Specific Learning Trajectories of Spelling Regularities
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: ABSTRACT This study analyzes four regular spelling patterns: (1a) final unstressed ; (1b) final unstressed ; (2a) final in infinitive verbs; and (2b) final in nouns. Patterns in (1) are similar in terms of stress context, as both involve unstressed vowels. Patterns in (2) involve the occurrence of the letter at the end of words. Writing samples were collected from children and adolescents enrolled in the 1st, 3rd, 5th, 7th, and 9th grades of a public elementary school in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. The hypothesis tested was that spelling error rates would vary significantly depending on the type of spelling pattern. The data supported this hypothesis. In final unstressed contexts, learners made more spelling errors with the letter than with . Regarding the letter , infinitive verbs were spelled with more errors than nouns. Drawing on the Integration of Multiple Patterns Theory (IMP) (Treiman & Kessler, 2014), we argue that seemingly similar spelling patterns may entail distinct learning trajectories. In other words, we assert that spelling acquisition occurs through multiple trajectories that can only be identified through contextualized analyses—ones that consider not only letter-sound correspondences but also phonetic variability and the morphological structures underlying each pattern. In summary, we propose that both the analysis and teaching of spelling should move beyond the traditional dichotomy of regularity versus irregularity. KEYWORDS: Spelling regularities; Spelling erros; Final unstressed vowels; Final rhotics; Multiple patterns.
Author: Valle Souza Toledo, Cecília
Institution: Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais
Language: English
Subfield: Developmental and Educational Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
SDG: Quality education
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W6949858019
FWCI:
Cites:
Cited by:
Related to: