Research Symposium

BIO

Sofia Zalazar is a second year at FSU, majoring in Psychology, minoring in Child Development pursuing a career in speech therapy as a Speech Language Pathologist. She works at the School of Communication Science & Disorders and The LL Schendel Speech and Hearing Clinic as a research assistant.

Project BEE-S: How Child Level and Item LEVEL Factors Impact Spelling Production in Elementary Students

Abstract

Oral language skills have played a crucial role in early literacy development; however, their specific relationship to spelling production in young children remains an area of ongoing investigation. This study will examine oral language skills and their impact on spelling production in early elementary students. A number of students, mainly those from racial minority groups, speak a dialect different from the traditional form of English found in most textbooks. Early literacy development is closely tied to oral language and reading competence, encompassing phonological awareness, morphological knowledge, syntax, and comprehension. The purpose of this research is to examine how children’s oral language skills relate to spelling production in a sample of 75 school-aged children. Participants completed five assessments over three days that measured spelling skills, oral language (CELF-5), phonological awareness (CTOPP-2), word reading skills (TOWRE-2), and language variation (DELV-ST). By analyzing performance across these measures, this study aims to identify relationships between oral language and literacy outcomes. Findings may contribute to a deeper understanding of the relationships between oral language and spelling in early elementary students and may support the development of evidence-based teaching practices and literacy interventions in the future.

Keywords: Spelling production, elementary students, Children