Spelling Word Walls Aren’t Just for School

Word Walls are a common part of any elementary classroom. They have even made their way up to middle school and even to high school. They are used to help students become familiar with words that they may encounter in their reading books or other settings. They act as a visual bridge between words and their use. Spelling word walls are similar. They can be used to help students learning how to spell commonly misspelled words or words that they use every day that the majority of the class has not learned to spell yet.

What are Spelling Word Walls?

Spelling word walls can be interactive, mobile, or stationary. They are a list of words that are displayed in a classroom or at home. They are comprised of words that most students struggle with spelling or that the students have come across in their reading activities. As a teacher or parent, you can designate a spot in your room/home to display these words.

If you decide to use a mobile version of the spelling word wall, you might consider using a tri-fold board or large poster board on which to display your words. Add hooks to your board so that you can add words to the board. Book keyrings are a wonderful way to add words to your board.

If you want a spelling word wall that your students can freely access anytime, you may want to create one using Google Drive that can be edited and added to throughout the school year. As a cautionary measure, be sure to allow students to only be viewers and not editors. If you don’t, then, your students will have the ability to change the spelling word wall at will, and they could possibly delete information or the entire spelling word wall by accident.

Why Use Spelling Word Walls?

Spelling word walls can prevent you from having to explain how to spell a word or how to sound out a word during class. Students are notorious for wanting help, and these “help sessions” can interrupt the natural flow of your class. To help your students become independent learners and to save yourself time, create and use spelling word walls. Your students can easily refer to the spelling word wall verses calling on you.

Spelling word walls also help students with reading. The spelling word wall can help students better understand the definition of words and word origin. By knowing how to correctly spell a word, students can also learn the correct pronunciation of the word. This in turn, can help students to become more fluent readers.

These spelling word walls serve as visual cues for students. They promote independence, and they help to create awareness of spelling patterns.

How can You Use Spelling Word Walls?

Spelling Word Walls like Vocabulary Word Walls can be used at school and at home to help students better understand words and their spelling. Although spelling isn’t on many standardized tests anymore, it is a vital part of students’ communication and reading comprehension skill.

How can Spelling Word Walls be Used at Home

You can start a spelling word wall in your child’s room or any other area of your home. These high frequency or commonly misspelled words can easily become a part of your home decoration. Words can be created in beautiful designs using Cricut machines and other technology.

If you don’t want to risk ruining your paint or wallpaper, you can opt to use your refrigerator door. Simply place the words on your refrigerator door in the same way that you add pictures and other notes. Again, let’s not forget those multipurpose trifold board that are moveable. And, a Google document created in your Google Drive can provide quick and easy access to a spelling word wall.

It doesn’t matter where you decide to place your spelling word wall. All that matters is that the words are easily visible, and you and your child can interact with them on a regular basis.

Where to Get the Words

It’s the first few weeks of school, and you want to create a spelling word wall. However, you don’t know where to get the words from. There are so many new words that the students don’t know, and you want a starting point. Well, each teacher is unique, and so, you can use a variety of ways to get the words for your spelling word wall. When I created my spelling word walls, I always started with a list of commonly misspelled words for the grade I was teaching. Other places to get a list of spelling words to use these first few weeks of school are from sites like reading rockets.org. This site will list the spelling words by grade and identify the words that most kids misspell. Sites like Teachers pay Teachers will also have spelling word lists that you can use to help you get started. I have several spelling word lists and activities in my store. So, don’t forget to stop by there.

Spelling Word Walls Aren’t Just for English Class

Like vocabulary word walls, spelling word walls are not confined to English class. You can use spelling word walls across the curriculum. They can be used to help students better spell subject area related terms.

I created a spelling word wall in my classroom several years ago, and it was one of the best decisions I made. Since that time, I have used them often. They have helped to save me time and energy. These spelling word walls have also help increase my students’ self-reliance and independence.  

Activities for Using Spelling Word Walls

There are many ways for you to use spelling word walls to help your students. The ones discussed below are only suggestions.

See It, Say It, Spell It

See It, Say It, Spell It is one simple and easy game that you can create to use with your students. You simply write the spelling words on index cards and present them to your students. The students then must practice seeing, saying, and spelling the words. Before doing this game, I would recommend that the students already be familiar with the words from the spelling wall first.

Sound Boxes

Teach your students how to spell words from the spelling word wall using their sounds. Sound boxes are often used in kindergarten to help students learn how to segment words. You can use them to teach your students to sound out each letter of a word and chart it in the sound box.

Word Parts

Knowing the parts of a spelling word can also help your students better understand how to spell the word. They be able to identify prefixes and suffixes. So, you can create a game using words that contain either a prefix or a suffix. These words can be added to index cards or cardstock. You can have your students to break the word apart and practice spelling it.

Spot the Misspelled Word

One of the ways that I like to check to see if my students can correctly identify their spelling word is to have them find the misspelled word out of a group of words. You can create your own sheet of words, or you can purchase some from sites like Teachers Pay Teachers.

Spelling word walls are a great way to help your students learn how to correctly spell words. Spelling word walls can also help your students/children to become better reader, increase their fluency, and promote independence.