Spelling is a part of many school lessons. Copying a spelling list is a
traditional approach to memorizing words, but you can add a more
interesting twist on classroom spelling practice to motivate the
students. A break from simply rewriting the words may make students more
willing to participate actively.
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The kids work with partners for this spelling practice game.
One student uses her finger to "write" the letters of a spelling word
on her partner's back. She should write one letter at a time, giving her
partner a chance to process the word. The partner thinks about the list
of spelling words and the letters he feels on his back to figure out
what the other student is writing. Have the students switch so both kids
get a chance to write the words.
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Gather lots of newspapers and magazines for this classroom
spelling activity. The students use their list of spelling words as a
guide for the activity, searching through the print materials to find
all of the letters to spell each word on the list. The kids then glue
the letters in the correct order to recreate the spelling list. This
activity works well as both a group or individual lesson.
Letter Guessing
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This spelling game shares similar attributes with the game
"Hangman" because the students try to guess the spelling word by picking
letters. Each student needs a copy of the alphabet. Provide a sheet
with several rows of the alphabet, one for each spelling word. One at a
time, the students guess a letter. The teacher tells them whether or not
that letter is in the spelling word. The kids cross out the letter if
it's not in the word or circle it if it is. They use these letters to
figure out the spelling word.
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The letter tiles from Scrabble make a natural choice for
practicing spelling words. The tiles also allow you to add a math aspect
to the spelling practice. The kids form each spelling word using the
Scrabble tiles. They add up the total point value for each word based on
the numbers on the tiles to determine which one has the highest value.
This spelling activity works well in a learning center with individual
students, because you won't likely have enough Scrabble tiles for the
entire class.
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Adding an artistic aspect to spelling practice can reach the
more creative students in the class. One simple idea involves using
letter stencils. The kids can use markers, colored pencils or other
writing instruments to trace the stencils and spell out words. Another
creative way to spell out words is with rubber stamps. Provide a
washable stamp pad for the kids to dip letter stamps into before
stamping onto the paper.