The Model 3 communication skills lexicon consists of three lists of words developed by the Southwest Regional Laboratory (SWRL) for use in communication skills instruction in K-6. This report documents the procedures used for developing a technical lexicon for subject areas in kindergarten and the elementary grades. To develop a music lexicon,…

This technical lexicon for elementary school communication skills instruction was compiled from high-frequency words in six previously compiled technical lexicons: grammar, composition, spelling, handwriting, reading, and literature. Following a description of procedures used in preparing the lexicon, three appendixes provide student terms,…

Developed to document the specifications for supplementary instruction in a skills-based vocabulary program, this report focuses on the study of synonyms as relating to the learning of specific words. One hundred twenty-nine general headwords and more than 1,500 synonyms for these headwords, specified for use in instruction in grades four through…

Defining regularity in the English language is not a straightforward matter because of the complex relations between sound and spelling. Predictable patterns are those spellings that can be readily predicted from pronunciation. Rare and unpredictable spellings are found only in a small set of words--probably 10% or less of the vocabulary in…

One outcome area in the Southwest Regional Laboratory (SWRL) Spelling Program is the use of sources (e.g. a dictionary) to determine the correct spelling of words having unpredictable but common sound-to-spelling correspondences. This paper describes the dictionary-source instruction used in commercially available spelling series and the materials…

Experiences with competency testing at the elementary level in the area of English language are presented, as well as suggestions for improving the quality of competency tests. In order to modify curricula and requirements to meet the demands of assessment and to ensure sufficient student instruction, the following suggestions are made: (1)…

To better understand how spelling is taught, six commercial spelling series were reviewed in terms of linguistics orientation, conception of spelling, and treatment of spelling for instruction. In addition, the spelling content of each series through fourth grade was described. Comparisons were made among the series in terms of specific aspects…

The Follett spelling series "Spelling and Writing Patterns" is reviewed in terms of content and method. While descriptive writing plays a considerable role in the series, it is discussed only briefly in this paper. It is concluded that, other than in the first book, spelling instruction does not provide a sufficient basis for learning…

Noting that using correct verb forms is a problem for many elementary school students, and especially for those who are speakers of nonstandard English, this paper presents an instructional program for teaching past and past participle verb forms in writing to students in grade 3 through 6. The paper outlines the content of the instructional…

The last of three volumes studying the relationship between writing research and instruction, this four-part report focuses on writing assessment. The first section details specifications for an instrument assessing student writing samples and the following composition skills: word processing, sentence processing, paragraph development,…