One of the challenges when learning words in English is that there are two types of words; those that can be spelt exactly as they sound (phonetically) and those that cannot. Approximately 70% of English words can be spelt phonetically (the sounds of the letters are added together to make the word):
e.g. b ir d = bird.
學英文時，其中一項挑戰就是單字。英文單字分為兩種：字母拼音及非字母拼音。有百分之70的英文字是由字母來拼音的，可藉由一個個字母將單字的讀音拼出來。
如：b ir d = bird。
But that means that around 30% of words, some of which are very commonly used, have to be memorized as they can’t be spelt correctly by sounding out the letters:
e.g. know doesn’t sound like the individual or grouped letters.
但是有百分之三十的字，有些是常用字，必須藉由記憶來學習因為它們不能由字母拼出讀音。如：know。
How can we help our children? 如何幫助學生學單字?
Tip 1: Pick out the words that are spelt phonetically.
祕訣一：從 ”可用自然拼音原則” 的字開始
Sound out the letters of the word, as the children are learning phonics already they can usually work out the first sound and the last sound:
e.g. r—e—d Most young children can get ‘r’ and maybe ‘d’ but struggle with the vowel sounds.
將單字中字母一一發音。一般學生都能用已學過之字母音的原則念出來：
如：r—e—d，大部分學生可重頭到尾發出 ‘r’ 和 ‘d’ 的音，有些學生可能會比較難發出母音。
This is true of native speakers too; they also mix up vowel sounds at young ages. Let your children practice these words first, if they get the first and last sound they only have to memorize the middle bit!
對一些母語人士，他們在年幼時也會搞混。所以學生應多加練習這一類型的字。如果能掌握第一和最後的子音，他們就只要專攻中間的母音即可。
Tip 2: Let your children try spelling the words before they actively start to memorize them.
秘訣二：讓學生在記憶單字前，先將單字用拼音唸出來
This gives you a good idea of how well your child is doing with their phonics. There is no wrong answer at this stage, so be supportive and let them know that getting even a few letters right is a big step to memorizing the ones they didn’t know.
這一點提供家長掌握自己孩子目前學習拼音的情況。在這一階段不要用所謂的對錯答案去要求孩子，需多鼓勵並讓他們知道只要能拼出一些的字母，對記憶單字的部分就已經是往前一大步了。
When looking at the words that they didn’t get correct, try to sound out the parts that they struggled with and see if they can correct them. If they can work out the problem themselves, they have a better chance of remembering than if they are told by you.
If you don’t know how to read the word yourself, you can listen to the word list on the Shane Kids website (www.shane-kids.com) or on the CD.
當他們將字母音發錯時，請協助並引導他們，讓他們試著自己先改正。如果他們可以自己修正過來，表示他們會有較好的記憶單字的機會。比我們直接告訴孩子答案還有效。
如果您本身不知如何讀這字，請您先聽夏恩官網Shane Kids或CD上的單字表的發音。
Tip 3: Look for patterns in the words.
秘訣三：在單字中找出規則
There are many words that repeat the same cluster of letters to generate a specific sound. Some words they know well sound like new words they are learning in their class now:
e.g. ‘clock’ sounds like ‘rock’
有許多字重複著一連串相同發音的字母，形成一些特定音。學生在聽到一些新字時，會自覺到與一些已學過的單字發音類似。
如：‘clock’與‘rock’，都重複著 “ock”, 聽起來相似。
In this example the pattern is ‘ock’, therefore, your child can just change their pronunciation of the start of the word based on their knowledge of phonics.
遇到這一類的字，您的孩子只要改變前面開頭的子音，就可以順利讀出這一類的字了。
Tip 4: Find the phonic parts of words and only memorize the non-phonic part.
秘訣四：找出字母中可拼音的部分並只要記憶無法使用拼音原則的部分即可
The more of the word that can be deduced by the phonic sounds, the less your child needs to memorize, which will also raise their chances of success:
e.g the number ‘4’ sounds like ‘f’ and ‘or’, now they only need to memorise the ‘u’ in the middle of ‘or’ and they can spell ‘four’.
e.g kitchen – ‘k – i – t’ and ‘ch’ can be sounded out phonetically, now all they need to memorize is ‘en’ at the end.
為協助您孩子背好單字，越能找出在單字中拼音原則發音的部分，孩子就能少記一些無法用拼音原則發音的部分。
如：4這個字，聽起來像‘f’ 和 ‘or’，孩子就只要記中間的‘u’即可，這樣就能背出‘four’這個字了。
又如：kitchen這個字，當中的k – i – t’ 及‘ch’，都能用自然拼音的原則發出，所以您孩子只要記 結尾的 ‘en’即可。
These are four tips for achieving better spelling and writing test results. The more they can apply phonics and the less they need to memorize, the better. There is, however, one more very important tip!
Encourage your child to do lots of reading! They will see all the words they need to spell while also enjoying a story which will, in turn, help them get better scores in school and become a real spelling master!
以上4個祕訣幫助您孩子達到更好的拼寫單字技巧。學生越能應用自然拼音的原則，就越能減少他們記憶單字的難度。
最後，還有一個更重要的秘訣：請鼓勵孩子大量閱讀英文!當享受一個故事時，他們會努力拚出所需要知道的單字，這樣也能進一步提高在校考試的成績，而成為一個真正的拼字高手！
