At which spelling stage do children typically have the first letter correct and mix letters for the rest of the word?

In the context of spelling development, the prephonemic spelling stage is characterized by children beginning to understand that letters represent sounds in spoken language, but they do not yet apply this understanding consistently. At this stage, it is common for children to correctly identify the first letter of a word while mixing letters or using random letters for the rest of the word. This reflects their emerging awareness of the alphabetic principle, where they recognize letters as symbols for sounds but lack the grasp to phonetically spell the entire word.

In contrast, letter-name spelling comes after prephonemic spelling and includes children's use of conventional spelling for many sounds in a word, showing a clearer understanding of phoneme-grapheme relationships. Transitional spelling involves more sophisticated phonetic awareness, where children can segment sounds and use various spelling patterns, and derivational spelling focuses on the understanding and application of morphemes and root words.