Scholastic Dictionary of Spelling

Just the spelling, thank you. Beginning writers understand more words than they can spell (for some writers, this will always be the case!). This spelling dictionary contains over 15,000 words without definitions to provide a very usable spell checker in book form. The list is purely alphabetical, meaning that different forms of a word may not even be listed together. The sole purpose is for a child to be able to check the spelling of a word. Words are syllabicated and stressed (digression) so this book will be useful for work in these areas as well. In order to help students find a word (since it's sometimes hard to find a word when you don't know how to spell it - like a catch-22), the author gives students a method to follow, basic hints on other possible ways a given sound might begin, a "dozen and one" spelling rules, and a "Misspeller's Dictionary" to use if all else fails. This peculiar dictionary is appended at the end and includes common (it-really-sounds-like-it-starts-this-way) misspellings, along with correctly spelled words. He also includes a "Memory Tricks" section (which is priceless itself), containing 150+ words that are often misspelled, along with a memory aid to help remember their spellings ("Ma, the mat has mathematics written on it"). A nice addition to your child's reference library for all those "Mom, how do you spell...."? times.