Vocabulary Wall

In the course of her schoolwork, Ruth comes across words, from time to time, that she doesn't know--as you would expect a first grader to do. Jeff and I didn't want her to just skip over these words so we tried to think of some way that would make her want to really learn the new words. We really didn't have to spend many brain cycles on it, though, because as soon as she found out that hanging them on the wall was an option, she was completely on board. So, when she comes across a word that she doesn't know, in any subject, she writes it down on a card. Then, we look up the definition together and write it on the other side of the card. Then, I write an example sentence, using the word. We drill these like flashcards. When Ruth can say the definition and use the word in a sentence of her own, she gets to hang it on the wall. (This serves a dual purpose--one utilitarian, one decorative--since our walls have been pretty blank up until now).

Ruth now has 35 words on the wall, including, but not limited to the following:

*Portend
*Haggard
*Hideous
*Infuriate
*Diurnal
*Zygodactyl
*Utilitarian
*Considerable
*Lament
*Folly
*Alas
*Considerable

Having the words up on the wall makes Ruth more aware of them and encourages Jeff and I to use those words more often in conversation. Ruth loves to catch one of us using one of "her" words, and she is thrilled to no end to see them in print again in other reading assignments. Just another way the Watts Academy is making learning fun.