Same sound. Different spelling.
Homophones sound alike but have different spellings and meanings. A spoken word by itself may not tell a child which spelling you want. A sentence gives the clue.
Put each word to work
“Their coats are over there.” Their tells us who the coats belong to. There tells us where they are. “They’re ready” means “they are ready”. Try replacing they’re with they are to see whether it fits.
Always give a sentence
For a spelling practice, say “hear, as in I can hear the birds”. Asking a child to spell “hear” without that context could fairly produce “here”. Teachers can add a sentence after each word in Spellwell’s list editor.
Make the meaning memorable
Ask your child to say a short sentence before writing the word. Later, mix the examples so they need to choose using the meaning, rather than remembering the order of a list.
Use your teacher’s class link, or try a short sample activity.
Try a practice →Curriculum reference: England’s English programmes of study and spelling appendix. This is introductory guidance, not an exhaustive word list or a claim of curriculum coverage. Original explanations by Spellwell. Reviewed 15 September 2026.