Story Spellers

Structured Literacy Through Storytelling

Created by a literacy therapist and grounded in the Science of Reading, Story Spellers is a structured literacy book collection that helps students master the spelling rules and patterns that govern English orthography through fun, meaningful and engaging stories.

Each story is carefully written to build a strong knowledge base of focus words that follow specific spelling rules and patterns, in a way that supports orthographic mapping. The Story Spellers collection helps children develop lasting confidence and fluency in spelling.

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The Challenge

Why Do Many Children Struggle to Spell and Read Confidently

Complicated Orthography

The English writing system can seem illogical to beginning learners because it is not phonetic (we often do not pronounce a word the same way it is spelled) and is a layered language (it has borrowed words from many languages over time). It contains inconsistent spelling patterns that make learning to read and spell challenging for many children, particularly those with learning disabilities.

Cognitive Overload

Rote memorisation does not equal effective learning. Traditional spelling instruction often relies on memorising word lists, which can quickly overload working memory, particularly for learners with dyslexia, ADHD, or autism.

Unengaging Resources

Students rarely have access to structured literacy materials that are both evidence-based and engaging. Without meaningful and motivating resources, struggling readers are often left behind.

The Need for Structured Literacy

Explicit, consistent, and contextual teaching has been proven to be effective. Children with learning difficulties need explicit instruction in spelling rules and patterns, repeated practice in meaningful contexts, and clear links between sound, spelling, and meaning.

The Solution

Story Spellers – What is it?

Literacy Instruction That Feels Like Storytime:

Young readers pick up root meanings effortlessly through clever dialogue, fast-paced scenes, and rich visual context - no worksheets required.

Story Spellers is a collection of engaging and fun decodable (advanced code) structured literacy storybooks designed to teach school-aged children a wide range of words that follow specific spelling rules and patterns through fun and memorable stories.
Each story in the collection focuses on one or two specific spelling rules or patterns (such as ai/ay, ee, igh, oa/ow, and ue/ew).
Each book introduces focus words, which are high-utility words that school-aged children commonly encounter and that follow the target spelling pattern. These words are woven naturally into the storyline, allowing students to build fluency in both decoding (reading) and encoding (spelling) through meaningful context.

Fun and Memorable

Books in the collection are filled with quirky characters and lively plots that make spelling stick. Each story teaches school-aged children how to recognise and use spelling patterns through meaningful and memorable story experiences.

No ‘Drill and Kill’ Lists

Instead of repetitive drills or lengthy word lists to memorise words out of context, children encounter and internalise spelling patterns as part of a story they enjoy and remember. Reading and spelling fluency develop naturally through repetition and context.

Clear Focus on Spelling Patterns

Each book targets one or two related spelling patterns for a specific sound. Only words that use those patterns appear in the story, ensuring a clear and consistent learning experience. This focused approach helps students develop automaticity and confidence in both reading and spelling.

What Makes Story Spellers Unique?

1. Aligned with the Science of Reading

Grounded in evidence-based principles of literacy instruction, Story Spellers aligns with the Science of Reading to build strong decoding, encoding, and word recognition skills.

2. Created with Learner Feedback

Developed with input from children with learning disabilities, especially those who struggle to differentiate homophones and choose between confusing spelling patterns to spell words, to ensure stories are engaging, accessible, and relevant to diverse learners.

3. Written in Advanced Code

Children with learning difficulties have varying reading abilities. Each book is written in advanced code, making the series inclusive for mixed-ability groups; decodable for advanced readers and appropriate to read aloud to beginners. The language feels age-appropriate and never babyish.

4. Laser-Sharp Focus on Target Graphemes

Every story includes only words using the target graphemes for the focus sound. No alternate spellings of the same sound appear anywhere in the text, ensuring precision in orthographic mapping and preventing confusion. Example: in the book Train Trip to the Bay, which teaches the ‘ai’ and ‘ay’ spelling patterns for the long /ā/ sound, no alternative spellings such as ‘a’, ‘a-e’, ‘ea’, ‘ei’, ‘ey’, or ‘eigh’ which can also be used to spell the long /ā/ sound appear anywhere in the story.

5. Printable Educator Resources

Each book includes companion printable materials, such as flashcards and board games, that reinforce spelling skills through play and repetition.

6. Engaging and Meaningful Stories

Fun, meaningful narratives with quirky, memorable characters build vocabulary, comprehension, and spelling confidence while keeping students motivated to learn.

The Challenge

The Story Spellers Collection

The Story Spellers collection is grouped into five subseries:

Long Vowel Teams Subseries

Full-Length Stories

Train Trip to the Bay | ai/ay (/ā/)
Teens at the Reef | ee (/ē/)
Fright at Night | igh (/ī/)
King Toad and Crow | oa/ow (/ō/)
Easter Hunt at the Beach | ea (/ē/)

Dual-Chapter Stories

ue (/ū/, /o͞o/) | Rescue, Fondue
‍ew (/ū/, /o͞o/) | Curfew, Cashew
‍oo (/o͞o/, /o͝o/) | Food, Good

Mini-Collections

ei, eigh, ey, ea (/ā/) | Rein, Eight, They, Steak
ie, ei, ey (/ē/) | Piece, Seize, Key
ie (/ī/) | Tie, oe (/ō/) | Toe, eu (/ū/) | Feud, u-e (/o͞o/), ou (/o͞o/), ui (/o͞o/) | Flute, Soup, Fruit.

