The ABC's and All Their Tricks

Rating:
Summary: Exceptional...The Most Complete Phonics/Spelling Book Ever
Review: My only word of caution about this book is that it is intended for teachers. Don't let your child study independently from it (unless they are high-school age), or they may become confused. The reason is not because it is faulty in its presentation, but because it is so comprehensive that students may become frustrated with it.

Having said that upfront, I will also add that this is a magnificent phonics and spelling reference. The title uses the word "encyclopedia" and I believe that is the most appropriate description of its contents, and how to effectively use it with your child. The heart of the book is arranged alphabetically covering all the known rules for each letter and letter combinations. You will find introductory notes on each letter, an explanation of all the sounds that letter makes in the English language, and, if applicable, how that particular letter teams with others to make a new sound. You will also notice cross-references so you can easily find comparative sounds and notes. There is also a listing of words (beginning, intermediate and advanced) which work with each sound, exceptions,(if any), a total for the number of words in the English language that use that sound, and any spelling/phonetic rules which cover that sound. Like I said, this is an exhaustive reference tool that leaves no stone unturned.

Do yourself, and your student(s) a favor...BUY THIS BOOK! To do without it means hours of preparation and research on your end (not to mention potential learning gaps) that can be spent applying what is given to you here.

Rating:
Summary: Spelling Finally Makes Sense!
Review: This is my most valuable homeschool reference tool. As a naturally poor speller, I have learned a great deal. This book has helped me explain why a word is spelled the way it is, and to build spelling rules that students can really rely on.

Rating:
Summary: Homeschooler Review
Review: This is the only book you will ever need to teach spelling to your child. It is set up in such a way that you could easily teach different levels at the same time. Words that cover a specific spelling rule are divided into easy and more difficult word lists. Although it is meant as a reference, I use it as a source for spelling words and then add to it, any words that we are encountering in our reading material that follow the same rule we are learning or reviewing from the reference book. If you are familiar with the Spalding method but are turned off by the dry, uninspired approach, use this book as your word list as most of the words in Spalding are found on this list, and if not, they can be derived from words on this list. (I actually went through Spalding and the Wise Guide to see if this book would cover the words from those lists and it does. As I said, some words on the other lists are derivitives of words in this book. You simply take the root word and add prefixes, or suffixes to form a lot of other words. I find this book much easier to adapt to my other curriculum, as I can create my own lists and still cover the spellng rules.) The book does not insist on using the short i sound for y at the end of words like Spalding, and discusses in detail how stress changes the sound of vowels in certain words. The book is not phobic about using the terms long and short vowels, so you won't have to throw away any previous notions your child has about these to teach the vowel sounds as you do in Spalding. I can't rate this book highly enough.