Invented Spelling Group Activities and Reading and Writing Acquisition: a 2-Year Follow-Up Study from Preschool to First Grade
Submitted by:
Ana Albuquerque
Abstract:
Introduction: Recent studies have presented significant evidence on the connections between early childhood literacy experiences and reading and writing acquisition. Several researchers have brought up the advantages of spelling programmes to preschool children’s emergent literacy skills (Ouellette et al, 2008, 2013; Sénéchal et al., 2012). Aim: To broaden these studies to a larger scope and examine the impact of invented spelling activities with preschool-age children after the onset of primary education. Method: The participants were 90 Portuguese five-year-olds that were randomly allocated into two groups (experimental/ control). Cognitive abilities, phonological awareness, letter knowledge, reading and writing were controlled. The experimental group participated in a 10-session invented spelling programme and the control group in storytelling activities (similar on length and frequency). Both programmes were conducted in small groups and were mediated by the researcher. In each experimental session, children had to spell different words. They were encouraged to discuss the letters of the words until they reached an agreement. Then they were asked to compare their writing with a correct one produced by another group of children. Reading and writing were tested before and after the training programme and at the end of first grade (standardised test). Results: The experimental group outperformed the control group in reading and writing (statistically significant differences). Additional qualitative analyses were performed to study the adult’s guidance and scaffolding interventions. Conclusion: This research provides significant educational support for the promotion of invented spelling activities in preschool seeking children’s initial success in learning to read and write.
References:
Ouellette, G., & Sénéchal, M. (2008). Pathways to literacy: A study of invented spelling and its role in learning to read. Child Development, 79, 899–913. doi:10.1111/j.1467- 8624.2008.01164.x.
Ouellette, G., Sénéchal, M., & Haley, A. (2013). Guiding children’s invented spellings: A gateway into literacy learning. The Journal of Experimental Education, 81, 261–279. doi:10.1080/00220973.2012.699903.
Sénéchal, M., Ouellette, G., Pagan, S., & Lever, R. (2012). The role of invented spelling on learning to read in low-phoneme awareness kindergartners: A randomized-control-trial study. Reading and Writing, 25, 917–934. doi:10.1007/s11145-011-9310-2.