Diphthongs Subseries

oi, oy (/oi/) | Boil, Toy
au, aw (/or/) | August, Paw
ou, ow (/ou/) | Loud, Cow

R-Controlled Vowels Subseries

ir, ur, er, ear (/er/) | Bird, Hurt, Perch, Earth
ar (/ar/) | Car
or (/or/) | Horn
are, air, ear (/air/) | Hare, Chair, Bear
ere, ear, eer (/ēr/) | Sphere, Hear, Deer
ire (/īr/) | Fire
ore, oar, our, oor (/ōr/) | Core, Boar, Pour, Door
ure (/ūr/) | Pure

Silent Letters Subseries

b | Lamb
n | Autumn
g | Gnome
k | Knife
p | Raspberry
h | Hour
t | Castle
w | Wrist
l | Half

Short Vowel Teams Subseries

ai (/ă/) | Plaid
ea, u, ie, ai, a, ei (/ĕ/) | Bread, Bury, Friend, Said, Many, Heifer
e, ie, u, ui, y, o (/ĭ/) | England, Sieve, Busy, Build, Hymn, Women
a (/ŏ/) | Water
o, oo, ou (/ŭ/) | Monkey, Flood, Trouble

Why It Works?

Story Spellers helps children, especially those who struggle with choosing confusing spelling patterns to spell words, learn to spell words through association with a fun storyline and context instead of rote memorisation.

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Each story is written to include only the target spelling patterns. For example, in the book Train Trip to the Bay, which teaches the ‘ai’ and ‘ay’ spelling patterns for the long /ā/ sound, no alternative spellings such as ‘a’, ‘a-e’, ‘ea’, ‘ei’, ‘ey’, or ‘eigh’ which can also be used to spell the long /ā/ sound appear anywhere in the story.

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This clarity helps children make accurate connections between sound, spelling, and meaning while avoiding confusion.

How It Builds Orthographic Mapping

Children repeatedly encounter focus words in meaningful contexts.
Each book supports connections between phonemes (sounds), graphemes (spellings), and meanings.
Reading and spelling fluency develop naturally through repetition and context.

What’s Inside Each Book

Every Story Spellers book includes:

A word-rich story using target spellings naturally and repeatedly
A complete list of focus words for review and reinforcement
Printable companion resources such as flashcards, word games, and activities
Engaging illustrations that support meaning and comprehension

It’s structured literacy that feels like Storytime.

It’s Phonics without Pressure.

It’s Spelling that Sticks.

Who is it for?

Story Spellers is suitable for

Children with learning difficulties who benefit from structured literacy support (Stories can be read aloud or used for paired reading.)
Neurotypical readers who enjoy stories and learn best through context
Mixed-ability classrooms or siblings learning at different stages

Ideal for use by

Teachers in classrooms and tutors in 1 on 1 settings.
Parents supporting literacy at home
Literacy specialists and therapists

Classroom Integration

Flexible, Accessible, and Inclusive

Can be used in small-group or whole-class instruction
Ideal for RTI (Response to Intervention) and Tier 2–3 literacy support
Printable activities and educator guides included
Designed for easy integration into early years literacy programs

Don’t Just Take Our Word for It

I read the book to my son, and we played the games at the end of the book. He didn’t know any of the roots before reading the book. I was surprised he remembered five of the roots later and even remembered some words where the roots were used. I liked that he enjoyed the book and didn’t complain.

- Jess, parent of an 8-year-old.

These books teach morphology without feeling like a lesson. The stories pulled my students in right away. The format looks and feels like a real chapter book, not a decodable which some of my older students don’t prefer too much.

- Michelle, Grade 4 Teacher

The story was interesting. I liked playing go fish and word charades.

- Ethan, Age 9.

This is a really clever series. I love how it turns morphology into something fun and adventurous for kids. The stories are packed with action, and still manage to weave in rich vocabulary and root word learning. It's the kind of resource I wish I had years ago.

- Bec, Primary School Teacher, Australia.

We read the first two Morph Explorers books at home, and my kids were genuinely interested in the stories. They kept asking what would happen next. I also really appreciate seeing a strong girl character in a science-themed story. It's such a refreshing change in children's STEM books.

- Aysha, Parent, Canada.

I absolutely loved these books. It's such an interesting idea. Too often, morphology instruction gets overlooked in schools. I am excited to see how the whole series, including social studies and maths roots, pans out. This is definitely a unique way to teach kids morphology.

- Sarah, Parent, Australia.