Sunday, August 30, 2009

Spelling Word Box

An important part of Spell to Write and Read is doing enrichments. Enrichments are activities designed to reinforce the words and phonograms in interesting ways. One of D-Man's favorites is his box of spelling words. Each week, he writes his words on 3x2.5" cards. Then we file them in a box according to each list. This has turned out to be a great activity. First, he gets to practice spelling the words when he writes them on the cards. Then, we can use the cards in a couple of ways. We use them as flashcards to practice reading the words. This helps D-Man improve his reading fluency. We also arrange them into sentences. This is a sneaky way to introduce grammar gently. When we form sentences, we learn about nouns, verbs, pronouns, and adjectives. Of course, once we form a sentence, he reads it and practices fluency. So much work in a simple activity. I'm sure I'll come up with more ways to use these cards as we go on with the program.
For D-Man, his box is a physical reminder of what he's accomplished so far. He likes to look at and read "his words" and insists that they are filed in order. So far he has 80 words in his box and we add 10 words per week.

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