What is a word wall? A word wall is a display area in the classroom devoted strictly to high-frequency vocabulary that will be used or is being used during the course of a particular unit of study.
What is the purpose?
- Students need teachers who create an interest in words.
- In order to learn a word, students need to see, hear, and use terms in many contexts.
- Vocabulary knowledge directly impacts reading comprehension.
What are ways to make it work?
Make Them Memorable- Use text as the context for identifying key words to place on your word wall. Remember, if the key words are any old words, they are likely to be treated as such.
Make Them Useful- The more you use the word wall the more your students will do the same. Demonstrations and think-alouds take only a few seconds, if done frequently, will give you more bang for your buck. It is important that you show students how to use the word wall. Putting the words up at the beginning of the year and telling kids to use it without showing them how is setting your word wall up for failure.
Make Them Practical- Incorporate words walls into your daily instruction. By incorporating the word wall in daily instruction, students will gain automaticity in using this classroom reference.
Make Them Space Efficient- If you lack space, use three-panel display boards. These freestanding materials don't require any wall space, and can be moved around the room and placed on a table for greater visibility.
Make Them Your Way- There is no right or wrong way to build a word wall. What to build, what words to add, and when to add them, all depend on what your students need. Organize your walls in a way that is practical to students. Be creative!
What steps can I take to make it an active words wall?
Check out this packet of activities: http://www.curriculum.org/storage/258/1334340769/World_Walls_-_A_Support_for_Literacy_in_Secondary_School_Classrooms.pdf
~Chandra
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