Each child is unique and so is Spelling You See

Spelling You See features seven levels, including a level for early learners who are beginning to learn letter sounds and names. Our levels correspond to developmental stages and are not grade-based. Each of our levels are designed to support students as they advance through these key sequential stages of language learning, allowing them to build skills and confidence over time.

Curriculum Sequence

Finding Proper Placement

We’ve provided some important guidelines to determine your student’s spelling readiness. Below you’ll find a quick overview of each level to help determine where to start finding the level to fit your student’s needs. Be sure to review the full placement guidelines for a specific level to best determine placement for your student. Please keep in mind when working through placement that we are always here to help if you should need us!

Download the Full Readiness Guidelines

As you read through the guidelines, keep in mind:

  • All children move through predictable stages as they learn to spell. It is important not to skip stages or move to a new stage before your student is ready.
  • You should not try to match the student’s reading level to an equivalent spelling level. Students must master each developmental stage of spelling before moving to the next. Research has not indicated a correlation between reading achievement and spelling ability.
  • To place your student in Spelling You See, read the guidelines for all the levels and determine which level looks the most appropriate. If there is a sample paragraph, have the student write it from dictation and check the spelling of the given words.
  • If your student can complete the page easily and spell all the words correctly, try the guidelines for the next level.
  • If your student struggles with the first dictation, try the guidelines for the previous level. Continue in this manner until you arrive at the correct placement.

Listen and Write will provide lots of practice in writing individual letters and in hearing the sounds that letters make in simple words. This level is for a beginning reader who is still learning letter names and sounds and how to hold a pencil properly when writing.

If you answer “Yes” to these four questions, your student is ready to begin Listen and Write.

  • Can my student focus on a worksheet for at least 10 minutes?
  • Can my student identify most of the letters of the alphabet?
  • Can my student hold a pencil and write a three-letter word?
  • Does my student understand that letters make sounds?

Jack and Jill provides practice in writing individual letters and in hearing the sounds that letters make in simple words. It will also provide opportunities for students to study words in the context of nursery rhymes by marking letter patterns, copying words and passages, and writing from dictation.

This level is for the student who prints easily with lowercase letters and who knows most letter sounds, including long and short vowels.

Jack and Jill uses nursery rhymes because they provide a great deal of wordplay in a short passage. They include rhyming, alliteration, and, most importantly, a recognizable context that is essential to fostering confidence in an emerging reader.

If you answer “Yes” to these four questions, your child is ready to begin Jack and Jill.

  • Can my student focus on a worksheet for at least 10 minutes?
  • Can my student hold a pencil and write a sentence?
  • Can my student give the sounds for most letters, including both long and short vowel sounds?
  • Is my student beginning to read books like Hop on Pop by Dr. Seuss?

If you answer “No” to any of the questions above, try the readiness guidelines for the previous level, Listen and Write.

Read the passage below to your student, asking them to follow along.

Some sheep are wild. Bighorn sheep live on mountains and high hills. Male sheep are called rams. They use the horns to fight other rams. Flocks of sheep eat grass in the meadows. They climb steep hills to find more food.


Ask your student to read the passage aloud by themselves.

Dictate the following list of words, one at a time, to your student, asking them to write the words on a piece of paper.

sheep, eat, called, grass, horns, they, find, fight, food

If you can answer “Yes” to these three questions, your student is ready to begin Wild Tales.

  • Can my student write two or three sentences at a time?
  • Was my student able to read the paragraph aloud without sounding words out or pausing? Note that the paragraph is written at the minimum reading level for Wild Tales.
  • Was my student able to spell correctly eight of the ten listed words?

If you answer “No” to any of the questions above, try the readiness guidelines for the previous level,Jack and Jill.

 

Read the passage below to your student, asking them to follow along.

Seahorses are fish, but they are not like other fish. Seahorses swim upright. They have a curved neck. They do not have scales. Their fins are very small, so they swim poorly. A seahorse uses its tail to hold onto sea grasses. A group of seahorses is called a herd — just like a herd of horses!


Ask your student to read the passage aloud by themselves.

Dictate the following list of words, one at a time, to your student, asking them to write the words on a piece of paper.

fish, like, other, swim, neck, small, tail, group, herd, horses

If you answer “Yes” to these three questions, your student is ready to begin Americana.

  • Can my student write two or three sentences at a time?
  • Was my student able to read the paragraph aloud without sounding words out or pausing? Note that the paragraph is written at the minimum reading level for Americana.
  •  Was my student able to spell correctly eight of the ten listed words?

If you answer “No” to any of the questions above, try the readiness guidelines for the previous level, Wild Tales.

Read the passage below to your student, asking them to follow along.

As a young man, Johnny Appleseed learned how to grow apple trees. When settlers moved into Ohio and Indiana, he planted orchards for them. He also planted orchards of his own and sold trees. Johnny lived simply. He had no house. He walked from place to place. His clothes were ragged. He is remembered for helping many needy people.


Ask your student to read the passage aloud by themselves.

Dictate the following list of words, one at a time, to your student, asking them to write the words on a piece of paper.

young, learned, apple, settlers, planted, simply, house, walked, clothes, people

If you answer “Yes” to these three questions, your student is ready to begin American Spirit.

  • Can my student write for 10 minutes at a time?
  • Was my student able to read the paragraph aloud without sounding words out or pausing? Note that the paragraph is written at the minimum reading level for American Spirit.
  • Was my student able to spell correctly eight of the ten listed words?

If you answer “No” to any of the questions above, try the readiness guidelines for the previous level, Americana.

Read the passage below to your student, asking them to follow along. The man’s first name is pronounced Fy-lo (rhymes with high-low).

Philo was very interested in electronics. When he was a teenager, he found a stash of science magazines. He studied them carefully. He learned that scientists were trying to make a new machine. It would use electricity to send and show pictures. He thought about it. He talked with his science teachers. One day he drew a picture on the chalkboard. It showed how a television could work. Philo Farnsworth’s plan was the first idea that worked.


Ask your student to read the passage aloud by themselves.

Dictate the following list of words, one at a time, to your student, asking them to write the words on a piece of paper.

interested, science, magazines, studied, electricity, pictures, thought, teachers, television, idea

If you answer “Yes” to these three questions, your student is ready to begin Ancient Achievements.

  • Can my student write for 10 minutes at a time?
  • Was my student able to read the paragraph aloud without sounding words out or pausing? Note that the paragraph is written at the minimum reading level for Ancient Achievements.
  • Was my student able to spell correctly eight of the ten listed words?

If you answer “No” to any of the questions above, try the readiness guidelines for the previous level, American Spirit.

Read the passage below to your student, asking them to follow along.

The Chinese were the first people to print books. Their language uses thousands of characters instead of a simple alphabet. For many years they carved each page into a wooden block. Later, each character was carved from clay. The characters were baked so they would harden. Next they were fastened onto iron plates. A page was printed from each plate. Thankfully the clay characters could be used over and over! The process was a challenge. Still, it was easier than copying books by hand.

Ask your student to read the passage aloud by themselves.

Dictate the following list of words, one at a time, to your student, asking them to write the words on a piece of paper.

thousands, alphabet, carved, wooden, harden, fasten, iron, thankfully, process, challenge

If you answer “Yes” to these three questions, your child is ready to begin Modern Milestones.

  • Can my student follow written instructions and work independently?
  • Was my student able to read the paragraph aloud without sounding words out or pausing? Note that the paragraph is written at the minimum reading level for Modern Milestones.
  • Was my student able to spell correctly eight of the ten listed words?

If you answer “No” to any of the questions above, try the readiness guidelines for the previous level, Ancient Achievements.

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