Welcome back to the Spelling Station Activities for First Grade blog series!Β
All of these activities are spelling stations that I use in my own first grade classroom that take little to no prep on my part (because who has time for that, am I right?).
These spelling activities can be done:
- One at a time as a class (as your daily spelling practice/lesson)
- In a small group setting (as intervention)
- At a spelling station (set out one activity daily or set out multiple to give students choice over their activity – this was my personal favorite, I usually set out 4-5 activities for four weeks which saved me SO much time)
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Here's a sneak peek at the entire series of first grade spelling activities that I will be covering:
Spelling Series: βOOβ Words
Spelling Series: Stamps and Playdough
Spelling Series: Interactive Spelling Wall
Spelling Series: Rainbow Words
Spelling Series: My βdgeβ Words Freebie
Spelling Series: Keyboard Spelling
Spelling Series: Hangman Spelling
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My best advice is to make the most of the materials that you already have in your classroom. A lot of the spelling activities in this series donβt require any materials other than writing utensils and paper, start with those!Β
Also, when it comes to incorporating spelling activities into your stations, donβt try to do it all at once. Start small and slowly add activities throughout the year! This will help your students maintain independence during station time because they arenβt having to learn a lot of new routines at once.
Spelling Knowledge in First Grade
So what kind of spelling knowledge should a first grade student really have?
Here are a few foundations of spelling knowledge:Β
Sounds can be represented by a single letter or a combination of letters (digraphs, blends)
Letters may have more than one sound
Some sounds can be represented by different letters
When spelling, words can be separated into single sounds or a combination of sounds
Knowing the 6 syllable type can help students spell
Some words do not follow typical spelling rules/patterns, BUT you can match letters to sounds in at least part of those words
Asking yourself βDoes the world look right?β after spelling a word
Spelling words (encoding) and reading words (decoding) go hand and hand! They should be taught together, NOT in isolation!
First grade students are also expected to spell high-frequency words (sight words) without sounding out letter-by-letter.
Spelling Station: Rainbow Words
What are Rainbow Words?
βRainbow wordsβ is not a new concept or spelling activity. But, as long as it has been around, the use of color and art to practice spelling words is still greatly effective with first grade students!Β
In fact, rainbow words have become one of my go-to spelling practice activities because it is so easy to do and requires minimal materials!
What I love the most about them is that you can recycle an old piece of paper by using the back of it for this activity.Β
The idea behind it is so simple, but it truly is great practice. The best part of this activity is that it is something the kids can easily do independently at home to practice their spelling words with their families.
What You Need:
-blank paper (scratch paper, the back of a worksheet or even a journal will work)
-crayons or markers (anything you have that gives students multiple color options)
Directions:
-Students start at the bottom of the page making a small semi circle at the bottom with the first word/color.
-Students slowly add more lines by changing colors for each word.
Teacher Tip:
For students who have a hard time forming the semi-circle, I show them how to trace something round like a bowl or a roll of tape.
Mix it Up:
If your students start to get board with the shape of a rainbow, try out different shapes! You could have them draw boxes, houses, the sun, clouds or anything else, the possibilities are endless!
Challenge:
For students who need more of a challenge, have them use one color crayon and write a sentence with one of their spelling words. Then, have the student change colors and write a second sentence with a new spelling word. The challenge in this activity is that the sentences will have to get longer to make the rainbow look complete so students will really have to work at writing good, expressive sentences.Β
Holiday Option:
Transform rainbow words into a fun holiday activity with your color options! For Halloween, have students use orange, purple and black. For Christmas, have students use red and green.Β
Spelling Tip: Use a Spelling List
I mentioned earlier a few tricks I use in my spelling station so that I only have to switch out materials every four weeks. The key to this method is using spelling lists.Β
What is a spelling list?Β
As simple as it sounds, itβs a list of words that follow the same spelling rule/pattern. Iβve found that using a spelling pattern rather than a set β10 spelling wordsβ helps students really understand the spelling rule rather than just memorizing those ten words. These spelling lists are also sometimes referred to as βword familyβ lists because words that follow the same spelling pattern are considered to be in the same βfamilyβ.Β
How do you use a spelling list?
Spelling and word family lists can be used in a variety of ways:
- Spelling Station to spell the word pattern of the week. This means I only change out the spelling or word family list each week and the activities can stay the same! Super low-maintenance!
- As a βgo toβ list for teachers when generating word families whole group phonics/spelling instructionΒ
- A list of words for teachers to review during small group warm ups for guided reading or interventions (make flashcards, build words, manipulate phonemes with plastic letters, etc.)
- A list of words for families to practice reading and writing
Again, this is not anything that you have to buy. You can simply type up a list of spelling words or spelling pattern words and put it in your station.
Teacher Tips about Spelling Lists
- I laminated my lists for durability from year to year, but you don't even have to take that step if you don't want to.
- I used a different color of paper for each week. This made it very easy to make sure my long a lists didn't get mixed up with the long i lists.Β
- I had four copies of each list set out each week because I typically had 3-4 students visit that station at a time and I did not want them to have to share.Β
- I've also done it where I had a month's worth of lists connected with a binder ring which mean even less prep on my part, but the disadvantage of this was that students would often end up on the wrong list!
- You could have all students share one list if you wanted to, or you could leave that list posted somewhere in your classroom.
There is no right or wrong way to use a spelling list as a station!
First Grade Spelling Lists
This list includes ALL spelling patterns and word families taught in first grade.Β
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These spelling and word family lists can be used in a variety of ways:
β’Spelling Station to spell the word pattern of the week. This means I only change out the spelling or word family list each week and the activities can stay the same! Super low-maintenance!
β’As a βgo toβ list for teachers when generating word families whole group phonics/spelling instructionΒ
β’A list of words for teachers to review during small group warm ups for guided reading or interventions (make flashcards, build words, manipulate phonemes with plastic letters, etc.)
β’A list of words for families to practice reading and writing at home
β’A list of rhyming words for students to reference
More First Grade Spelling and Phonics Tips
