Educators Find SpellChamp! a Handy Teaching Tool in Developing Student Spelling Skills

Educators across the country are striving to improve student performance while meeting the mandates of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), all while dealing with ever-increasing workloads and the pressure to provide greater access to computerized learning tools for all students. To tackle these challenges, schools are looking for creative ways to meet their goals, such as the school-wide deployment of low-cost handheld computers.

The emerging influence of mobile technologies in the classroom offers opportunities to stimulate young minds and engage students at a cost-per-student that is much lower than traditional desktop or laptop computers. At the same time, teachers are afforded a more efficient means of doing their jobs. The basic functions of handhelds have been useful for entering text in the Memo Pad, learning time and time zones, staying organized, etc., but to increase their capability as a powerful teaching tool they need to be equipped with software programs specifically designed for enhancing a student's education. Many schools are discovering the fun, yet powerful, educational games for PDAs offered by Leading Step, Inc. games such as SpellChamp!, which is designed specifically for use in an elementary classroom.

The Need to Succeed

Heather Voran, an Instructional Technology Specialist representing the Region 16 ESC (Education Service Center) in Amarillo, Texas found SpellChamp! when researching software solutions that would meet the requirements of a grant. SpellChamp! is Leading Step's game aimed at improving spelling skills. There are now approximately 2,000 students in schools of the Texas Panhandle using SpellChamp! - and this initiative was entirely grant funded.

"Our region applied for and received funding for the Panhandle Academic Advancement in Literacy and Math (PAALM) grant through the Texas Education Agency," Heather explains. "As part of this three-year program, we have put to use several handheld reading and math applications in the classroom, SpellChamp! being one of them."

Twelve school districts and 19 campuses currently participate in the program. Approximately 130 teachers have been provided with a set of handheld computers and related software for their classrooms. Teachers may implement any of the software purchased through the grant in their daily lessons to improve student reading and math skills. The software is used for group activities or tailored to individuals for specific learning needs.

"The PAALM grant team selected SpellChamp! for several reasons," Heather said. "For example, we like the fact that SpellChamp! presents the words to students in the context of sentences and, since context clues are a vital part of reading comprehension, this was a significant factor."

Another noteworthy aspect of the program is the database integrated into the application which includes over 5,400 frequently used words. Teachers use this database to create groups of words for students to practice, saving them valuable time by eliminating the need to type the words themselves. Various criteria can be used to select words; for example, those matching certain letter combinations or having a specific number of syllables. They may also be chosen according to twelve different spelling rules including those with distinct prefixes or suffixes, or selected from ten diverse categories such as homophones, compound words, or contractions. Once a new word group is created, the teacher simply beams it to the students.

"During professional development training, the teachers were very excited by the options available in the SpellChamp! application," says Heather. "It has great potential as an effective learning tool because of its strategy for improving academic achievement and for its overall teacher effectiveness. SpellChamp! promotes curricula and uses a teaching approach that integrates technology. In addition, it provides an innovative delivery strategy and is much more affordably priced than PC software."

A Progressive Learning Tool for All Levels

Another feature that led to the selection of SpellChamp! was its ability to increase the level of word difficulty. Students progress from recognizing the correct spelling, to unscrambling the letters of a word, to filling in the blanks of the word, to spelling it completely on their own.

"This feature allows students at any level to feel successful," reports Heather.

SpellChamp! is also designed to make teachers more efficient in their instruction. Heather indicates that the existing word database, coupled with the ability to select words based on spelling rules, have proven to be real time-saving features; while the application's tracking component allows teachers to monitor student progress and determine trouble areas.

Heather attributes SpellChamp! with some of the schools' success at improving academic achievement and teacher effectiveness and for increasing accessibility to computers for all students (as handhelds are much less costly than desktop or laptop PCs).

Based on the success of the SpellChamp! program, schools in the Texas Panhandle will soon be offering students other Leading Step games, including "Shape Up: Geometry" and MathChamp!.

When challenged with the need to meet increasing standards for excellence in education within the constraints of a limited budget, SpellChamp! has been a welcome addition to the schools of the Texas Panhandle - for both students and teachers.

About Leading Step, Inc.

Leading Step, Inc. creates fun, educational games for children from grades 3-8 to help them improve their skills in the areas of spelling, geometry and math. The games are played on Palm OS handhelds, which provide parents and teachers a low-cost means of increasing access to computers and learning software among children. Leading Step's games are played by children throughout the entire world. For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.leadingstep.com. Schools can also find helpful information at Leading Step's Web site regarding state standards that each of the company's applications will help teachers to meet which can be used for grant-writing purposes.