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Spelling Strategy - Wordsearches
Wordsearches are grids of letters with
words hidden in them. While it's classed as a puzzle it is also an
excellent way to develop visual memory skills. Spelling words correctly
often relies on this visual memory - have you ever noticed when you are
not sure of how to spell a word, you write it down to see if it looks
right - this is an effective and valid spelling strategy. Wordsearches
encourage the development of a strong mental image of a word.
How do I create
the Wordsearch?
- Set up a word grid - ten by ten
squares is a good grid to start with although you could make it smaller
for younger children.
- Write the words in the grid, going
horizontally and from left to write, since this is how we normally would
read words.
- Fill in the remaining squares with
letters of the alphabet.
- Write the words to be found next to
the grid.
- The child locates and colours in or
outlines the word on the grid.
Keep these things
in mind
- Children must be able to see and refer
to the word constantly, while looking for it in the grid
- Encourage looking for words within
words and letter blends, focussing on the order of letters - the
beginning and the ending of the letter.
- Students can make their own
wordsearches and swap them with friends or brothers and sisters.
- As students get better at wordsearches,
you can increase the difficulty by arranging the words down and
diagonally in the grid.
Wordsearch
software
The one I use in my classroom is called
WordQuest for Windows. The most important feature of WordQuest that I
would like to mention here, is that the child can enter in their own
wordlist and then solve the wordsearch on screen or on paper. You can use
the same words over again, because the computer will generate a new puzzle
each time - giving lots of practice!
From our site you can
download a demonstration copy or get
more information on WordQuest.
Alternative
wordsearches
Searching for words doesn't need to be confined to looking
for them in a grid. You can look for words anywhere they exist.
For example:
- On a community outing - can you see
the word "toilet", "exit", "subway", "train", "street names" etc
- In a newspaper for older readers or a
storybook for younger readers - turn it into a game with rewards to
motivate.
- Give young children a word written on
a card, and ask them to see if they can find the same word around the
house.
- In the car riding along - look for
signs that give particular directions. Give young children basic words
like Stop, Left, Right etc and older children can look for signs that
give more complex directions.
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