Sequential Spelling 1 Student WorkDon McCabe (2011-05-04)

Good spelling curriculum--it's based on the child figuring the words and patterns out rather than memorizing, and what they figure out for themselves tends to be more long-term learning. There was no point in getting the student workbook; it's just a thick book of pages with lines numbered to 25, and some random word-finds and suchlike. I'm using this with two kids, so I just put the workbook away to use for the tail-ender when he gets to be that age, and we use penmanship paper instead.It's especially good because the kids understand that they are really figuring things out. Every once in a while a totally new word or a really long one comes along and I tell them, "Okay, challenge word!" And they usually rise to the challenge, put a special diamond around the word's number, and try hard to figure it out.Would really love to see a little bit of narrative in the teacher's guide to explain some of the etymology of these word families. (Why are could and should spelled like that? Why do you double the 'n' in 'canner' but not in 'opener'?) It would be a neat way to start an understanding of the history of the language. As it is, it's a very effective and well-thought-out sequence of spelling words, which is what it claims to be!Oh, and I really wish they'd fix the last two words of the introduction, which say, "Lets get started!" To which I say, "Let's not start out a spelling book with an error!"

This is working very well for my older kid who struggles with spelling. A very different approach, but he’s learning and his spelling is improving.

I was really worried when we received the books...it just looks entirely too simply to be worthwhile. Keep in mind you do have to get the teaching manual and the work book! The workbook is nothing more than a place for the kids to write and is layer out by day...it's still totally worth buying because it does give some extras. Our kids love this curriculum and the concept of working in word families.

I bought this for my spelling-challenged tween. NOTE: This product is just the workbook. You must have the teacher's guide to do the program, and can do the guide without the workbook. While I bought this, we ended up NOT using the workbook. My tween doesn't like writing, and the repetition was tough for her. You can do much of this in a notebook or on a whiteboard instead of using the workbook. Some of the exercises in the workbook would be nice for repetition to reinforce learning. For my family, it was not worth the cost.REVIEW ON THE CURRICULUM ITSELF:This program breaks spelling into word families (words with similar spelling patterns) which is much better than throwing kids lists with "gotcha" words that are completely different from each other. And instead of practicing a list for a week and then forgetting it, this is done with a daily list, correcting errors on the spot after each word, and trying to learn the patterns.While the daily list was easy, and there was no "memorizing" or beating the same list to death for a week, I was disappointed that the learning was supposed to basically come by osmosis. The patterns were there, but there was no explanation as to WHY the pattern was there. Some spelling recognition is simply done by familiarization and repetition, but the best spelling programs, in my opinion, explain the general rules behind why a word is spelled the way it is. After doing this for a year with my kiddo, I'm not sure she was a better speller.I'm sure this program would be fantastic for some kids. Mine was not one of them.

We have used several programs, and Sequential Spelling is our favorite. Well-ordered and the lessons build upon one another-- a logical, effective system. Buy the teacher's manual (separate item).

My son is 9 and really struggled with spelling and this workbook along with the teacher guide is perfect for him. He is spelling words that he had no clue how to spell before and he is retaining the spelling as well.

Great spelling program for reluctant spellers. My 3rd grader uses the student workbook, my 5th grader just uses paper and a note book and that works fine. You do need the teacher's manual.

Great for homeschooling or supplemental work.