Spelling Live
← Back to Home

Spelling modes explained

Pick it, Write it, Type it and Say it: the four ways a child answers, and how to choose between them.

Overview

Every word your child practises is said aloud, and they answer in one of four ways. A wrong answer brings a little help and another go. Writing the word by hand, with no help, is what shows a spelling is secure.

Who this is for

Parents

Choose the modes your child sees, and how much help they get when a word goes wrong.

Teachers and tutors

Know what each mode measures, so you can read a pupil's progress and set the right practice.

Children

They tap a mode at the top of the practice screen. Nothing here needs setting up before they start.

How one word works

  1. Hear the wordIt is read aloud, in a sentence the first time.
  2. AnswerPick it, Write it, Type it or Say it.
  3. Checked straight awayNo grown-up needed to mark it.
  4. What happens next Right: on to the next word Wrong: a bit of help, then the same word again

Practising a word, step by step

1. Start practice. Tap Practice as on your child's card, or let them sign in with their own login.
2. Choose a mode. Tap Pick it, Write it, Type it or Say it on the mode bar. They can change mode between words.
3. Listen. The word plays by itself. Tap the purple play button to hear it again.
4. Answer. Tap a choice, write or type the word and press Check it, or tap the microphone and spell it aloud.
5. Keep going. A right answer moves on. A wrong one brings help (see Help when stuck).
The practice screen with six numbered pins: the play button, Sentence, Definition, the mode bar, the speech speed button and the Parents button.
  1. PlayHear the word again.
  2. SentenceHear the word used in a sentence.
  3. HintsDefinition, Spelling hint and more. You can hide any of them.
  4. Mode barPick it, Write it, Type it or Say it.
  5. Speech speedNormal, Slow or Slower.
  6. ParentsSwitch modes on or off. Asks for your unlock code if you set one.

The four modes

Pick it: the word fam, a gap, then s, with four choices underneath: ow, u, ou and oo. Warm-up

Pick it

Choose the right spelling. By default the word is shown with its tricky letters missing, and the choices are spellings children really get wrong.

Good for: a new list, younger children, building confidence.

Write it: the word famous written in joined handwriting on the writing pad, with numbered boxes underneath, one for each letter. Closest to a real test

Write it

Write the word on the pad with a finger or a stylus. We read the handwriting and mark it straight away.

Good for: spelling tests, 11+, making spellings stick.

Type it: the letters f a m o typed into the answer box, with a Show keyboard button. Quickest

Type it

Type the word on a keyboard, or on the on-screen keyboard on a tablet.

Good for: daily practice and short sessions, on any device.

Say it: a large microphone button with the words Tap the microphone and spell out each letter. Out loud

Say it

Tap the microphone and say the letter names one at a time: "f, a, m, o, u, s".

Good for: children who know a word by sound but find writing it slow.

Hearing the word

In a sentence first

The first time a word plays, it is followed by its sentence, so your child knows which word is meant. After that, the play button says the word on its own.

Words that sound the same

For words like wait and weight, the sentence plays every time. The sound alone cannot say which one we mean.

Too fast?

Tap the speed button at the top for Slow or Slower. The voice is British English unless you chose another English for your child.

More on voices and words that sound alike: Audio & homophones.

When they get a word wrong: help when stuck

In Type it and Write it practice, a wrong answer is not the end of the word. Help comes in a step at a time, and your child tries the same word again.

Each wrong answer brings a bit more help

The first try is always on their own. This is the standard pace.

  1. The word famous flashed up large over the practice screen, with the letters o and u highlighted. See it again The word flashes up and is read aloud, with the tricky part picked out.
  2. A panel saying Here's the tricky part, showing only the letter u of famous with the rest as blanks. The tricky letters Only the letters they got wrong are shown. The rest stay hidden.
  3. The typing box showing fam, two blanks, then s, with a Skip this word link underneath. Fill the gap Most of the word is given. They put in just the missing letters. Skip appears.
  4. Shown, and back another day Still wrong, or skipped? We show the spelling and bring the word back soon.

