WORDS OF THE WEEK (W.W): SPELLING
STRATEGIES
STRATEGIES
Today, students copied down their very first Words
of the Week (we often call them W.W. words for short)
At the beginning of each week, students will copy the
week’s ten “Words of the Week” in their agenda.(I will
also post the words on the Blog for students who are
away or have missed words.) The first six words are
chosen based on common letter sounds and/or spelling
patterns. ( Example: short a sound in hand, splash)
Some of the chosen words will also be in the same direct
word family (ex. bend, spend). The other four words will
be words from our classroom ''Word Wall.'' Often these
words do not follow regular phonetic or spelling conventions
(ex. night), or they are often confused with other words
(ex. where, were, we’re)
Listed below are some strategies to help students learn,
practise, and study their Words of the Week list. Students
should choose one strategy per night to practise their words.
(Different strategies work best for different students.) A
short quiz on these words will normally take place on Friday.
While there is no formal written component to be handed in
as homework, it is essential that students practise their
Words of the Week nightly at home to help ensure success.
A. Look, Say, Cover, Write, Check: Students look at the word,
say it, and write it. They then cover the word, try to spell it
correctly, and then compare the words to see if they were able
to spell it correctly. (See a sample and recording sheet below)
say it, and write it. They then cover the word, try to spell it
correctly, and then compare the words to see if they were able
to spell it correctly. (See a sample and recording sheet below)
B. Word Patterns and Families: Students can try to sort
as many words as they can from their list based on common
spelling patterns (ex. wreck, wrong) or words in the same
Word Family (This means that they both rhyme and have an
identical spelling pattern. (ex. mill, thrill.) It’s also fun to come
up with non-W.W words that belong with each pattern.
as many words as they can from their list based on common
spelling patterns (ex. wreck, wrong) or words in the same
Word Family (This means that they both rhyme and have an
identical spelling pattern. (ex. mill, thrill.) It’s also fun to come
up with non-W.W words that belong with each pattern.
C. Dictionary Study: Discovering and learning the meaning of
new unfamiliar words is important. Look up any Words of the
Week in the dictionary and copy some of the (meanings)
definitions out.
new unfamiliar words is important. Look up any Words of the
Week in the dictionary and copy some of the (meanings)
definitions out.
D: "ABC" Order: Students can copy out the words (or some
of the words) in Alphabetical (ABC) order.
of the words) in Alphabetical (ABC) order.
E. Sentences
Students can practise writing their Words of the Week
words in proper sentences. It’s important to ensure that
the reader or listener would be able to tell from the
sentence what the word means. (Ex. for the word swim,
“I like to swim in the pool.” instead of “I like to swim.”)
words in proper sentences. It’s important to ensure that
the reader or listener would be able to tell from the
sentence what the word means. (Ex. for the word swim,
“I like to swim in the pool.” instead of “I like to swim.”)
F. Story: Ask the student to write or recite a short story
using as many of their Words of the Week in one paragraph
or story. (Note: The story is allowed to be silly as long as
it makes sense!)
or story. (Note: The story is allowed to be silly as long as
it makes sense!)
G. Games: Students can design their own word searches,
crosswords, riddles, jokes etc. based on their Words of
the Week, and ask family members to solve them!
crosswords, riddles, jokes etc. based on their Words of
the Week, and ask family members to solve them!
H. "Do" The Words as a Cheer: This group of activities
has often been my students' favourite! Ask your child to
"do" their Words of the Week." For example, they can
"cheer" each letter of the word while pretending to swing
a baseball bat. See the list of activities in link:
has often been my students' favourite! Ask your child to
"do" their Words of the Week." For example, they can
"cheer" each letter of the word while pretending to swing
a baseball bat. See the list of activities in link:
*** While doing all of these activities each week is not
necessary, doing a variety of activities from week to week
(as opposed to doing the same ones all the time) is
recommended!
necessary, doing a variety of activities from week to week
(as opposed to doing the same ones all the time) is
recommended!
Here is a “printer-friendly” version of the information in
this post if you would like to print it.
this post if you would like to print it.
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