My son is in the first grade. He is having a very difficult time with spelling. It seems that some days he is right on what it is he is supposed to be doing. Then there are more of the days that he is at a total loss. We have him in special reading class where it is one-on-one, but his frustration level is heartbreaking and nerve racking at the same time. We work everyday on his homework, which is spelling. So when his test comes on Fridays, I wish him luck and encouragement. I can tell he works hard at trying to sound it out, but this last test was the worst one of all. On top of this, he was not allowed to have a friend stay the night because of his test grade, now that time has passed and we discussed what happened, he really believed that he did well on the test he said. He told me of his disappointment when he got his paper back, I felt terrible about his punishment. I don’t know what to do. He thinks that he can’t do it. I know that he can. I try to keep my composure with him during homework, it seems that he is easily distracted with noise, which is very hard to go around when I have a 5-year-old and a 4-month-old. What do you recommend?

Verbally, two nights before the test he was able to spell half of them right. What is going on? His teacher called to tell us that he was even participating more in class and reading for the class as well. I appreciate you taking time to read this and am looking forward to your response.

Your little boy is obviously feeling a lot of pressure with reading and spelling. It’s time to make it fun! I don’t know how he is being taught in his reading class—but the very best way to learn to read and spell is by learning phonics. The way phonics is presented is also important. I recommend taking him back through all the basics so that he can pick up on whatever he missed before. Once he has that solid foundation he should be able to really move forward rapidly. I have seen many children become successful. Just let me tell you about one. Danny was in second grade and could not read or spell well. He really had a mental block concerning it. His mom started Phonics and in just 3-4 months he was above grade level. Now he loves school. Don’t wait–-problems like these tend to get worse. Be positive as you work together. Use rewards as much as possible. Good luck. I know you can help him.