In first grade, students are required to learn/memorize 100 basic sight words. Strategies which I use to help students memorize these words are as follows:
1. Monday - put up 1 new sight word. Read it. Discuss its meaning. Use it in a sentence. Say the word again. Clap 1 time for each letter in the word as you orally spell the word. Air write the word as you orally spell the word. Write the word. Repeat for 4 other sight words. Leave words posted on the whiteboard in front of the classroom for the rest of the week befor moving them to the word wall for the remainder of the year.
2. Tuesday - Thursday - Repeated choral readings of all 5 words. Vary the order of the words.
3. Tuesday - Rainbow Writing - Students choose five crayons and write the sight word 5 times as they say each letter and repeat the whole word. For example, write cat in orange as you say c, write the letter c, say a as you write it, and say t as you write it. Repeat the above steps in 4 separate colors while tracing cat already written in orange.
4. Wednesday - Write each word 3 times each. Use each word in cloze procedure. Supply missing letters to boxes representing size and amount of letters in each word.
Hopefully linking the visuo-spatial short term memory(air writing, repeated crayon writing, clapping) to the verbal act of repeating letters and words will increase long term memorization.
2 comments:
Aimee,
Rainbow writing is a popular activity for learning how to spell words. In 4/5 grade, we often illustrate vocab words. I wonder if drawing pictures would help the younger students with vocab or sight words. For example, to learn the word "with", students could draw themselves with their favorite object - "I am with my dog." and add a writing activity and label it 'my "with" picture'.This would tap into those with strong visuo-spatial memory.
-Cheryl C.
Students must benefit greatly from this organized and routine method of instruction. I like how you link movement with the oral spelling of the words. Rainbow writing is also a great strategy. It will help them visualize and practice writing the words multiple times.
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