Differentiation through individualized lists!
(and being able to tell parents and administration that I'm meeting individual student needs!)
(and being able to tell parents and administration that I'm meeting individual student needs!)
Meeting Common Core standards!
Allowing students to work at home or school!
Knowing that even if I'm on a tight budget, there is an affordable plan!
(aka FREE!)
(aka FREE!)
Those are the first things that come to mind whenever one of my colleagues asks what I think of Spellling City. This website has been the exact answer to my spelling needs this year. I'm not a big fan of my district's basal reader (although I do make it work), but I was especially struggling with giving a weekly test that put all of my students on the same level. In my 6th grade group, I've got kiddos reading from a 3rd through 10th grade level. Therefore their word and spelling knowledge also varies widely! Giving them all the same weekly test was just driving me crazy - until I found Spelling City!
With the premium membership I can create as many individualized spelling lists as I want! And I can also decide how many activities the students complete before taking the test. Some students complete five activities, while others complete 10. It totally depends on their needs and abilities! (You can choose up to 10 activities - including writing practice, spelling tests, vocabulary tests, alphabetizing, and more!)
I can't lie - setting up individualized spelling lists has taken a little getting used to. Every single student in my 6th grade classroom has their own spelling list. It's a LOT to keep track of! But here's how I do it...
First, I keep track of nearly everything each student spells incorrectly. This means that I tote the sheets below around whenever I'm correctly and sometimes even in the classroom while I'm observing students working. If I see a student misspell something, I find their sheet and write the word down for a future spelling list.
I give a new list of words every two weeks. So every two weeks I find myself going to SpellingCity.com to create a new list for each student. The first time took me about 60 minutes for the entire class, but now it's a streamlined process that I can get done in roughly 30 minutes! And I will gladly spend 30 minutes every two weeks for a program that is entirely student run, keeps track of their grades, and lets me differentiate! (The free version will not keep track of grades for you.)
Still not convinced? {Come on - you've read this far! ;) } Laura Candler of Corkboard Connections has some great resources she uses to compliment Spelling City. You can find them here and here, or by clicking on the link below.
With the premium membership I can create as many individualized spelling lists as I want! And I can also decide how many activities the students complete before taking the test. Some students complete five activities, while others complete 10. It totally depends on their needs and abilities! (You can choose up to 10 activities - including writing practice, spelling tests, vocabulary tests, alphabetizing, and more!)
I can't lie - setting up individualized spelling lists has taken a little getting used to. Every single student in my 6th grade classroom has their own spelling list. It's a LOT to keep track of! But here's how I do it...
First, I keep track of nearly everything each student spells incorrectly. This means that I tote the sheets below around whenever I'm correctly and sometimes even in the classroom while I'm observing students working. If I see a student misspell something, I find their sheet and write the word down for a future spelling list.
Click on the picture to download your copy for FREE!
I give a new list of words every two weeks. So every two weeks I find myself going to SpellingCity.com to create a new list for each student. The first time took me about 60 minutes for the entire class, but now it's a streamlined process that I can get done in roughly 30 minutes! And I will gladly spend 30 minutes every two weeks for a program that is entirely student run, keeps track of their grades, and lets me differentiate! (The free version will not keep track of grades for you.)
This screen shot gives you an idea on how entering student words looks.
Spelling City is great whether you use the free or premium version. One of the features I absolutely LOVE about the premium version is that every two weeks I can go in and print off spelling and vocabulary test scores. This is sent home to parents to show how the child is doing, and it tells what words were missed so I know what to add back on their spelling list at a future date!
Still not convinced? {Come on - you've read this far! ;) } Laura Candler of Corkboard Connections has some great resources she uses to compliment Spelling City. You can find them here and here, or by clicking on the link below.
2 comments:
I loved spelling city when I taught 1st grade! My favorite part was the games they could play with the spelling words.
Lindsey
Lovin’ Kindergarten
HoJo,
I agree that VocabularySpellingCity is great. I'm really impressed by your methodology for tracking each word error that students make, especially the part about whatever the context. Very cool!
My students’ favorites games: Word Search, Unscramble, Hangman (HangMouse), Crossword Puzzle,and Word Find.
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