In Write it the steps are the same. At "Fill the gap", the writing pad prints the rest of the word and your child writes only the missing letters.

Choose the first help

In your child's settings, under How they practise, then "Help when stuck".

Show the word

The word flashes up again (look, cover, write). Best for younger children meeting a word for the first time. This is the setting we start with.

Coach it

Tongo says what went wrong and what to look out for, and the word is never flashed. They spell it from memory, which suits a child who already knows most of the word.

No step-in help

One go per word. A wrong answer shows the spelling and moves on.

Coach it: Tongo the monkey with a speech bubble explaining that ou and ow can spell the same sound and this word uses ou.
Coach it: Tongo explains the mistake. The word itself stays hidden.

Choose how quickly help steps in

Under "How quickly help steps in". It changes when help comes, never what it is.

Step in quickly

For a child who gets upset when stuck. Skip comes sooner.

  1. 1st wrongSee it again
  2. 2nd wrongTricky letters + Skip
  3. 3rd wrongAnswer shown
  4. 4th wrong
  5. 5th wrong

Standard

Where everyone starts.

  1. 1st wrongSee it again
  2. 2nd wrongTricky letters
  3. 3rd wrongFill the gap + Skip
  4. 4th wrongAnswer shown
  5. 5th wrong

Let them wrestle

For a confident child. The first retry is on their own.

  1. 1st wrongTry again
  2. 2nd wrongSee it again
  3. 3rd wrongTricky letters
  4. 4th wrongFill the gap + Skip
  5. 5th wrongAnswer shown

"See it again" means Tongo's tip instead if you chose Coach it.

What it means for their progress

Right first time

Counts as known. The word comes back later, and the gap grows each time they get it right.

Right after help

Counts as right, and the report says "Correct after 3 tries". The word comes back tomorrow, because getting it with help is practice, not proof they know it.

Still wrong, or skipped

Counts as a miss. The word comes back tomorrow.

Each wrong try still feeds the Patterns report, so you can see which spelling rule is catching them out.

No help in tests. A Skills Check, a plan's test day and the "Check yourself" activities give one go per word, so they show what your child can do on their own. Pick it and Say it do not use these steps either.

Change it for one session

On a Learning plan, tap the cog on an activity and set "Help when stuck" for that activity only. Everything else uses your child's own setting.

Extra support you can switch on

In your child's settings, under How they practise. Tiles, tracing, Flash and the missing letters all count as help, so a right answer with them is practice rather than proof.

Pick it: choose just the missing letters

On for every child. Switch it off to choose between four whole spellings instead. Not used in tests.

Type it: letter tiles

"Relevant letters only" shows just the word's letters as tiles to put in order. On for early years to start with.

Write it: lines and letter trace

For early years: ruled lines on the pad (on to start with) and faint letters to trace over (off).

Flash

A 👁️ Flash button shows the word for 1 to 8 seconds, then hides it: look, cover, write, check. Choose which modes allow it in the Parents menu.

Writing on screen

A finger works

Most children write with a finger, and we read it. A stylus helps with neater letters, especially on a phone.

The best stylus

An Apple Pencil, a Samsung S Pen or another active stylus. A rubber-tipped stylus works like a finger. A mouse is not recommended.

Mistakes and space

The eraser rubs out a mistake. ✕ clears the pad. If writing reaches the right-hand edge, we say "Running out of room" so they can start again a little smaller.

Why it matters: school spelling tests and the 11+ are written by hand, so Write it is the closest practice to the real thing.

How strictly we read their writing

Marking is always exact: the word they wrote has to be the word they were asked for. What you choose is how generously we read their letters.

Three levels

Recommended for early years and SEN

Forgiving

We know which word they were asked for. A letter that could be read two ways is read as the one in the word, and look-alike slips (u and v, m and n, i and l) are put right before marking. A wobbly letter is not a reason to ask them to write it again.

