LEARNING TO SPELL FOR ADULTS

Spelling the English language can be a challenge. It typically, however, involves nothing more complicated than memorization. You can be a successful speller if you're willing to study and practice the art and science of spelling.

Reading, using a dictionary and playing online word games are all helpful. Sounding out words and breaking them into parts are good skills to develop.

Learning spelling rules is important, too, but the many exceptions to those rules can be rather frustrating. In the end it comes down mainly to memorization. This article will help you with the daunting task of spelling English words.

Method 1
Method 1 of 3:
Small Words

Step 1 Learn the letters and sounds of the alphabet.

Learn the letters and sounds of the alphabet. This will allow you to recognize them when you hear them within words. Use flashcards or ask a tutor to help you connect letters to their sounds. Practice making those connections in your mind. This will help you recognize the appropriate letters when you sound out words.
Ask a family member or friend to help you learn the letter sounds.
As an alternative you can watch videos online that show you how to say each letter.

Step 2 Identify the sounds as you slowly say a word you want to spell.

Identify the sounds as you slowly say a word you want to spell. It helps to say the word more than once. Stretch out the word to help you identify each sound in it. If you say the word too quickly, you may miss a letter sound.
If the word has more than one syllable, separate them mentally or in writing. Pronounce each syllable individually.
For example, the word "probably" is very easy to misspell if you pronounce it "probly." Saying it slowly -- "prob-ab-ly" -- can help you hear the sounds in each syllable.

Step 3 Split up each letter sound in the word to help you hear them.

Split up each letter sound in the word to help you hear them. It's helpful to draw an underline on your paper for each sound that you hear. Don't worry about what the word is supposed to look like. Just focus on the sounds you hear when you say the word. Then think about which letter or letters might make each sound.
It helps to count out the number of sounds in the word. For example, let's say you want to spell the word "tiger." You might hear four sounds: t-i-g-er.

Step 4 Spell out each sound.

Spell out each sound. Write out the letter sounds you hear for each sound in the word. Then put the sounds together to form the word. Check your work by sounding out the word again while you look at your spelling, letter by letter.[3]
For a harder word you may need to refer to the spelling rules instead of just sounding the word out.

Method 2
Method 2 of 3:
Big Words

Step 1 Divide a big word into smaller words, syllables or parts.

Divide a big word into smaller words, syllables or parts. Say the word slowly, looking for smaller words within it, such as "grand" and "father" in "grandfather." If you can't find smaller words, focus on the syllables or patterns within the word. This makes it easier to spell the word, because you can more easily sound it out. You may already know how to spell the smaller words. Here are some ways to break down big words:
Break larger words into smaller words. For example, “baseball” is an example of what's known as a "compound" word: it can be broken into smaller words, in this case "base" and "ball."
Break up non-compound words into syllables. For example, you would break up “hospital” into three syllables this way: hos-pi-tal.
Break the word into convenient parts. For instance, “impossible” can be broken into im/poss/ible. Here you're not breaking the word into syllables, just artificial segments. The idea is to consider a longer word in shorter sections just so the task of spelling it becomes a bit easier.

Step 2 Look for a prefix to make spelling easier.

Look for a prefix to make spelling easier. A prefix is a short series of letters that can be added to the beginning of a word to change its meaning. The spelling of a prefix never changes, so just memorize its spelling. Here are the most common prefixes:
Mis, as in “misspell”
Dis, as in “disagree”
Un, as in “unlikely”
Re, as in “rewrite”
Anti, as in “antifreeze”
De, as in “dehydrate”
Non, as in “nonsense”
Fore, as in “forecast”
In, as in “injustice”
Im, as in “impossible”
Note that most of these prefixes mean "not."

Step 3 Notice whether the word has a suffix.

Notice whether the word has a suffix. A suffix appears at the end of a word and changes its meaning. The spelling of a suffix never changes, so memorize it. Here are the most common suffixes:
Ed, as in “spelled”
Ing, as in “spelling”
Ly, as in “likely”
Ful, as in “beautiful”
Able, as in “comfortable”
Ible, as in “possible”
Er, as in “higher”
Ment, as in “enjoyment”
Ness, as in “happiness”
Est, as in “biggest”

Step 4 Spell out each part of the word, and then put them all together.

