on my radar as I’m noticing a real difficulty in learning letters for my younger one (bizarrely numbers are fine).

I don’t know. Maybe someone else does. Every time I think I understand the different categories, it seems like they change, or it depends on the profession of the person you’re speaking with.