Simultaneous oral spelling, sometimes shortened to SOS, combines seeing, saying, writing and checking a word. It gives focused practice on a very small set of useful spellings.

Use the routine

Choose three words from current schoolwork. Work with one word at a time:

1. Show and say the word.

2. Ask your child to say each letter name while writing it.

3. Read the complete word aloud.

4. Check it against the model.

5. Cover the word and repeat it from memory.

6. Correct an error immediately and try once more.

For friend, the child says each letter while writing, reads the whole word and then writes it again without looking.

Revisit rather than expand

Use the same three words in several short sessions. Once your child can write a word from memory and use it accurately in a sentence, replace it with another useful spelling.

Keep the activity to a few focused minutes. Saying letter names while writing is different from segmenting a new word into speech sounds, so use SOS for spellings your child is learning to remember rather than as a replacement for the phonics approach used at school.

Avoid large lists, repeated copying without covering the model or continuing once concentration has dropped. If your child finds the routine confusing, ask school whether another practice method would fit better.