I read my little booklet Dictation: how to teach grammar, spelling, reading and almost all language arts in an easy alternative to homeschool curriculum. Here’s the link - RIGHT HERE - in case you missed it.

I’ve included some examples of dictation lessons at different stages of development. Here are the oft-referred to “curlicue” letters.

I want to look at the power of one-word dictation for little folks, and the compelling argument for short and simple.

Below, a simple lesson.
”tree”
Upper and lower cases talked about, the different letters and combinations that make an “ee” sound.  We could think of two or three words aloud for each example.  This dictation was in the context of a poem read together, so the title and author are brought into the conversation.  And they had the opportunity to read a great poem together, and chat about it!

Here, mom goes over letter formation again, looking at upper and lower case.  This one-word dictation even has punctuation – an exclamation mark!  Which facilitates chatting about other forms of punctuation, too. We would talk about letter sounds for this pre-reader, and even onomatopoeia…words that “sound” like what they mean.

I adore this one because I have such an appreciation for artistic gifts. I don’t have artistic gifts, so this is pleasing to me. One word, that’s all that has been done here! But look at the merit.

Letter formation, writing the date accurately, comparing upper and lower case letters, comparing sounds (win and uin). and some discussion about how different letter combinations have the same sound. A lot of thoughtful opportunity for discussing language with “just one word.”

Below are some samples from middle and older grades in dictation. Descriptions are on the image. Quality isn’t awesome, but you should get the idea.