TITLE: Spelling Practice - Yawn!
AUTHOR: Vicki Jennings, UT
GRADE LEVEL/SUBJECT: 3 (adaptable to other grades),
spelling
OVERVIEW: As American as apple pie, the weekly spelling
list is a "cornerstone" of education! Admit it or not, we
all use lists (by choice or by administrative mandate!), and
drilling and practicing for Friday's test can be pretty
boring! The following are three ideas I use with my third
graders, though I feel each could be used with any grade.
ACTIVITIES AND PROCEDURES:
1. Write the spelling word on the blackboard. As you
point to each letter, have the students call out the
letter...but not just in a monotone murmur. If the
letter is a consonant, the boys say the letter in a
deep, husky, "football player" voice. If the letter is
a vowel, the girls call out the letter, using a high-
pitched, "sweet young thing" voice. Once the students
get the "hang of it", another step is added. Not only
do students call out the letters in the different
voices, but they also stand up, then sit back down with
each letter. The drill sounds like a football huddle
and gets everyone giggling (and practicing each word).
2. The whole class stands in a huge circle around the
room. Pronounce a word, then point to a student who is
to say the first letter, the next student (moving left
or right) says the second letter, the third student
says the third letter and so on, moving around the
circle. If someone "goofs", that student is out and
returns to his/her seat. Repeat the word, then
continue with the next student in the circle. The idea
is to go as quickly as possible. Other ways of
"getting out" may include taking too much time,
repeating out loud what has already been said, or
asking for the word to be repeated. It is a good idea
to reward the final person standing with a small prize.
3. With students in groups of four, give each student a
number: 1, 2, 3, or 4. Before the activity begins,
write each team's name across the blackboard. Also
have four popsicle sticks with the number 1, 2, 3, or 4
written on one end placed in a cup with the numbers
down. Pronounce the spelling word, then allow the
teams 15-30 seconds to practice spelling the word
within the team, making sure each member can spell the
word. Say stop when the time is up and bring everyone
to silence. Repeat the word and randomly choose a
stick from the cup. If the stick has, for example, a
"2" on it, then all the 2's from each team come to the
board and write the word below their team name large
enough to be read, but small enough to be covered with
their hand. Walk along and peek under each cupped
hand, awarding a point to each team whose member has
correctly spelled the word. By drilling each other,
everyone learns to spell the word. By not know who
from their team will be called on to spell the word,
each person makes sure all of their fellow team members
can spell the word.
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John Kurilecjmk@ofcn.org