Word hunts are a fun and engaging word study activity that encourages students to apply their knowledge of spelling patterns, sight words, or vocabulary words in a real-world context.
A word map is a visual organizer that promotes vocabulary development. Most word map organizers engage students in developing a definition, synonyms, antonyms, and a picture for a given vocabulary word or concept.
Word study is an approach to spelling instruction that moves away from a focus on memorization. The approach reflects what researchers have discovered about the alphabetic, pattern, and meaning layers of English orthography. This article describes nine tips for implementing a word study program in your classroom.
“Word study” is an alternative to traditional spelling instruction. It is based on learning word patterns rather than memorizing unconnected words. This article describes the word study approach.
A word wall is a visible display in a classroom that features a collection of words students are studying. Word walls can focus on high-frequency words, word study examples, academic language, and words that are introduced in the content areas. They can be used to support phonics, spelling, vocabulary, comprehension, and writing.
A work system is an organizational system that gives students with ASD information about what is expected when they come to the classroom. Find out how to implement a work system in your classroom.
Linda Farrell talks about her role as a reading intervention specialist, and what more than 20 years of experience working with kids, teachers, and schools has taught her about the potential of struggling learners — that with the right instruction (and patience) every child can become a better reader.
Long before there was television, movies, computers, or even books, people told stories to one another. These folktales delighted, informed, inspired, and educated. When people heard a tale that they liked or that particularly moved them, they made it their own by changing where it took place or how it was told. Today we are lucky to have books and other ways to share a world of stories. From Aesop’s fables to Cinderella, you are sure to recognize familiar tales in different settings.
Books can transport you through space and time. Meet kids from California and Brazil whose dance could be a martial art. Use your imagination to travel to long-ago Japan with Annie and Jack. Visit a longtime friend who lives half a world away. Learn words in French or in Spanish. Take a close look at a magical underwater or starry world — all without leaving your home. Wherever you go, make sure to take along a book, and remember: books take you places!
Writing allows children to express their thoughts, creativity, and uniqueness. It is a fundamental way in which children learn to think critically, organize and communicate ideas, and make thinking visible and permanent. And learning to write well helps children to be better readers!
Writing allows children to express their thoughts, creativity, and uniqueness. It is a fundamental way in which children learn to think critically, organize and communicate ideas, and make thinking visible and permanent. And learning to write well helps children to be better readers!
Pre-K children love to write — they’re always in search of a marker or crayon. Those early scribbles are an important step on the path to literacy and it’s never too early to start. When engaging in writing, young children often mirror what they see around them; adults and older children writing lists, notes, text messaging. They are observing the way writing is used in our everyday lives.
