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The Inside Story on English Spelling by [Boston, Paquita]

The Inside Story on English Spelling Kindle Edition

by Paquita Boston (Author)

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Ever wondered why ‘his’ doesn’t have a Z? Or what on Earth is O doing in ‘won’? Ever asked why GH is in through? Or what is the point of silent letters?

At last a book which spills the beans on English spelling.

English spelling has rules and lots of them. Paquita Boston explains why English spelling is so difficult, much harder than spelling in most other languages. Boston also reveals the various codes that govern English spelling and describes how these codes are keys to hidden treasure, the cultural inheritance of all English speaking people.

Boston treats spelling as a game as serious as any sport, with as many rules and as many game changes. After reading this book you’ll actually enjoy spelling and no longer view English as a ‘funny language without many spelling rules’. Instead, you will want to share the inside story on English spelling with young and old.

Length: 216 pages	Word Wise: Enabled	Enhanced Typesetting: Enabled
Page Flip: Enabled	Language: English

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Product Description

Product details

Format: Kindle Edition
File Size: 2735 KB
Print Length: 216 pages
Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
Publisher: DoctorZed Publishing; 1st eBook edition (2 January 2014)
Sold by: Amazon Australia Services, Inc.
Language: English
ASIN: B00HNL1MOC
Text-to-Speech: Enabled

X-Ray:

Not Enabled

Word Wise: Enabled
Screen Reader: Supported

Enhanced Typesetting: Enabled

Average Customer Review: 1 customer review
Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #397,623 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
- #10 in Spelling (Kindle Store)
- #20 in Spelling (Books)
- #60 in Vocabulary, Slang & Word Lists (Kindle Store)

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RobbieK

Most interesting

26 July 2014

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Having been a primary teacher for 40 years I found this book totally absorbing. Wish I'd known the history of words when I started teaching. It's never too late and I've recommended the book to my former colleagues. It's a pity that so many teachers or Principals don't see the relevance of cursive writing. I loved teaching the old cursive script, as opposed to the terrible 'modern' cursive. Their writing improved considerably.
Every primary and secondary teacher should read this.

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Most helpful customer reviews on Amazon.com

Amazon.com: 1 reviews

spellingblogger

Witty, Passionate, Thought-Provoking

4 September 2014 - Published on Amazon.com

With wit and passion, Paquita explains the reasons why English spelling is the way it is. She goes into detail about where rules come from, what they are for, how spelling became so ‘weird’ and ‘irregular’ and who was responsible. Her enthusiasm and love of the history of spelling and words is obvious throughout the book.

Even though I know a lot about spelling and the history behind it, this book was full of revelations. I was especially interested in “Chapter One – A Class Plot?” This was a fantastic chapter giving the history of why we don’t have a simplified spelling system. She takes us through the history of spelling from the Celts, Romans, to the Normans, to the Black Death, to Caxton, to reading and revolution, to the “Tax on Knowledge.” And finally to a group of “gentlemen of leisure” in the 19th Century who set about writing their New English Dictionary and chose words based on their historical context/classical roots rather than the ease of reading or spelling the word. A class plot? Elitism? Nothing changes!

In “Chapter 2 - Cursive Casualties” she explains how the Medieval Norman scribes’ slanting writing changed spelling for the worst. This is the key to a lot of “strange” spellings vs. pronunciation.

From Chapter 3 onwards she explains the history behind various rules, letters, silent letters and pronunciation. With titles such as: Beware Greek Gifts, The Curse of the Dagger, Yods and Imps, Where do rules come from? Why Bother? she details how spelling has changed and developed, and makes suggestions about how to teach/engage children in learning spellings through using drama, costumes, feather pens, timelines etc.

It’s a book every teacher should read so that they can answer those horrid questions about why a word is spelt the way it is without resorting to “Oh it’s just the way spelling is,” which is no use to anyone.

So many people moan about spelling without knowing the facts; they just dismiss it as “funny.” But why whinge about it when you can learn so many fun things about it? It’s never too late to learn to spell well and knowing all about why English spelling is the way it is, taking an interest in words, and knowing the history of spelling are all important strategies to help learn and love spelling.

For future editions an index would be very useful. And maybe her book Reading with Rules, 30,000 Words Listed with Spelling Rules, Reasons and Rebels should be on Amazon because she mentions it quite often in the book; and it looks like there might be even more interesting facts in there that are not in this book – can’t wait to read it.

One person found this helpful