Spellography: A Fun Guide to Better Spelling

By Louisa Moats, Ed.D., and Bruce Rosow, Ed.D.

This classroom-tested program teaches spelling concepts explicitly, systematically, cumulatively, and enjoyably! A perfect complement to your current reading and language arts program, Spellography was designed to help all students make sense of the English spelling system, and thus become better at understanding, reading, and writing words.

With this structured language approach, students will learn:

Phoneme awareness and syllable stress patterns (phonology)
Sound-spelling associations (phoneme-grapheme correspondence)
Syllable spelling patterns and combinations
Prefix, root, and suffix constructions (morphology)
Sentence structure (syntax)
Parts of speech (nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs)
Idioms, figures of speech, and more

This new, revised version of Spellography will have four books:

Book A, Units 1-6 (Available to Order)
Book B, Units 7-12 (Available to Order)
Book C, Units 13-18 (Planned Early Fall 2023)
Book D, Units 19-24 (Planned Early Fall 2023)

Each unit includes 6 lessons that typically take 2 weeks to teach. Each unit and each book ends with a comprehensive review. Each Spellography book has a survey of the concepts taught. Teachers give the survey by dictating the word list BEFORE starting each book to evaluate students’ understanding of spelling concepts. Then the survey is given AFTER the completion of each book to evaluate what students have learned. Spellography Surveys are available via the Tools 4 Teachers section. A free account is required to access the Tools 4 Teachers section of the website.

Spellography is not a traditional spelling program. There are no lists to memorize and no “Friday tests” whose words are soon forgotten. Instead, this program explores why words are spelled the way they are, emphasizing understanding over rote memorization. As they explore the history of English and the way that print represents both sound and meaning, students are much more likely to remember words they are asked to write.

The teacher’s guide has all the answers to the students’ exercises as well as tips on how to present the instructional activities. Teachers who have participated in LETRS Professional Development will be well prepared to teach this structured language program, as Dr. Moats has been an author of both.

Finally, Spellography is fun. The lead narrator is an Asian Indian spelling whizz (Hari) who is trying to help his younger sister (Tara) grasp the concepts. These characters, with their dog Yogi, provide gentle humor all throughout the spelling journey.