Spelling Assessment and Connected Lesson
Purpose
 I administered the DSA Form A: Letter Name Answer Card. The student is
getting the initial/final consonants correct, initial blends/digraphs correct
and short vowels correct. The student is using but confusing affricates and
final blends/digraphs. The student does not have any absent features.
 The student was using but confusing affricates and final blends/digraphs; for
example:
student spelling
actual spelling
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dume
drum
bup
bump
muck
much
pan
plan
whit
went
The target for our word sort is “dr” words. WE are focusing on the affricates
because the student has the least amount of knowledge with affricates, on the
DSA the student missed the most affricates.
It is important to focus the word study on affricates because you continually
grow in your knowledge of affricates, complex speech sounds. As the
students speech grows, as does the writing and reading. If the student cannot
read the beginning sound of the word, they will be confusing other words in
place of the original word, as shown above-pan for plan changes the meaning
of the word completely. The sound ‘dr’ can be easily confused with a ‘j’ sound.
Language Arts SOL 2.5
o The student will use phonetic strategies when reading and
spelling
a. Use knowledge of consonants, consonant blends and
consonant digraphs to decode spelling words
b. Use knowledge of short, long and r-controlled vowel patterns
to decode and spell words
c. Decode regular multisyllabic words
Objectives
 TSWBAT better understand the relationship between words, better associate
words with pictures and strengthen reading.
 TSWBAT sort the beginning sounds of ‘dr’, ‘d’ and ‘j’ word patterns with 80%
accuracy.
 TSWBAT play a file folder game where student must match the correct word
with the sound shown on the spaces; the game will resemble Candy Land.
The student will also complete a spelling word maze, finding all of the words
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spelled correctly, while figuring out the maze from beginning to end. Both of
these activities will help the student internalize the skills.
TSWBAT compete a blind sort, after playing the games stated above. The
student will write the words correctly in the appropriate categories: ‘dr’, ‘d’,
and ‘j’ with or without seeing the words with 80% accuracy.
Procedures
 The student will be pulled aside and asked to help me with a group of words.
I will ask the student if they remember when I called some words for them to
write, when they were my special helper!
 First, I will model a word, calling the words out when I pick up the picture.
Then I will ask the student to look at some pictures for me, I will show him
the pictures from the new sort. I will ask him if he can tell me what the words
are from just showing him the pictures. I will then ask the student to repeat
the word with the picture. (This sort is a set of words that can be divided into
three separate groups of interrelated words; the categories being ‘dr’, ‘d’ and
‘j’. There are 12 words and six pictures included in this sort.)
 Then I will show the student the words that compliment the pictures and we
will repeat the words together. Next, the student will be given pictures of the
headers (the three different focuses of the words), the pictures first then the
letters (dr__, d__, j__). Once we go through the entire sort, we will move
forward. In order to sort the words, the student must put each word that
begins with the sound/letters in the correct category; such as drop, drag and
drug all go in the dr category. Continue with this throughout the sort with the
other two headers and words to follow.
 Next, the student will complete the word maze, having to find the trail of
words from beginning to end; this reiterates the spelling of the words.
 Next, the students will complete a file folder game.
 The game is provided. It will have spaces that have different affricates: dr, d, j
and there will be cards that have all of the word study words or pictures
attacked to them. The student will have to play the game with me, and we
will each draw cards one after the other. The card will direct us where to
move on the board, if the student does not pick the right space, they cannot
move. This will show me how well the student knows the words and can
recognize the pictures. Once the student plays the game, we will move
forward.
 The game will let me know how well the student knows the words and
understands the concept of affricates. I will give the student a traditional
sort, where I will call out the words to the students and they will write the
words.
 I will look over their blind sort and score them (they should get 80%
accuracy on the sort)
Materials
 Three copies of the chosen word sort
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File folder game
o Drawing cards
o Characters to move around the board (Chuck-E-Cheese coins)
Word maze printed
Paper for the traditional/blind sort
Pencil
Assessment (word study)
Evaluation Part A
 I will assess the student by giving him a spelling test, making sure to see
whether the student has reached a mastery level with the knowledge of
affricates or not. This means the student will sort the words in the correct
category and spells the words correctly. This assessment will take place after
the student has sorted the words and played the word study
game/completed the word maze.
 I will be able to look at the student’s knowledge and understanding of the
words through their ability to complete the games and word sort.
Evaluation Part B
 The students completed their word sort, after identifying the sounds of each
header: d, dr, j. They started with the pictures, then moved to the words. We
discussed the differences of the words and the sounds each affricate makes,
differentiating when we made the sounds. I asked the students to create their
own word to add to our list of spelling words. (I added a word of my own,
too. I wanted them to feel excited about being part of the special group!!!)
 The students achieved full success with their sort and we moved onto the
word find. I printed off a word maze, seeing if the students could identify
words I would call out to them. They completed the maze with success,
however it was good to see how they would recognize the word then realize
it led to a dead end and find another way through the ‘word maze’.
 The students then got to play my board game I made them. I told them the
rules: you must draw a card with either a word/picture, then move your
player to the beginning sound. This was incredible because it showed me
where the students would think about the word and possibly do some selfcorrecting or helping each other. I loved seeing their teamwork.
 Finally, we completed a blind sort. These students had a great handle on the
words. It was a perfectly matched sort for the students. They felt confident
doing a blind sort and felt special because they got to keep their playing
token from the board game. The blind sort was successful; both students
achieved perfect scores on their sorts. I got to see how the students do invert
some of their letters, but they spelled the words correctly and sorted them
correctly.
 All of the objectives were met with full accuracy. The students achieved
100% accuracy on blind sort, game/word maze and went the extra mile and
made up their own word to add to our lesson.
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If I had to do this lesson again, I would re-test the student in a more secluded
area, where there are no distractions and the student can better focus. I feel
like this would give me better, more accurate results.