Teaching Spelling Rules & Phonetic Concepts: Why It Matters and Why We Built Our Video Lessons

Overview

Spelling is not just memorising lists of words. It reflects an understanding of how language works, especially in English, where orthography (spelling patterns) is structured around relationships between sounds (phonemes), spelling patterns, meaningful word parts (morphemes), and word origins. Research clearly shows that teaching spelling rules and phonetic concepts improves students’ accuracy in both spelling and reading. Yet many teachers were never explicitly taught these concepts themselves - which can make it challenging to teach them confidently.

At Spellings for Me, we recognised this gap in teacher knowledge and designed integrated video lessons that:

Explain key spelling rules and phonetic concepts clearly and accessibly

Model effective instructional language and strategies

Include accompanying worksheets for practice and reinforcement

These lessons sit alongside personalised spelling and morphology activities, creating a cohesive, research‑informed spelling programme.

Why Teach Spelling Rules and Phonetic Concepts?

1. Spelling is Systematic - Not Random

English spelling isn’t arbitrary; it’s governed by patterns:

Phoneme–grapheme correspondences (e.g., how /k/ can be spelled c, k, ck)

Morphological consistency (e.g., magic → magical)

Etymological patterns from Latin and Greek

Understanding these systems helps learners predict spelling and make more accurate independent choices, instead of memorising lists in isolation.

2. Research Shows Rules Support Reading and Spelling Development

National Reading Panel (2000) – One of the most influential reviews of literacy research found that effective instruction includes:

Phonemic awareness

Phonics (spelling–sound correspondences)

Strategies for decoding and encoding (spelling)

Explicit attention to phonics and spelling patterns improves both reading and spelling outcomes.

Ehri (2005) – Research shows that readers develop orthographic mapping - the process that helps us link sounds to letter patterns in memory - when we connect phonology (sound) and orthography (spelling rules).
This means teaching students why certain patterns work helps them recognise and recall words faster.

Bowers & Kirby (2010) – Found that instruction focusing on word structure and morphology (meaningful word parts) boosts vocabulary, spelling accuracy, and reading comprehension. Rules help students understand relationships like nation, national, denationalise.

Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton & Johnston (2008) - In Words Their Way, the authors show that developmental spelling instruction that includes rule‑based approaches accelerates growth and supports transfer of knowledge to new words.

A Well‑Documented Teacher Knowledge Gap

While research strongly supports rule‑based and structural spelling instruction, teacher preparation programs often do not equip teachers with the explicit phonological and morphological knowledge needed to teach spelling systematically.

Studies repeatedly show:

Teachers are more comfortable with reading instruction than spelling instruction.

Many teachers were never explicitly taught the underlying linguistic structure of English spelling themselves.

Without confidence in the rules, teachers avoid explicit teaching - which reduces student outcomes.

Teachers want to help students make sense of spelling, but research demonstrates a persistent knowledge gap when it comes to spelling patterns and rules.

Why We Built Spelling Rules Video Lessons

The video lessons in Spellings for Me were designed with three goals in mind:

1. To Deliver Explicit, Understandable Instruction

Rather than assuming teachers know the rule, or expecting them to figure it out from text alone, our videos:

Explain each rule clearly and logically

Show examples and non‑examples

Demonstrate instructional language teachers can use

This is aligned with research recommendations that effective spelling instruction must be explicit and systematic.

2. To Support Teachers Where They Are

Some teachers learned spelling through tradition and intuition, not linguistics. Our video lessons:

Provide real teaching explanations (not academic language)

Model how to teach - not just what the rule is

Build teacher confidence so they can lead instruction with authority

One of the barriers to applying research‑based spelling instruction is confidence — and video lessons help overcome that.

3. To Integrate with Individualised Spelling Pathways

Video lessons are not standalone: they complement personalised spelling:

When a student struggles with a specific pattern, the appropriate video clarifies the rule behind it

Worksheets reinforce learning through practice

This creates a cohesive routine: test → personalised words → rule clarification → practice

This integration follows the “assessment → instruction → feedback” cycle shown to be effective in literacy research.

How Our Video Lessons Are Designed

Each lesson:

Focuses on a single phonetic concept or spelling rule

Explains why the rule works (e.g., why we double final consonants before a suffix)

Connects to student spelling behavior

Includes examples, pupil‑friendly language, and visuals

Has an accompanying worksheet for guided practice

This matches student needs and teacher support together in a way research recommends.

Benefits to Learners and Teachers

For Students:

Better ability to decode unfamiliar words

Improved spelling accuracy

Stronger vocabulary and comprehension

Greater confidence with linguistic patterns

For Teachers:

Clear instructional language

Confidence teaching beyond memorisation

Tools for remediation and enrichment

Alignment with curriculum expectations

References (Key Research)

National Reading Panel (2000).
Teaching children to read: An evidence‑based assessment of the scientific research literature on reading and its implications for reading instruction.

Ehri, L. C. (2005).
Learning to read words: Theory, findings, and issues. Scientific Studies of Reading.

Bowers, P.N., & Kirby, J.R. (2010).
Effects of morphological instruction on literacy skills: A systematic review.

Bear, D.R., Invernizzi, M., Templeton, S. & Johnston, F. (2008).
Words Their Way: Word Study for Phonics, Vocabulary, and Spelling Instruction.

Moats, L. (2000).
Speech to Print: Language Essentials for Teachers.

Summary

Spelling is not random - it is governed by systematic phonetic and morphological patterns. Research shows that teaching these patterns explicitly:

Improves student outcomes

Deepens linguistic understanding

Supports both reading and spelling

Yet many teachers have never been taught the why behind these patterns. That’s why Spellings for Me includes structured, lesson‑based video instruction to fill this gap and make high‑quality, evidence‑based spelling teaching accessible to every teacher.