Writing is the slow pulling apart of a word. A child who is absolutely confident with basic letter-sound knowledge may be ready to "write" words with the Souns symbols much before their hand can form the letters. Writing with the nylon Souns symbols or the Souns moveable alphabet (below), or with a writing implement often parallels efforts to decode. Invented spelling is what you will see. However, children should not be asked to read what they have written. Reading and writing are distinctly different skills. If you observe "writing," you will see that the chid is literally recording the sounds he or she is speaking. Relish in your child's first written communications. Missing a sound in a word is not as important as ensuring the child's self-confidence. A 3 or 4 year old child should not be burdened with spelling. The more a child "writes" and the more you read to him, the more the skill of spelling will evolve. Click on images below to order.
