Well , late last night my husband called me in to listen to Word of Mouth on radio 4  - thankfully it was still available on listen again today. Masha Bell was discussing the link she sees between English conventional spelling (it's actually not at all conventional) and children who struggle to read.

Michael Rosen was quizzing her.
One thing she said " Spelling Bee is a buzz for a few talented spellers, and for the majority it's a real sting."

She also mentioned the beetroot face of a youngster who has just been laughed at by the class for a mispelling.

When I meet a teenager who has real problems learning to read and write, first I gain their trust. Then I ask them "When did you first know that you had a problem with reading?" Almost all youngsters proceed to tell of a specific 'beetroot' moment in their schooling. As they start their story with a few faultering words, the emotions begin to surface. The story gathers pace, and minute details begin to emerge from their memory. One common factor - The horror of being laughed at.

Shut down.

These are youngsters who, at Secondary school, tell me "Readings rubbish" and "Don't need to learn to read" and "My Dad can't read, and he's done ok".

Of course, reforming spelling is one change. Society needs many changes.

Having read again Masha Bell's website, and listened to her discussion with Michael Rosen, I am even more convinced that a more generous attitude to people who don't naturally find learning to spell gives them a buzz, would be a cheap way to raise reading standards nationally.

There is a natural progression for all learners of English literacy - read, write, spell. If spelling is put in front of reading, then catastrophe may follow.

That catastrophe starts as an emotional eruption - a beetroot moment.

It ends by locking a child with potential into bottom set. If they are not the languishing type, then beware volcanic eruptions with very expensive consequences.

So, 3 things

1.Take the pressure off spelling.
2.If a child gets laughed at for wrong spelling, deal with that moment very carefully.
3.Learning to read is the most important, learning to write phonetically is the second, and conventional spelling is the icing on the cake of literacy, and must not be put first.