Spell out each part of the word, and then put them all together. If you know how to spell smaller words or segments within the word, such as a prefix, spell those first. Then look for common letter patterns, and sound out each segment to help you spell them. Write out the letters you hear.
Check your spelling by sounding out the word. Would the spelling you’ve used sound right?
For example, when spelling "remind," you could break it down into "re" and "mind." If you know how the prefix "re" is spelled, write that first. Then you just need to spell "mind." If you aren't sure how to spell it, you could sound out "mind" as "m" and "ind." Then select the letters as you hear them.

Method 3
Method 3 of 3:

Spelling Rules

Step 1 Recognize that some spelling rules have exceptions.

Recognize that some spelling rules have exceptions. English is a tricky language, because many of the rules have exceptions. Certain spellings simply don't follow the rules. However, knowing the rules will help you most of the time.
While it helps to know the exceptions, don’t try to learn them all at once. If you absorb them gradually, they won't seem so frustrating.
Your best bet is simply to memorize the spellings that don't conform to the rules.

Step 2 Remember the general rule that "i" precedes "e" much of the time except when they follow the letter "c."

Remember the general rule that "i" precedes "e" much of the time except when they follow the letter "c." This well-known rule pertains to words such as die, friend, yield, patient, convenience, piece and receive (where "ei" follows "c." Unfortunately, there are many words that disobey this rule, such as weight, height, sleigh and reins. When the rules fail, you're left with memorization.
If the i/e combination is followed immediately by a "gh" (as in weight or height), the "e" precedes the "i." It's another exception you simply have to memorize.
A few other words to memorize (that don't follow the "i before e" rule) include “either,” "neither," “leisure,” “protein,” “their,” and “weird.”

Step 3 Pay attention to other double vowels.

Pay attention to other double vowels. Remember the rhyme, “When two vowels go walking, the first one does the talking.” When two vowels are next to each other, often you pronounce only the first vowel. This makes it easier to place two vowels in the right order. (Of course, you have to remember that two vowels are called for in this case.)
For example, you hear the “o” sound in the word “coat,” so you know the “o” comes first. You hear the “e” sound in “mean,” so you put the “e” first.
Once again there are exceptions to this rule that you will need to memorize, such as “you,” “great,” and “phoenix.”

Step 4 Learn the “c” sound patterns.

Learn the “c” sound patterns. The letter “c” can be pronounced hard, as in “cat,” or soft, as in “cell.” Usually if the letter following the "c" is "a," "o," "u" or a consonant, the "c" is hard. Examples include cat, cot, cut, cute and clue. If the following letter is "e," "i" or "y," the "c" is usually soft. Examples include celery, citation and cycle.

Step 5 Look for consonant letter combinations where one letter is silent.

Look for consonant letter combinations where one letter is silent. English words sometimes have a letter that is silent, typically a consonant next to another consonant at the beginning of a word. Here are common letter combinations where one letter is silent:
Gn, pn, and kn: These letter combinations all have an “n” sound. The other letter is silent. Examples are "gnaw," "pneumonia" and "knock."
Rh and wr: Both of these combinations have an “r” sound. For example, rhyme and "write.
Ps and sc: These combinations both make an “s” sound, as in psychic and science.
Wh: Sometimes "wh" sounds like "h," as in "whole."
"Gh" is often silent, especially if it comes after “i.” This happens in words like "right" and weight." Sometimes “gh” makes an “f” sound, as in “cough” or "tough."

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ADULT EDUCATION TO READ & WRITE IN ENGLISH

We teach adults with little or no formal education how to read, write, speak, spell and listen. We help students to write and read very basic texts and sentences easily. To enable students to communicate in very simple English. We caoch them on elementary arithmetic of addition, substraction, multiplication and division. We guide and encourage our pupils to build confidence in themselves.

WE Teach:

- English alphabet
- Word formation
- Sound production
- Numbers, colours and shapes
- Months of the year, days of the week, date and time
- Reading & comprehension, writing, grammar and oral English
- Addition, Substraction, Multiplication & Division.

Duration: 12 months

Assignment, class work, test, debates, presentations and examination are taking periodically and at the end of the session and certificates of participation are issued to students at the end of their program.

FEES:
#50,000/Per term/3months

List of textbooks and other study materials will be given to students to purchase from bookshop.

