Get
Students Making Their Own Word Searches
Ideas
for the Activities:
Have
the children create a find-a-word puzzle:
*
from their spelling words.
* on vocabulary associated with an area of study
* at home using this website with a parent or carer
* on a story or novel they are reading
* for their friends to solve
* for another class in the school
* as a learning centre activity
* from a collection of individual speeling mistakes ;)
* from a word family they are focusing on.
Tips
I've Discovered Over the Years -
* Have the children compose their list of words in a word processor
and use the spell check. Once this is complete copy the words into
the puzzle creation interface. You'll save heaps of hassles this
way :)
* Set the type of puzzle to TEXT so you can copy & paste it
into a word processor. That way you have a bit more control over
the formatting.
* DON'T change the font as the letters
won't line up. You can change the size.
* Show the site to the teachers at your school..
* Set a word limit ie Your puzzle must contain at least 10 words
and no more than 15 that YOU NEED TO WORK ON. This way the kids
can identify their own spelling areas of concern.
* Have the students print out the answers to make marking easier.
* Compose a puzzle together on a data projector or interactive whiteboard
to model the process.
* Have the children decide on a puzzle made with this software that
can be printed in the school newsletter or uploaded to the school
Intranet or Internet site.
* Have a friend read the puzzle onscreen before printing to spot
simple errors.
* Have the students enter their name in the title of the puzzle.
* 20 by 20 is not a bad size.
HUGE
Discussions to have with students -
* How do we
ensure this type of activity improves Spelling rather than simply
being 'pointless busy work'
* What skills
and strategies does a student need to learn well with a Wordsearch
puzzle?
* Do wordsearches
work for you as a spelling strategy? Why or why not?
* When you
are completing a word search is it beneficial to learning to spell
to help each other, or do the work individually?
* If it is possible to do this activity without reading the words or understanding the vocabulary is it really a Literacy task?
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