Reach All Readers How to use etymology to help students spell high frequency words - with Fiona Hamilton and Rebecca Loveless
Dec 1, 2025
Fiona Hamilton, a literacy specialist with a rich background in international education, and Rebecca Loveless, a linguist-trained educator focused on structured word inquiry, discuss innovative spelling techniques. They unveil how teaching etymology can reduce cognitive load and enhance spelling retention. The duo emphasizes the importance of integrating word histories with vocabulary and phonics, and share practical tools and games for the classroom. Their insights aim to empower educators and make high-frequency word learning interactive and effective.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Why High-Frequency Words Seem Irregular
- High-frequency words often look irregular because English encodes more than sounds in spelling.
- Etymology and morphology explain many so-called irregularities and reduce cognitive load for learners.
Teach Multiple Spellings Early
- Teach students that phonemes can be written in multiple ways and graphemes can represent multiple sounds.
- Map phoneme-grapheme relationships in high-frequency words instead of treating them as pure sight-memorization.
Spelling Encodes Sound, Meaning, History
- English orthography is morphophonemic: it encodes sound, meaning, and history.
- Etymology often reveals why unexpected letters or silent graphemes persist in spellings.
