After a long day at school and subsequent homework, the last thing many children want to do is study their weekly spelling words. Staring at the list of words is not only boring for children, but, often times their minds drift and they won't pay attention to the words at all. Instead here are some alternatives that kids will enjoy.
Spelling Word Games
There are several games kids can play to help learn weekly spelling words. Make a word search using all of the spelling words. There are various sites online where you can make these for free. The advantage is that the child must keep looking at the words over and over on the list in order to know which words to search for.
Create a crossword puzzle. Be sure to include a list of the words. Another idea is to scramble all of the words and let kids unscramble them. Once again this would cause them to look at their spelling list in order to help unscramble the words.
Write each word on a separate piece of paper, then hide the pieces of paper all over the house. Send them on a spelling word treasure hunt and each time a child finds a piece of paper with a spelling word on it, he must come back to the kitchen table and write that word three times. To make it more competitive, set a timer and see how many pieces of paper can be found in a certain amount of time.
Using Spelling Words to Tell Stories
Children love to hear stories. Make up stories using the spelling words. Each time one of the spelling words comes up, spell the word aloud and then have the child repeat the word and the spelling. The process can also be reversed with the child making up a story.
Spelling Words Sing Along
Make up some silly songs using spelling words. Be sure to spell out the words in the song. Have fun singing together. The repetition alone will help kids learn how to spell the words. Once a child has learned how to spell the words of the song, make up another one using other words not yet learned.
Visual Aids to Learn Spelling Words
At the beginning of each week, hand out an index card for each spelling word. Have kids write one spelling word per card in bold print. Let them decorate each card with drawings, stickers, etc. Take each card and place it on an area that kids frequent. For example, on a bathroom mirror, the outside of a refrigerator, or bedroom door.
Reward Kids for Learning New Spelling Words
Children love to be rewarded for the work they do. Get a chart and keep it on the refrigerator. Each time a child learns a new word, give him/her a star to place on the chart. This will remind the child of the good work they're doing. Remember, too, to give the child lots of praise. Use your imagination to come up with other ways to make learning spelling words fun.
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