When we created RocketSpelling.com, our goal was to help students to become better spellers while having fun along the way. But why do students seem to struggle so much with spelling? Is it just because the English language is full of exceptions where words can't be "sounded out" phonetically? Certainly that's part of the problem. But in 20 years of teaching, I think there's a bigger, systemic issue out there:

We don't spend enough time teaching the basic sounds that letters and letter combinations make.

Breaking words down into their basic phonemes (or phonograms), such as those shown in the chart below, is critical to student success in spelling. Once students know the basic sounds and rules for spelling well, they will also find themselves more able to handle the exceptions to those rules when they arise.

Rocket Spelling is designed to follow a logical sequence of introducing phonemes to students: our first 6 planets begin with basic consonants and short vowels, then consonant blends, then long vowels, vowel pairs, and finally trickier combos that sound alike or have silent letters in them. Taking advantage of this logical progression will help students to become better spellers!

Image Credit to www.allaboutlearningpress.com.