ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the understanding of spelling owes a great deal to efforts to fathom the difficulties experienced by learners with dyslexia. The focus upon phonics that characterises the modern approach to reading and spelling has grown from research regarding the significance of phonological difficulty in dyslexia. Dyslexia specialists teach reading and spelling through systematically structured programmes comprised of phonemes, syllables and morphemes, addressing also syntax, etymology and comprehension. This approach can be found now in mainstream practice, described in Support for Spelling. Spelling is often associated with writing, being seen as the characteristic that enables children to display fluency and maturity in written work. Joshi and Carreker make the point that spelling is connected to reading, but it is not the reverse of reading. Young children's spelling is often phonetic; spelling may seem to remain at that phase of development for many children who experience actual or potential dyslexia.
