Motivate your pupils to spell for a worthy cause

Mencap, the leading learning disability charity has found the ultimate motivation for pupils to learn their spellings – Mencap Spellathon! Now in its 5th year in Northern Ireland, schools that have already participated have found that it has been a great success.

Spellathon is a sponsored spelling challenge drawn up by Mencap and Oxford University Press; designed to be fun for pupils, simple for teachers to organise and ties in naturally with the curriculum including literacy and citizenship modules. To get pupils even more enthusiastic Mencap has enlisted the help of James and Oliver Phelps, the actors that play the Weasley Twins in the Harry Potter films who endorse the Spellathon initiative. Plus your school can keep 25% of the money raised so everyone’s a winner!

Carrying out Spellathon with your class couldn’t be easier with Mencap’s carefully designed Teacher Resource Pack. This pack includes Spelling Lists suitable for pupils from Reception to 13 years old. Activities for Special Educational Needs pupils are also included meaning that children of all abilities are catered for. 

‘Spellathon was a wonderful challenging experience not only did the children enter into the spirit but the parents were extremely positive about the challenge it presented their children.’ - Mrs Victoria Watson, Loanends Primary School, Northern Ireland.

Mencap has found that an increased understanding of learning disability is the biggest motivation for pupils to embrace the Spellathon challenge as the more spellings they get right the greater the difference to the lives of people with a learning disability in Northern Ireland. One pupil commented: ‘I was determined to learn all of the words, as I was raising money for the charity Mencap.’

To further pupils understanding of learning disability, Mencap is offering a visit by a Mencap representative before or after a school has held their Spellathon. The representative will come along to your school assembly or class and chat to pupils about learning disability and Mencap’s work, highlighting the kind of projects that money raised through Spellathon will be spent on in Northern Ireland. There are also additional lesson plans and activities in the teacher’s pack to help pupils of all ages understand what it means to have a learning disability.

Any school in Northern Ireland can take part in Spellathon or fundraiser for Mencap at any time of the year.  To register for your free Spellathon Teacher Resource pack contact Catherine Knox on Tel: 028 90 690166 Email: catherine.knox@mencap.org.uk or download your pack on www.mencap.org.uk/spellathon