Where every child starts

Standard

We read what is on the page without being told the word, so we never fill in a letter that is not there. If we are fairly sure, we ask "We read ... Is that what you wrote?". If we cannot read it, we ask them to write it again.

For confident writers

Strict

Like Standard, but a letter that could be two things is never given the benefit of the doubt. Good for a child getting ready for a written test, where a v that should be a u would be marked wrong.

Who should use Forgiving

Reception to Year 2. Letters are still forming. Reversed and half-closed letters are normal at this age, and being asked to write a word again for a wobbly a feels like getting it wrong.
Children with SEN that affect writing, such as dyslexia, dyspraxia (DCD) or difficulties with fine motor control. Their letters may not close neatly for years, and what we want to check is the spelling.
Any child we keep asking to write again. If that happens five or more times in a week, their card suggests switching to Forgiving. You decide; we never switch it for you.

If you ticked Gentler feedback when you added your child, they already start on Forgiving.

What stays the same at every level

A real misspelling is still wrong

Even Forgiving never adds, drops or swaps letters round. sihg is never read as sight, so the mark still means what it says.

They can tell us we misread

"That's not what I wrote" is there after a wrong mark in practice. The try is given back and does not count against them.

Where to change it

Your child's settings, then Support & access.

The setting How strictly we read handwriting, with its drop-down set to Standard and circled.
Choose Forgiving, Standard or Strict. It applies to that child on every device.

Which modes count towards progress

Every answer is saved. What changes is how much it tells us about a spelling rule your child is learning.

Can reach Secure

Write it on their own, or on paper

Words written with no help, on screen or on a photographed sheet. A rule shows as Secure once they have written three different words with it, on at least two days.

Counts to Practised

Type it, Say it, and writing with help

Real spelling from memory, but not written unaided. Typing alone can take a rule to Practised, never Secure.

Warm-up

Pick it

Spotting the right spelling is easier than producing it. It shows in the word's right and wrong count, but not in spelling rules.

See where each rule stands on the Curriculum tab: Spelling patterns.

Turning modes on and off

1. Open Parents. Tap Parents at the top of the practice screen. It asks for your unlock code if you set one.
2. Switch a mode off. It disappears from the mode bar for that child.
3. Choose where Flash is allowed. Tick the modes the Flash button can be used in.
The Parents menu, showing Practice modes with switches for Pick it, Write it, Type it and Say it, and Flash word button tick boxes underneath.
The Parents menu on the practice screen.

Sometimes the mode is chosen for you. On a Learning plan day the activity sets the mode and the other buttons are greyed out. A Skills Check offers only Write it and Type it.

Which mode should my child use?

Meeting a new list: Pick it, then Type it.
Everyday practice: Type it or Write it. Mixing them is fine.
A written spelling test or the 11+: Write it with no help, and some Paper practice.
Early years: Pick it and Write it, with lines on and Forgiving reading.
Stuck on one word: hear it in a sentence, use Flash, then Write it.
Five spare minutes: Type it.

Questions

Does my child need a stylus?

No. Write it works with a finger on a phone or tablet. A stylus such as an Apple Pencil or S Pen helps with neater letters.

Which mode is best for a spelling test?

Write it, with no help. It is the only screen mode that can show a spelling rule as Secure, because it is the closest to writing the word in a test.

Why does Pick it show only some of the letters?

It asks your child to choose just the tricky letters, from spellings children really get wrong. To choose between whole words instead, turn off "Choose just the missing letters" in their settings.

Can I stop my child using a mode?

Yes. Open the Parents menu on the practice screen and switch the mode off. It disappears from the mode bar for that child.

Why can't my child change mode?

A Learning plan activity sets its own mode, and a Skills Check offers only Write it and Type it. The mode bar opens up again in ordinary practice.

Does a right answer after help count?

It counts as right, and the report shows how many tries it took. The word comes back the next day, because getting it with help is practice, not proof.

Is my child's voice recorded in Say it?

No. The recording is turned into letters and then discarded. Only the letters are kept, as their answer.

Troubleshooting

You may have searched for

Key takeaways