Dictation - It Really Works!

"After the sort of preparation I have described, which takes ten minutes or less, there is rarely an error in spelling. If there be, it is well worth while for the teacher to be on the watch with slips of stamp-paper to put over the wrong word, that its image may be erased as far as possible. At the end of the lesson, the child should again study the wrong word in his book until he says he is sure of, and should write it correctly on the stamp-paper." ~ Charlotte Mason Vol 1 pg 242

The effectiveness of simple dictation has astounded me. Georgi has had very few spelling lessons, all in 2nd grade (before I discovered Ambleside Online), yet, at 11 she spells wonderfully. We have used Charlotte Mason's methods of teaching spelling (lots of quality books, copywork and dictation) for three years now and I am thrilled with the results. In addition to spelling well, she actually enjoys the dictation lessons!

I use Spelling Wisdom as our source for dictation passages. It just makes me feel good to know that all of the important words are being covered, and it's nice to not have to choose a dictation section each week.

Just as Miss Mason recommends, I allow Georgi to study the passage to be dictated, paying careful attention to punctuation or "the pointing". When she is ready I read the passage to her, clause by clause, pausing at the places where punctuation should be until she remembers to put it there. Since I'm unsure what "stamp-paper" is and have no idea where to buy it, I use the post-it page flags cut into thinner strips. If any words or punctuation are missed in the passage, we will repeat the lesson later in the week. Here is an example of our latest lesson.


This is her first try, she doesn't usually miss a word, but she only put one "m" in "commandment". As soon as I covered it she figured out her error and spelled it correctly the second time. At the end of the lesson she wrote it on the post-it flag and then we repeated the same lesson a couple of days later with perfect results.

And, lest you think her handwriting excessively sloppy, here is a sample of her copywork.

This sample is shorter than usual, but I use our memory work for copywork, and this week's catechism was short.

I don't judge the handwriting too harshly during dictation, that is when I want Georgi to focus on the words as a whole, on proper spelling and punctuation. It is during copywork that I expect her to take the time to focus on the proper formation of each letter in addition to the spelling and punctuation.

If you are struggling to understand how to implement dictation in your homeschool, watch this video by Sonya Shafer, she does a fabulous job of laying it all out which helped me tremendously when I was first learning the art of dictation.