How can I improve my spelling quickly? How can I hack spelling in my classroom? Are there any spelling rules or spelling hacks that can help me with my lesson?

When it comes to spelling, be it a native speaker or someone who is learning English as a second language, students often look for hacks to keep up with the spelling assessments given in their course. And not only students! Parents and teachers also teach spelling hacks to the students to help them memorize more words in less time.

In this article, we will learn about some handy spelling hacks that are easy to remember and proven to be effective in learning spelling. These hacks are widely used to teach spelling so maybe you know some of them already!

Common Spelling Practice Hacks

I before E except after C

Or when sounding like A, as in neighbour and weigh

And weird is just weird.

This classic rhyme teaches the spelling rule for I and E when they are used together in a word. We also get a bonus word weird that is irregularly spelled. Rhyming mnemonics teach students about the spelling rules and patterns in a fun way. Below are some commonly used spelling hacks that you are likely to find your spelling teacher use in class too:

• Difficulty
  Of course we can’t but start this section with the famous poem from Matilda
  D, Mrs. I,
  Mrs. F-F-I,
  Mrs. C, Mrs. U,
  Mrs. L-T-Y
• Mississippi
  This word also has the similar rhythm as Difficulty.
  M, Mrs. I
  Mrs. S-S-I,
  Mrs. S-S-I,
  Mrs. P-P-I.
• Arithmetic: A Rat In The House May Eat The Ice Cream
• Because: Big Elephants Can Always Understand Small Elephants
• Ocean: Only Cat’s Eyes Are Narrow
• Believe
  Beware my folks! Never BeLIEve a LIE.
• Laugh: Laugh And U Get Happy (Such a nice thing to remember, don’t you think?)
• Rhythm: Rhythm Makes Your Two Hips Move
• Argument
  We spell A-R-G-U-E, but the e is not used in Argument. How to remember it?
  ‘I lost an E in the argument’

More Hacks

• Accommodation
  the word ‘Accommodation’ contains two C and two M. Remember ‘Two Cottages and Two Mansions’ are needed for accommodation.
• Beginning
  If you need to remember the double N, remember to ‘Beg in the INN at the beginning’.
• Together
  This word, if looked closely, contains a pretty meaningful phrase. Didn’t understand? You need ‘to-get-her’ to spell together.
• Should, could, would
  You Lucky Duck! I got you a spelling hack to remember the above words. -ould can be remembered as ‘Oy U Lucky Duck’.
• Exaggerate
  The word contains two G. So, remember ‘Goofy Greg loves to Exaggerate’.
• Separate
  It is not uncommon to spell s-e-p-a-r-E-t-e because that is how the word sounds. Remember ‘There is A RAT is separate’ to avoid the mistake.
• Island: An island ‘is land’ surrounded by water.
• Innocent: IN NO CENTury is murder an innocent crime.
• Familiar: The LIAR looks familiar.
• Misspell: Miss Pell never misspells.

Which Word to Use?

Homophones or words than sound similar and have little difference in spelling are tricky to remember. So, the chance of incorrect use is high. Below are some hacks to ease the process:

Affect or Effect?

This is a common question to ask. For those who are struggling with these two words, remember, Affect is a verb and Effect is Noun.
For example: The effects of social media in our life are many. It affects our view on certain topics.
You can remember the difference by the word RAVEN (Remember, Affect= Verb, Effect= Noun)

Complement or compliment?

Complement means an additional thing that is needed to make something complete whereas compliment means praising. Always remember, ‘Complement makes things complete’. Both words contain E, so it won’t be a hassle to remember the correct spelling.

Fowl or foul?

Remember ‘Fowl contains an Owl’ so this is a bird. Foul, on the other hand, represents disgusting smell or anything that is offensive to senses.

Stationery or Stationary?

Everything around was scary
So the canary
Stood stationary
Canaries stand still in scary situations. So, whenever you are confused, remember canary and stationary both contain ‘-nary’.