LOCATION:

SYMMETRIC ADULT EDUCATION
Suite 35, Mota Complex,
Opposite Harmony Estate,
Ifako-Gbagada,
Lagos State,
Nigeria.

LESSON DAYS:
Monday, Wednesday & Friday
10:a.m. to 1:p.m.

12 Types Of Verb Tenses And How To Use Them

What Is A Verb Tense? 12 Types Of Tenses Past Tenses Present Tenses Future Tenses Rely On Grammar Coach

If you’re familiar with basic English grammar, we bet you can describe a verb and perhaps name a tense or two. In the sentences the boy walks and the girl ran, the words walks and ran are the verbs.

Did you also recognize that walks is in the present tense, or that ran is in the past tense? Whether you did or didn’t, we’re here to review verb tenses with you and also astound you with the fact that there are 12—count them, 12—verb tenses in all!

What is a verb tense?
Generally speaking, verb tenses identify the time period when an action occurs. The verb walks communicates not only how many people completed the action (it’s singular), but also when it occurred. In this case, the tense is present. The person walks right now.

Interestingly, not all languages treat verb tenses the same way. In English, the ending on a verb communicates what tense it’s in. (Walk becomes walks and walked.) In some cases, an auxiliary verb (also known as a helping verb, like will or need) is required as well. In Chinese languages, for example, a verb doesn’t change its spelling depending on the tense. A separate word (or particle) is combined with the verb to explain when it occurred.

12 types of verb tenses
The simple tenses (past, present, and future) are the most basic forms, but there are 12 major verb tenses in English in all. We’ll review the tenses here.

Past tenses
The past tenses use verbs to say that something happened in the past, meaning any time before this moment right now. There are four variations of past tenses:

Simple past: describes events that began and ended in the past.

Past continuous: describes events that began in the past, continued for a length of time, and ended in the past.

Past perfect: describes a past event that occurred before another past event.

Past perfect continuous: describes an event that began in the past, continued for a length of time, and was in progress when another past event happened.

Simple past
The simple past tense describes events that have already happened and are completely finished. Most verbs can be made past tense by adding -ed, –d, or sometimes the variant –t at the end of a present tense verb, as in liked and watched.

However, many irregular verbs have unique past tense forms. For example, go becomes went, and think becomes thought.

Simple past is usually used to write about historical events, like so:

Galileo observed the stars.

In this example, the verb tense indicates that the astronomer Galileo completely finished the act of observing the stars at some point in the past.

Past continuous
The past continuous tense describes an ongoing activity that occurred in the past. It is formed by combining the past tense verb to be (which must be correctly conjugated to agree with the subject) and the present participle of a verb (ending in –ing):

The planet was moving along an elliptical orbit.
In this example, the verb tense says that the planet began moving sometime in the past and continued to do so for a period of time (in the past).

Establish the different times to use was vs. were so you won’t have any mistakes again.

Past perfect
The perfect tenses involve more complex time relationships. They build upon simple tenses by combining a verb with has, have, or had.

The past perfect tense, also called the pluperfect tense, describes a past event in relation to another event that occurs closer to the present. It is formed by combining had and the past participle of the verb.

The girl bought the telescope her teacher had recommended to her.
The girl bought (simple past) what the teacher had recommended (past perfect tense). One action occurred (had recommended) before the other (bought).

Past perfect continuous
The past perfect continuous tense describes an ongoing action that—like the past perfect—was performed in relation to another event that occurs closer to the present. It is formed by combining had been with the present participle of the verb.

He had been studying for his astronomy final when the doorbell rang.
The above example uses the verb tense to indicate that he was studying for a length of time before another event (the doorbell ringing) interrupted or stopped his act of studying.

Present tenses
Generally speaking, we use the present tenses to say that an event is happening right now in the present time. Like the past tenses, there are four variations of present tenses:

Simple present: Describes an event as happening in the present.
Present continuous: Describes an event as being in progress in the present and likely continuing into the future.

Present perfect: Describes an event that occurred in the past but has some connection to the present.

Present perfect continuous: Describes an event that began in the past but still continues to happen in the present.

Simple present
The simple present tense describes events happening now. It’s also useful for describing a direct action that’s not exclusive to the past or 4future.

