Invented Spelling

Parents who are concerned about their child's development of spelling skills may find themselves wondering how invented spelling fits into the learning process.

About Invented Spelling

Invented spelling, sometimes referred to as inventive spelling, is the practice of spelling unfamiliar words by making an educated guess as to the correct spelling based on the writer's existing phonetic knowledge. Examples of invented spelling include:

• "iz" for "is"
• "flawrs" for "flowers"
• "prpul" for "purple"
• "culrs" for "colors"
• "difrint" for "different"

In 1975, linguist Charles Read conducted a study of preschoolers who were beginning to relate letter names to the sounds of the alphabet. He discovered that students commonly "invented" spellings for words in their daily vocabulary by rearranging letters to fit their perception of the rules of the English language. He wrote, "One sees clearly that different children chose the same phonetically motivated spellings to a degree that can hardly be explained as resulting from random choice or the influence of adults. Learning to spell is not a matter of memorizing words, but a developmental process that culminates in a much greater understanding of English spelling than simple relationships between speech sounds and their graphic representations."

Thus, from a technical perspective, invented spelling is not an instructional technique. It is merely a natural process that all children use as they are beginning to write. In a classroom where invented spelling is allowed, a teacher will not deduct points from the student's grade as a penalty for misspelled words on a composition.

The advantages of allowing invented spelling in the classroom include:

• It builds a sense of confidence, pride, and control over the learning process.
• It allows students to express themselves creatively in writing without worrying about the spelling of unfamiliar words.
• Writing using invented spelling techniques allows for the extensive practice of phonics because students are using letters to represent the sounds that they hear.
• Teachers can discover important information about a student's growing knowledge of phonemes and the letters of the alphabet by reading a composition written using invented spelling techniques.

The potential disadvantages of allowing invented spelling in the classroom include:

• It may reduce the incentive for children to learn to spell words correctly.
• It could possibly lead to problems in communication since there is no guarantee others will be able to decipher what the student has written.
• Highly logical children may become frustrated when the teacher does not insist there is one correct way to spell a particular word.

Currently, however, most educators consider invented spelling to be a developmentally appropriate step in the process of learning to read and write. It is not believed that allowing invented spelling in the classroom will significantly interfere with a child's ability to learn to spell correctly in later years.

Many people compare invented spelling with the efforts a child makes when he or she first learns to speak. Just as a parent would not criticize a child's first attempts to reproduce the sounds of verbal language, a child's efforts to master written communication skills should be encouraged as well.

Using Invented Spelling to Encourage a Love of Reading and Writing

If your child's school has decided to allow invented spelling in the classroom, you can help by remembering the following tips:

• Provide writing opportunities on a regular basis. Encourage your child to help you prepare your shopping list, write a letter to his or her grandparents, or make up a story for a younger sibling.
• Resist the urge to criticize and point out mistakes. The goal of invented spelling is to promote creative expression.
• Refer to your child's creative spellings by the title of "invented spelling" to help distinguish them from the correct conventional spelling.
• If you're not sure what your child's composition says, ask him or her to read it to you.
• Be sensitive to your child's struggles to master the written component of the English language. Learning to spell, just like learning to speak, is an ongoing process.

Additional Information

To learn more about invented spelling, check out the following helpful links:

• Can U Rd Ths? A Guide to Invented Spelling
• Invented Spelling and Spelling Development
• A Critique of Invented Spelling
• The Natural Child Project