The secret to spelling

I am fairly certain it is genetics.

You see some meals instead of math games we spell, (or rhyme, or geography, or whatever we feel like, including current events, reading, and the occasionally Daddy monopoly sports chat).

Today we did some spelling. Both Dude, and Little Man spell by 'sounding out the word' and trying to make sure the letters they choose will make the appropriate sounds. Dude has read more and has a wonderful memory, so he tends to recall just which sets work. Say spelling something with an /r/ sound Dude tends to know if it needs just the R, an IR, an ER, or UR. Little Man being handicapped by a few years tends to assume it is just R.

Princess on the other hand.

She has read quite a bit, so had plenty of exposure to words, knows all sorts of phonics rules, yet still has trouble with simple words like 'purple'. I wouldn't complain (much) if she was spelling it 'p-r-p-l'. But no she has some sort of hash up of the letters plrue. Honest, we are doing the same thing with her as with her older and younger brother. I am fairly certain the difference is in the genes.

Princess has apparently inherited her spelling gene from me. I never could spell. (Thankfully spell checker catches most mistakes.)

My father nicely pointed out to me the other day I still spell 'ought' with an A (aught). You would think that would be enough for me to remember, but less than a day later in a IM to him I again said 'I aught to do....'.

Since it is all genetics, I ought to blame him for the error! (or my mother, whichever)

Time will tell if Princess can learn to beat her genetics, or if she is doomed to rely on spell checker like her mother.