Sentences in present tense often have the most straightforward structure because they use the root form of the verb or a conjugation of the verb to be. The root form of the verb is the form you will find if you look up a verb in our dictionary.

We often use the simple present tense to state facts:

Cats eat mice and birds.
In this sentence, the simple present tense is used to state the fact that cats regularly eat mice and birds.

When you use the verb be in the simple present tense, it must agree with the subject of the sentence. For example:

I am tall.
You are my best friend.
She is my older sister.
We are hungry.
They are late for work.

Present continuous
The present continuous tense describes an ongoing activity that is happening now, in the present. It is formed by combining the verb to be and the present participle of the verb (ending in –ing):

The baby is laughing at Shelly’s monkey puppet.
In this example, the verb tense is used to state that the baby is currently in the process of laughing at Shelly’s silly puppet and will likely continue to do so for a while yet.

Present perfect
The present perfect tense describes a past event that’s still happening in the present. It is formed by combining the word has or have (depending on the subject) with the past 5participle of the verb.

Let’s look at this sentence:

The baby has played this game before.
In this example, the verb tense states that a past event is related to the present. In this case, the sentence is saying that the baby is currently playing a game that they have also played at another time in the past.

Present perfect continuous:
The present perfect continuous tense describes an ongoing action that began in the past and is still occurring in the present.4t It is formed by combining the phrase has been or have been (depending on the subject) with the present participle of the verb.

Shelly has been babysitting for years.
In this example, the verb tense is used to say that Shelly started babysitting children in the past, continued to babysit for years, and still continues to babysit now.

Future tenses
We use the future tenses to say that an event will happen sometime in the future. Like past and present tenses, there are four variations of future tenses:

Simple future: Describes an event that will begin and end in the future.

Future continuous: Describes an event that will begin in the future and continue for a length of time.

Future perfect: Describes a future event that will happen before another future event.

Future perfect continuous: Describes a future event that will begin, continue for a length of time, and still be in progress when another future event occurs.

Simple future
The simple future tense describes events that haven’t happened yet. It’s useful for describing an intended action or a prediction. It’s typically formed by combining the word will or, less commonly, shall with a root verb.

For example:

Molly will finish her chores when she has time.
We shall travel to France next summer.
The word will is an auxiliary verb, and finish is the root verb. Together, they explain that Molly4 intends to do her chores at a later point in time.

Learn more about auxiliary verbs and the verbs they help out, here.

Future continuous tense
The future continuous tense describes an activity that will extend over a period of time and will happen in the future. It is formed by combining the phrase will be and the present participle of the verb (ending in –ing):

I will be working all afternoon, so I can’t help Olivia with her report.
In this sentence, the verb tense is used to say that I plan to work for a period of time in the future.

Future perfect tense
The future perfect tense describes an upcoming action in relation to another event farther in the future. It is formed by combining the phrase will have and the past participle of the verb:

By tomorrow afternoon, Olivia will have finished her report.
This sentence uses the future perfect tense to say that Olivia’s report is incomplete right now, but it will be finished before tomorrow afternoon.

Future perfect continuous
The future perfect continuous tense describes an action that will extend over a period of time and will be performed in relation to another future event. It is formed by combining the phrase will have been with the present participle of the verb (ending in –ing):

When this show ends, Molly will have been watching TV for three hours.

This sentence uses the future perfect continuous tense to say that, in the future, Molly will be watching TV for three hours when this show ends (which will also happen in the future). By using the future perfect continuous tense, this sentence also implies that Molly may still continue to watch TV even after the show is over.

Perfect grammar has never been easier
To avoid confusion, you should use one consistent tense whenever possible.

❌ Incorrect: The crowd claps and laughed at the comedian.
✅ Correct: The crowd clapped and laughed at the comedian.

The incorrect example contains both a present tense verb (claps) and a past tense verb (laughed). This can be confusing. If both actions are past or present, both verbs should have the same tense.

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Looking for where to attend adult education lesson, learn how to read, write, speak and spell in Lagos, Nigeria, Gbagada, Ikeja, Lekki, Ikoyi, Ajah, Surulere, Oshodi, Victoria Island, Ketu, Ojota, Ojodu-Berger, Mowe, Ikorodu, Islolo, Festac, Agege, Orile, Obalende, Lagos-Island, Apapa, Songo, etc.

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CONTACT:
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