Spelling practice doesn't always need to happen on paper. We can do some engaging activities that involve movement, music and games that can help to build the knowledge of spelling words correctly. Who wants to get bored by making children memorise spelling words, definitely not me!
Listed below are some fun ideas that you can use with any spelling list.
Word Hop
We love hopping around letters to spell them. Simply spread letters on the floor, give children a word, let them think of the letters in that word. Once they are ready allow them to hop from one letter to another till they spell the word correctly.
Word Scramble
This is another exciting yet challenging game that children love to play. Jumble up the letters of the word they are learning to spell. Children have to un jumble the letters correctly to spell the word. The should have been exposed to these words before you try this activity.
Aim for the word
This is just a fun movement twist that you can add while practicing spelling. To set this up you will have to line up some cups one after the other. Assign a number to each cup. Say a word and let your child write it down.
After they have written it correctly they get to aim a pom pom or a ball in the cups. They collect a point according to the number that was assigned to the cup. The person with the highest points win. If you are doing this alone with your child ask him to collect a certain amount of points to win the game.
Don't let the teacher win!
This is similar to the game of hangman. Before you play this game, it is important that children have practice with the words. Once they are thorough with the words, start the game. Draw a smiley face on the board. They should spell each word correctly. If they make a mistake, one part of the smiley will be erased. If the whole face gets erased the teacher wins otherwise the students are the winners.
Beat The Clock And Spell
Put magnetic letters in a bowl or on a board. Call out a word that needs to be spelled. Start a timer and let them spell the word before the timer goes off.
Spell and throw
Children stand in a circle. One child says a word and throws a ball to another child who will say the first letter of the word that was called out. He will pass the ball to another child who will spell the next letter and so on till the whole word gets spelled out.
Buzzer Fun
Give different buzzers to children or an instrument that they can use to quickly produce a sound like a bell or a maraca. Say a word and the child who presses the buzzer first gets a chance to spell and collect a point. The one with the most points is the winner.
Fix the puzzle
Write a word broken in chunks on different chits of paper. eg: The word is arcade. Write ar, ca, de on separate slips of paper. Mix them up and place them face down. Flip them over and see if children can call out the word. The one who does first is the winner. Encourage each child to write the word on their paper.
Dice Fun
Add a little excitement while practicing spelling word lists by using a simple dice. Say a word and let the child write it on a piece of paper. Let the child roll a dice. The number on the dice are the points he will win for the word spelled. If the child has misspelled a word, he doesn't get to roll the dice. You can give a target for certain points that the child needs to collect by the end of the game.
Want to learn why invented spellings are important and how they help children to become strong spellers, then click on the picture below:
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