Shaving Cream: Idea #161

When I taught second grade, I noticed that my students' desks would get so dirty. So, I turned a cleaning activity into a learning activity. I bought some shaving cream and put a little bit on each student's desk. The student then rubbed the shaving cream all over the top of the desk. Then I would call out a sight word and the students were to write the sight word in the shaving cream. 

Once all the students finished writing, I would tell how them how to spell the word correctly. Then the students would wipe their hands over the desk to erase it for a new word. I continued calling out words until we ran out of shaving cream. The kids never got bored playing this simple game.

At the end, all the kids got wet wash cloths and wiped off the remaining shaving cream on the desk. The desks looked great! I loved watching how far my students had come in not only their spelling but also their reading.

Sight Word Red Rover: Idea #160

I loved playing the game Red Rover as a kid. I thought it was so fun to play a game that involved so many other kids. To play this game you may want to invite your entire class or your neighborhood friends to join in the fun. Here is what you do:

1. Give each kid a plain colored t-shirt (or ask each child to bring one in).

2. Give each student a different sight word (either verbally or written on a piece of paper).

3. When the student receives their sight word, they are to write the sight word on their t-shirt. Make sure that your student writes it large enough so that people can see it from far away. Then have each student put their t-shirt on.

4. Divide the class into two equal teams. Have each team  join hands and face the other team.

5. Team 1 goes first. They decide on a person from Team 2 and say the following, "Red Rover, Red Rover, send <sight word> right over." The person with that particular sight word on their shirt then runs to the opposing team, trying to break through the linked hands. If he breaks through, he can choose someone to go with him back to his team. If he doesn't break through, he must stay with the opposing team.

6. Play the game until all the team players are on one side. If you don't have a ton of time, the winner is the team with the most players.

Have fun!

Sight Word Assessment: Idea #159

A great way to keep track of the sight words your student knows or needs to learn is to keep a record. On the Make, Take & Teach website they call it an assessment. Take a look at how they have made a very complete sight word assessment:

You can find this assessment here: http://www.maketaketeach.com/docs/sightwordass1_3.pdf

On the Make, Take & Teach website they explain that you keep track of your child's progress by placing a + in the box of the words your child knows. If your child doesn't read the word in 3 seconds, put a - in the box. After you have tested your student on the sight word lists, chart it on the graph below:

You can find this chart here: http://www.maketaketeach.com/docs/sightwordass1_3.pdf

Just count the number of sight words your student could read to you, and color it on the graph. Retest your student every week or so to see how they have improved. You could even have your student color in the boxes to see how many more sight words they have mastered. This chart could be a great motivator for your student to learn more sight words!

Sight Word Board Game: Idea #158

A fun way to practice sight words with your student is to play a sight word board game from the Make, Take & Teach website. On this website you can find six different sight word game boards to choose from (with different sight word lists). I just printed one off, colored it, and it was ready to go. Take a look:

You can find this printable game board here: http://www.maketaketeach.com/docs/gameboard_sight1.pdf

To play: Get some counters (depending on how many people are playing) and one die. When it is your turn, roll the die and go that many spaces on the board. If you can read the sight word you landed on, you get to go forward one space. If you can't read the word you landed on, you must go backwards one space. The first player to make it to the end wins!

BUG!: Idea #157

There are so many fun sight word games out there. Most sight word games can be played with flashcards that you already have. I really like the game Bug! that I found on the Make, Take & Teach website. It's an easy game and an excellent way for your student to practice sight words. This is what you do:

1. Use your own sight word flashcards (about 20) or print some off the Make, Take & Teach website here. If you are using your own flashcards, make two or three extra cards with bugs on them.

2. Cut the cards out (if using the website).

3. Put all of the cards face down on the table.

4. How to play: Each player takes a turn turning over a card and reading the sight word on the card. The player who gets the Bug card has to return all of his/her cards and then the game starts over. The player with the most cards at the end of the game wins!

Have fun practicing!

Old Maid: Idea #156

Remember playing the card game Old Maid as a kid? Fun times, right? Why not put a little twist on the old card game to help your student practice sight words? Here is what you do:

1. Buy the game Old Maid (or make your own cards). I bought mine at Wal-Mart for 50 cents.

2. Cover the words on each card with whiteout or tape or stickers.

3. Write a sight word on each card (make sure there are two of each sight word).

4. Now you are ready to play. Deal out all of the cards to the players.

5. When looking at your hand, put all of your matches in separate piles in front of you. In order to keep the matches you found, you must be able to read the word on the card. If you can't read the words, you have to keep the cards in your hands.

6. Everyone then takes turns picking a card from the hand of the player to their left. Each time a match is made, the player puts the pair in front of them and then reads the words.

7. The game continues until only one player is holding a card--- the Old Maid card! The person with the Old Maid at the end of the game looses.

Have fun teaching your student one of your favorite childhood games!

Word Family Sliders: Idea #155

A great way to get your student reading more words is to introduce word families. When your student learns word families they are able to learn several words all at once. The words have different letters at the beginning, but include the same sound at the end. Try making some word family sliders with your student. They are easy to make and an excellent way for your student to master more words in their reading. Here is what you do.

1. Go to the following website: http://blog.maketaketeach.com/diy-word-family-sliders/ and download the cards and letter strips for free.

2. Print the cards and letter strips. There should be ten pages.

 

3. Cut out the cards and letter strips.

4. Make sure that you cut two slits on each card.

 
5. Make your Word Family Slider. Find the word strip that goes with the right word family, and put them together.

As your student slides the card down the word strip, they will see a new word with each new letter. This is a fun way to learn word families and help your student progress in their reading skills.