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/ Sentence Dictation Drill

Sentence Dictation Drill

Purpose

Apply word spelling and sentence construction skills to sentence writing

Summary

The Sentence Dictation Drill supports learners to spell words in common scenarios - writing sentences. Sentence dictation is a way to practice spelling skills as well as sentence construction skills such as capital letters and punctuation. Sentence dictation is also helpful for phonics and phonemic awareness.

Materials Needed

Sentence dictation drill with a list of sentences to dictate.

Something to write on (mini-whiteboard, workbook, Spellcaster worksheet)

Paper, pencil, and green pen for checking.

How to deliver

  1. Dictate the sentence.
  2. Have the learner repeat the sentence back to you and then write it.
  3. Ask the learner to check their sentence with a green pen for capital letters, punctuation, and correct spelling. Follow a routine of ticking the capital letter, ticking the punctuation.
  4. Ask the learner to blend each word, ticking the words that are correct.
  5. Support the learner correcting any errors (see below).
Suggested script
"I am going to say a sentence. Say it back to me and then write it."

Common Issues & Prompts

Issue: Learner spells a word incorrectly

  • Do this: When checking the sentence, ask the learner to finger spell the incorrect word, they can tick each correct spelling. This process usually surfaces the misspelling, which they can then fix. Support them to correct the spelling where necessary.
  • Example: The learner spells ‘black’ as ‘back’. When checking the sentence say to the learner, “Let’s finger spell ‘black’: /b/ /l/ /a/ /ck/”. Tick each correct letter, ask “what letter spells the /l/ sound?” Support them to add the letter, providing it if necessary (“We use the letter ‘l’ to spell the /l/ sound in ‘black’.”). Tick the l and then the remaining correct letters.
  • Then: Ask the learner to reread the sentence.

Additional Tips

  • A green pen is an excellent colour choice, as children often associate red pen with failure. When the word has been corrected, give it a tick to show the learner that they were successful.

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