Desert or dessert?

Deserts have sand and are not edible. And desserts are often so delicious that make you want more than one. So, remember, just like you want more dessert, the spelling also need an extra S. You can also remember the trick by ‘Desserts are Sickly Sweet’.

Practice or practise?

Practice is a noun and contains C as you can ‘see’. Practise is a verb that contains S.

Principal or principle?

A principal generally means the head or main. Principle, however, means beliefs or moral. Remember ‘A principal is your PAL’ though don’t think it works in real life.

Lose or loose?

Lose means being unable to find something. Loose means not tight. So, you should ‘lose an O’ to spell lose correctly.

But learning the hacks are not enough. You need to practice and review all the words learned so far. Evaluating your skill regularly shows how effective these spelling hacks are in your case. And that’s where SpellQuiz comes! The SpellQuiz Spelling Test are divided by grades and is available for grade 1 to grade 12 and for adults.

Spelling Bee Hacks

Preparing for a spelling bee competition doesn’t mean memorizing the whole dictionary. Instead, you should focus on spelling patterns and rules. That way, you can even correctly spell new words. Check out these spelling hacks below:

Word List:

This is by far the best way to hack a spelling bee competition. Make a spelling word list that contains possible words that might appear in the competition. Revise them again and again.
If you don’t have a spelling word list yet, you can use SpellQuiz Spelling Bee Word Lists for preparation. The lists are printable and ready to use. There are also printable sight word lists available that are divided by grades.

Roots and meanings:

Studying about the words helps you understand the words deeply and makes it easier for you to spell. For example: ‘Tele’ is a root word that means ‘at a distance’ and ‘phone’ means voice. After knowing these, you would be able to spell television, phonographs, and many other words.

Reading:

The more you read, the more you learn. Instead of monotonous learning from the word list, read books to fully understand the use of those words. You may also learn words that were not included in your word lists. Also, keep a dictionary with you while reading.
Learning to spell a word just by reading may not be very useful in competition. You need to know how the word sounds. There are many online dictionaries available that include audio option. You can also check online spelling test websites such as SpellQuiz Vocabulary Test where you hear a sentence and spell every word correctly.

Practice:

There is really no alternative to this. You need to practice spelling words every day.

• Try to spell at least 10-15 words everyday including both new and old words. That way, you won’t forget the old words.
• You can also divide your practice time in different segments like time for learning new words, time for revising old words, time to learn about their meaning and origin etc. That way, you won’t get bored.
• You can take breaks between segments to refresh yourself.

Word games:

Looking for fun spelling hacks? Word games are built just for that! Play crossword puzzles or scabble with your family or by yourself to practice spelling. These games are now available online so you can just use your phone or laptop. They can also be used as assessment tools.

Have a Partner:

Preparing by yourself might be exhausting. Ask your parents or your friends to read the words so that you can spell them. It also gives you a sense of being in the real competition where the presenter would read the words and you would answer. Make sure they pronounce the words correctly or it might lead to hazardous situations.

Try out spelling jokes riddles as a spelling hack to enhance your vocabulary and spelling knowledge.

 

Stage Fright:

Even professional performers suffer from this problem. People often get nervous on stage and forget what they learn.

• Before the big day, practice in front of your family and friends to get over stage fright.
• Remember to take deep breaths and keeping your cool.
• Keep your focus on the announcer to avoid distraction.
• Don’t worry about the result and focus on doing good only.
• Many spelling bee competitions allow asking questions.
  • Ask-to repeat the word if given chance.
  • Ask-for their origin
  • Ask-to use the word in a sentence.

If you are preparing for a Spelling Bee competition, why not join a virtual one? SpellQuiz Spelling Bee Online is a virtual Spelling Bee competition hold among the SpellQuiz users around the world. You can compete against thousands of students and show your potential. There are ranks for daily and weekly top spellers and you can be one of them. So, hurry up and join SpellQuiz today.

Happy Spelling!