Spelling and ABC orderAny grade
Spelling test template
Blank test paper with numbered answer lines for 5 to 20 words, plus bonus word lines, one dictation sentence line and a score box. Any teacher or parent can use it with any word list.
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On this page
What prints
The sheet is titled "Spelling Test", with a Name line at the top and an instruction: listen to each word, write it on its line, and check your spelling before handing it in. Below that are the answer lines, each with its number on the left, running from 1 up to the count you choose.
Up to 12 words print in one column. If you choose 13 or more, the lines split into two columns, with the left column filled first. So 15 words print as 8 on the left and 7 on the right.
Under the numbered lines the page has two more sections.
- Bonus words. A heading and three blank lines for challenge words.
- Dictation sentence. A heading and a single full-width line for a sentence read aloud.
The last item is a "Score" at the bottom right, written as a blank over a blank, so you can fill in 14 out of 15, for example. The template holds no words of its own. It is test paper, and you read the words aloud.
The settings
- Sheet. Set to "Blank spelling test paper". When it is, the grade and word-list boxes disappear because they are not used.
- Number of words. Any number from 5 to 20. The page opens at 15.
That is all. The line spacing adjusts to the number of words, so a short test has roomy lines and a 20-word test has tighter ones.
Running the test
Say the word, use it in a short sentence, then say the word again. Give children a few seconds, and repeat only if asked. Read at an even pace, and skip ahead only when most of the room has finished.
Use the bonus lines for words above the usual list, or for words from earlier weeks. They let strong spellers show more without changing the main score. If you do not want them, leave the lines empty or cross out the heading.
The dictation sentence checks more than spelling. A child has to hold a sentence in mind, begin with a capital and end with a period. Choose a sentence built from list words, such as "The people came to school because it was cold."
Fluency with spelling is one of the skills the IES guide to elementary writing says to teach, alongside handwriting and sentence construction. A short weekly test is one way to see what has stuck.
Worked example: a Friday test for 12 words
A fourth-grade teacher has a list of 12 words and three bonus words from last month. She sets the number to 12, so the test stays in one column, and prints a copy for each student.
She reads word one, its sentence, and the word again, and so on down the page. Students write on lines 1 to 12. For bonus words she reads "separate", "receive" and "environment". For the dictation line she reads "We need to separate the trash from the recycling." Then she collects the papers.
When she marks them, she writes the score in the box, such as "13 / 15" if she counted bonus words as points. She can keep the same pages as a record and use the spelling practice worksheet to reteach missed words.