Spelling is sound work before it’s memory work

What’s usually going on

Spelling isn’t one memory per word. It’s hearing the sounds inside a word, knowing which letters can make each sound, then a layer of patterns and exceptions on top. Most spelling trouble is the sound work underneath, not carelessness. And spelling always lags reading — for every child — because reading a word is recognising it, and spelling it is rebuilding it from scratch.

Usually a chain, not one thing

Each link below is a real skill from the map, in the order they usually stack. The “builds on” lines aren’t our opinion — they’re the map’s own connections, with its reasons.

1. 1

   Segmenting words into sounds ages 4–7

   Your child can break a spoken word into its sounds. They write a letter for each sound to spell words like cat, bed and hot.

2. 2

   Tricky words ages 5–8

   Your child can spell tricky words that do not follow the rules — like said, was and the. They can also spell all seven days of the week.

   Builds on “Segmenting words into sounds”: Phonemic spelling helps as starting strategy.

3. 3

   Suffixes ages 6–7

   Your child can add endings and change the base word when needed. Hope becomes hoping, cry becomes cried, and run becomes running.

   Builds on “Segmenting words into sounds”: Must be able to encode base words before applying suffix rules.

4. 4

   Alternative Spellings for Sounds ages 6–9

   Your child can spell the same sound in more than one way, like the or sound in ball and walk. They also tell apart words that sound alike, like there and their.

   Builds on “Segmenting words into sounds”: Must be able to encode CVC words before learning alternative spellings.

5. 5

   Homophones ages 7–9

   Your child can pick the right word when two sound the same but mean different things — like brake and break, or there and their.

   Builds on “Alternative Spellings for Sounds”: Y3-4 homophones build on Y2 alternative spellings/homophones.

See this chain lit up on the map →

Pattern work runs to age 10 and beyond, so give it time. A 7-year-old writing “becos” is hearing every sound correctly — that’s the machinery working, mid-build. Ages are guides, not deadlines — follow your child’s pace.

How to find the missing link

Start at the first link and work down in order. Open each skill and check its “How to tell they’ve got it” signs. The first one that wobbles is usually your missing link — work there, gently, instead of drilling the thing itself.

What to check at home

• Say “crash” and ask them to tap out each sound — c–r–a–sh. Spelling starts in the ears, not on paper.
• When a word comes out wrong, ask “what sounds can you hear?” before showing the right version. Listening first is the actual skill.
• Look at a few tricky words together — “said”, “was”, “once” — and ask what’s odd about each one. Noticing the odd part is how they stick.
• Keep reading aloud together. Every book quietly banks the letter patterns spelling draws on.