Teaching English Spelling: A Practical Guide (Cambridge Handbooks for Language Teachers) [Paperback]

Ruth Shemesh (Author), Sheila Waller (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521639719 | ISBN-13: 978-0521639712 | Publication Date: March 13, 2000 | Edition: 1

This resource book is packed with activities for practising common spelling patterns in English. Each unit concentrates on a particular 'sound' or phoneme.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'Surely the most comprehensive collection of classroom activities for practising common spelling patterns. The variety of task types is impressive.' EL Gazette

Book Description

A wealth of activities for practising spelling for second language, foreign language teaching and first language contexts.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press; 1 edition (March 13, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521639719
• ISBN-13: 978-0521639712
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,411,684 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THE book for spelling, August 31, 2000

By 

Lyn Barzilai (D. N. Hof Carmel Israel) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Teaching English Spelling: A Practical Guide (Cambridge Handbooks for Language Teachers) (Paperback)

This is a wonderful book, for teachers and pupils alike. It's thorough, interesting, well illustrated and thoughtfully organised. Spelling has always been a sticky subject for teachers to teach, but this book fills the gap, making the learning process a smooth one. Following the rules and explanations as they are set out in the book ensures a good grasp of what has been for many until now an illogical and bewildering subject.

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic for Native Speakers / Early ESL, but not for Adult ESL/EFL, August 25, 2011

By 

Ryan Lidster - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Teaching English Spelling: A Practical Guide (Cambridge Handbooks for Language Teachers) (Paperback)

The book's coverage of spelling is both enlightening and thorough. Teachers of all types of English, from primary school to ESL and EFL will be well served to study the insights the book provides. As just one simple example, I had no idea why certain words with the /'/ sound were spelled -ge and others -dge, but the book provides a simple explanation that could be taught to struggling students as well as plentiful activities to use them.

For adult ESL learners, however, the book still leaves gaps. It relies on students being able to distinguish between sounds that many non-native speakers have trouble hearing in order to make spelling decisions. In particular, the short/long vowel distinction (which is a central component of almost every chapter) is notoriously difficult for learners whose native tongue is Arabic, Japanese, Chinese, or even Spanish. The /e/ sound (as in "rate") and /æ/ as in "rat" might seem obviously different for us, but for many of my students, perceiving that difference, let alone producing it, remains an issue. It seems that, in order to make full use of this book in my setting as an adult ESL teacher, pronunciation exercises might need to be a necessary prerequisite.

Still, for native speakers, this book will provide a great deal of useful information, and for teachers of all levels, it will provide some semblance of order in what is otherwise a chaotic, idiosyncratic spelling system. Highly recommended.