July 2 Class Reflection

Mount Saint Vincent University
MEd - Literacy
Supporting Struggling Readers and Writers
with Barb Welsford and Dr. Mary Jane Harkins

Today was our first day of our summer session - GLIT 6758-262. We each presented our pre-course Case Studies to the members of our MSVU summer class.

My project partner and I chose to do our case study on two Grade One students who are exceeding the grade level expectations for reading but who are below grade level in writing. Their struggles with writing include their fine motor skills, knowledge of spelling rules and patterns and many of the conventions of writing.
Both of these students are very hard working and enthusiastic about learning. With these interventions they were able to very quickly improve the quality and quantity of their writing. As well, their confidence and enjoyment of writing increase greatly.

Case Study: Narrowing the Gap (pages from our BookCreator book)
by Erin & Sarah

Hand Writing Without Tears is a program designed to improve fine-motor skills through daily handwriting practice. It can be used as a whole package and for use with an entire class or it can be used in parts for small group instruction or individual use. The HWWT program includes handwriting practice work books, CDs of music, hands-on letter formation manipulatives and writing tools such as mini chalkboards. These things can all be ordered on-line at www.hwtears.com. Two HWWT apps are also available from the App Store called Wet-Dry-Try and Keyboarding Without Tears.

Little Speller is a great app for learning to spell words. It has a variety of "libraries" of words but it can also be programmed with your own list of words. The adjustable settings are what make this app so great. It can be customized to meet the needs of a wide variety of learners. Letters appear on the screen and users have to spell a word by dragging the letters into the letter boxes that appear at the bottom of the screen. Some of the customizable adjustments include audio, letter order vs. random order, letter silohettes in the boxes, and word hints just to name a few. It is a free app and the Sight Word version is particularly good for emergent spellers. Available at the App Store.


CoWriter is an amazing app. It allows a writer to write freely, with voice and without the worry of making spelling errors. CoWriter has built in word prediction and programmable topic dictionaries. It has text to speach capabilities allowing an author to hear what they have written. The font and font size can be adjusted to meet the needs of various writers. CoWriter is easy to learn to use and I have had 100% success with every student that has tried it. They begin to love to write and their confidence in themselves as a writer soars! Available at the App Store.



Making Words is a great teaching resource to teach phonics, spelling patterns and vocabulary in a fun, hands-on way. It was created by Patricia Cunningham and Dorthy P. Hall. Students practice "making" and "breaking" words using letter cards, letter tiles or magnetic letters. It is great for kinestetic learners and can be done with a whole class or in small groups. This resource is available through Amazon.ca.

We saw huge improvements in their fine motor control as well as in the quantity and quality of their writing ! :)