We had a 'sweet' math lesson this week. Each student got one scoop of m&m's in a little baggie. The class happily estimated, counted, sorted, graphed, compared, problem solved and made patterns for an hour! And yes, they deservingly ate their math materials upon completion!
This week we started Word Work. I'm using a program called Words Their Way, which is phonics,
spelling, and vocabulary instruction through daily word study.
One
focus of word study is to teach students how to spell and decode new words and
to improve their word recognition speed in general. Students will learn to examine words and learn some regularities that exist in the
spelling system. They will also learn some irregularities of spelling, which we call “oddball words”. The simple process of sorting words into
categories is the heart of this word study program. When students sort words, they are engaged in
the active process of searching, comparing, contrasting, and analyzing. Word sorts help students organize what they
know about words and to form generalizations that they can then apply to new
words they encounter in their reading. Comparing and contrasting words by sound helps them associate certain sounds with letters, syllable patterns and spelling conventions.
