DIRECTIONS TO PUPILS
Why These Words Should be Studied.—One of the ways by which people judge the writer of a letter is by the presence or absence of spelling errors. Often a young man or young woman has failed to obtain a desirable position because of spelling errors in a letter of application. Even in the ordinary friendly letter, spelling errors make a bad impression. The words which you are to learn from this spelling book are the words which people most frequently use in writing letters. Thousands of letters were read, and each word found was recorded. This book, therefore, contains the words most commonly used in writing, and does not contain any word which has not been found in letters.
How to Learn the Words.—The first step in the study of each lesson will be an exercise in pronunciation. Your teacher will pronounce each word for you. Look at your book closely, noticing each syllable as she pronounces it. When the teacher asks you to pronounce the word after her, look at each syllable closely as you pronounce it.
The second step in learning the lesson is the test. Write each word as plainly as you can and without hesitation. The purpose of this test is to see whether or not there are any words in the lesson which you cannot spell. The words which you cannot spell will be your work in spelling for the week.
If your teacher asks you to exchange papers for the purpose of correcting them, be sure to do your work very carefully. If you fail to mark a word wrong that has been misspelled, the pupil whose paper you marked will not be able to know that the word should be studied, and so will suffer an injury. On the other hand, it will be very confusing if you mark a word wrong which is really correct. Mark any word wrong that you cannot easily read; also any word if a letter has been written over or a change made. Remember that the purpose of the test is to find out which words need to be studied. The grades of the pupil whose papers you correct are not affected in any way by your marking.
The Meaning of "The Standard Number of Errors."—The words in this book have been given to a great many children in each grade in a number of cities. In that way it was possible to find out the number of errors which children of each grade ordinarily make. If you will compare the number of errors which you make on the test with the number of errors at the bottom of your lesson, you will be able to see how your spelling compares with that of pupils in other parts of the country.
How to Learn to Spell a Word.—A great many men have spent much time and money in finding out for you the best way to learn to spell. The directions which follow are based on what these men have discovered.
1. The first thing to do in learning to spell a word is to pronounce it correctly. Pronounce the word, saying each syllable very distinctly, and looking closely at each syllable as you say it.
2. With closed eyes try to see the word in your book, syllable by syllable, as you pronounce it in a whisper. In pronouncing the words, be sure to say each syllable distinctly. After saying the word, keep trying to recall how the word looked in your book, and at the same time say the letters. Spell by syllables.
3. Open your eyes, and look at the word to see whether or not you had it right.
4. Look at the word again, saying the syllables very distinctly. If you did not have the word right on your first trial, say the letters this time as you look sharply at the syllables.
5. Try again with closed eyes to see the word as you spell the syllables in a whisper.
6. Look again at your book to see if you had the word right. Keep trying until you can spell each syllable correctly with closed eyes.
7. When you feel sure that you have learned the word, write it without looking at your book, and then compare your attempt with the book to see whether or not you wrote it correctly.
8. Now write the word three times, covering each trial with your hand before you write the word the next time, so that you cannot copy. If all of these trials are right, you may say that you have learned the word for the present. If you make a single mistake, begin with the first direction and go through each step again.
9. Study each word by this method. Take special pains to attend closely to each step in the method. Hard and careful work is what counts.
Take Pains with Your Spelling in all Writing.—Take pride in having your compositions and letters free from spelling errors. When you are in the slightest doubt as to how to spell a word, look it up in the dictionary before you write it. When you have found the word in the dictionary, learn it by the method by which you study your regular spelling lessons. In a similar way, if you do make a mistake in spelling in your compositions, learn the word which you misspelled by this same method.
Reviews.—Whenever you have a few minutes after having prepared some lesson, turn back to the errors which you have made on previous spelling tests and spend some time going over the words which you missed on those tests. Occasionally when you are at home, you will find it interesting to have your mother or father or some friend test you over all the words you have missed during the year. You should not be satisfied until you can spell every word correctly.
Notebook.—Keep a spelling notebook. Whether your teacher requires it or not, you will find it very much worth while to keep a spelling notebook. In this you should record all words missed on any test or in compositions which you write. If you find that you are frequently missing a word, write it in a special list and review it frequently.