You might protest and cry out, "It's not fair!" But people will and do judge you by your writing and your spelling.

So, it is very important that you learn to spell correctly. It is both, a demonstration of your intelligence and education. Therefore, you should be prepared to spell correctly on your homework, reports, quizzes, tests and even job applications.

In studies, it was shown that good spellers had better organizational habits than those who were poor spellers. So, good spelling doesnt seem to be an ability as much as it is a skill. And, since skills are not inherited like abilities, you can do something about your spelling.

How to Spell Better

Strategy #1 Use a Dictionary

The best thing you can do to improve your spelling is use a dictionary. You will rarely spell words wrong if you will consult a dictionary whenever you are in doubt. Know when you dont know how to spell a word and look it up. Yes, it will take time but it takes time to do anything right.

Strategy #2 Learn the Rules

Learn a few spelling rules such as:

Write an i before e except after c, or when sounded like a, as in neighbor and weigh. or
The spelling of a word is never changed when a prefix is added.
These rules aren't perfect but they give you a tool to work with. Also learn exceptions to the rules.

Strategy #3 Work on Your Pronunciation

Listen and pay close attention to how words are pronounced. Although English is the least phonetic language, about eighty-five percent of the words are spelled the way they sound. Start listening to yourself and you will improve your spelling and speaking at the same time.

Strategy #4 Train Your Memory

Many times spelling errors become imprinted in your memory because of the continued writing or typing of the incorrect spelling. Correct this by writing the proper spelling ten times whenever you discover that youve written it incorrectly. Re-train your motor memory.

Successful athletes train in a similar way. The athlete will practice a certain skill over and over again in order to create muscle memory. Eventually, the skill becomes reactive and automatic and the athlete no longer has to think about it. It just happens.

Strategy #5 Proofread Your Work

Many spelling errors occur due to the lack of proofreading. Its much easier to notice a misspelled word when re-reading your document. Thats because we are use to seeing words spelled correctly in magazines, newspapers and books. When you find a misspelling look it up, verify it and correct it.

Just like starting a new workout, improving your spelling will be difficult at first. But, what skill worth having isnt difficult to improve?

Test Your Spelling

Directions: Pick out the words that are incorrectly spelled.

calander
atheletics
estasy
bachlor
conceive
homly
labling
siege
vitiman

If you would like to know the answers go to Spelling Test Answers or if you are interested in vocabulary improvement go to YourVocabCoach http://mrcauseytutors.com/vocab

Darrell Causey is a teacher, coach and speaker with over 25 years of experience.