Spelling, punctuation and grammar are all part of how the Selective writing task is marked. At home, most children type with spell-check and autocorrect quietly fixing their mistakes, so they never learn which words they get wrong. Here's how to change that.

Turn the safety net off

First, switch off spell-check and autocorrect when your child practices. In most browsers and word processors this is in the settings. Our practice tool has them off already, like a test setting.

It's worth checking the Department's online practice test to see how the writing box behaves. Practicing without spell-check is the safest preparation either way.

Keep a personal spelling list

After each practice piece, find the words your child spelled wrong and add them to a list. Most children misspell the same small set of words again and again. Practice those words for a few minutes each day:

  1. Look at the word
  2. Say it
  3. Cover it
  4. Write it
  5. Check it

Ten personal words learned properly are worth more than a hundred random ones.

Watch the usual suspects

These trip up a lot of Year 5 and 6 writers:

  • their / there / they're
  • your / you're
  • its / it's
  • where / were / we're
  • to / too / two
  • then / than
  • affect / effect

Punctuation that matters most

  • Capital letters and full stops. Every sentence, every time. Typing makes it easy to forget capitals after a full stop.
  • Dialogue. New speaker, new line. Punctuation goes inside the speech marks: "Wait," she said, "listen."
  • Commas in lists and after openers. "Later that night, the wind changed."
  • Apostrophes. For missing letters (don't, it's) and ownership (the dog's bowl). Not for plurals.

A three-minute proofreading routine

At the end of every practice piece, check in this order:

  1. Capitals and full stops: run your eye down the start and end of each sentence.
  2. Your personal list: look specifically for the words you usually get wrong.
  3. Read it in your head, slowly: listen for missing words and sentences that run on.

Do the same routine every time. On test day it will be automatic.

Make it a habit

Short, regular practice works best: one piece a week plus a few minutes on the spelling list most days. Try a free practice prompt with spell-check off.