If you have young writers, you are more than likely well acquainted with inventive spelling. Young children, using the phonemic patterns that they already know, will often spell words in their writing phonetically, which means that many times it is spelled incorrectly. For example, it is very common for children in early elementary to spell the word “girl” like “grl” instead. In this example, the child is hearing the sounds of g, r, and l.
Inventive spelling is a typical phase in the process of learning how to write. Since it is so universal, the question becomes whether or not it is advisable to continue to allow the child to write using these spellings, or to correct every misspelling found in the child’s work. Whereas I do agree that you do not want to encourage the misspellings of words, let’s unpack what happens when a child is hyper focused upon spelling every word in his or her writing correctly the first time:
- The child’s creative ideas are significantly slowed down.
- The focus becomes accuracy, not creativity.
- Children will not be as confident in their abilities as storytellers.
- Children often become frustrated.
- Children will write significantly less, fearing mistakes.
Think about your own writing as you type your emails or texts- how often does that automatic spell-check catch your mistakes? (Yeah, it happens to me too!) Children who are starting the process of learning spelling conventions tend to make a lot of spelling errors and are significantly slowed down by trying to remember the correct spelling of many different words.
Allowing inventive spelling in the rough draft stages of writing encourages a larger volume of words and more creative writing. If children are not concerned overmuch with the spelling of certain words, they are more likely to attempt to include new vocabulary words or more interesting language in their writing. The flow of their creative writing will be less encumbered and allow for longer written pieces. Allowing for inventive spelling also gives children more confidence in their storytelling capabilities. They will think of themselves as authors if they feel successful in their first attempts at writing.
This is not to say, however, that spelling is not important! Word accuracy and learning spelling conventions is still a very important part of your day. Time should be spent during your day to discuss and practice common spelling patterns. Spelling lists that cover common spelling patterns (focusing on one at a time) is very helpful. In these instances, word accuracy is very important and the child should practice writing their spelling words in dictated sentences in which every word in that sentence is spelled correctly. Since the child is merely writing the sentences that they hear, they can focus more readily on how each word in that sentence is spelled. In this case, the child is not concerned with getting his or her ideas down, but the child is only listening to the sentence and attempting to write each word accurately.
So- what’s the verdict on inventive spelling?
Inventive spelling is a developmental stage that most children will progress beyond by the mid-elementary grades, when children have a better understanding of common spelling patterns. In the early elementary grades, children should be encouraged to use inventive spelling when writing creatively, so as not to impede the flow of their ideas in the rough draft portion of their writing. Before writing a final copy of a piece of writing, children should then correct their spelling mistakes. Common spelling patterns should also be taught consistently as well, to help children internalize those patterns. Eventually with enough practice, children will know many of the common spelling patterns and will not need to rely on inventive spelling as often. Inventive writing can be a stepping stone to helping create more confident writers!