Hi all, I have recently read the Daily 5 and I am interested in using it if I get a job this fall. My question is: in your class what exactly does the "word work" part of the Daily 5 look like? I found that part of the book sort of vague. Thanks, Dave
Most of my activities in word work come from: http://www.jmeacham.com/centers/writing.options/words/words.htm The kids love them, especially bottled up words. Also, I don't know what grade you're hoping to teach, but some of these activities are easily adaptable for various grades. http://www.pre-kpages.com/literacycntrs.html
I made word work bags. Inside each bag I have pipe cleaners, some laminated game type of things to use with a dry erase marker, dry erase board, magnetic letters, play doh, gel boards, etc. Every student has a different ring of words to use with the word work bags. Some are using different sight words, some are working homophones, some compound words etc. They grab their ring and work on the words with any item that they want in the word work bag. I do also have laminated sheets like the dolch word activities from carlscorner as a choice for some students to work on during word work. However, only a few students choose to use these over the word work bags. This way they don't have to get up 20 times during their rotation to switch or decide on material. It also keeps things neat and organized.
I just found this post because I had the same question! I love the bag idea and am going to combine it with some of the ideas from the pre-kpages website. Here's what I plan to put in my bags for students to practice current spelling, sight, or word wall words... Sandpaper – put a piece of paper on top and rub a crayon over to write spelling and sight words Magnetic letters and pie pan – build words with letters on pan Play-Doh – make words with play-doh Magazine Words – cut out letters from old magazines, newspapers, advertisements, etc. and glue on paper to make words Magna Doodle or Travel Sized Aqua Doodle – write words Thanks for the ideas!
Personally, as someone who will be starting the Daily "Five" in the coming days, I am more likely to drop it down to Daily Four and then do Word Work as a whole class activity. I also found their description of word work to be fairly vague, and I would much rather keep control of that aspect of Literacy. (It's my favourite part of my LA block... I would hate to give it up!)
I store mine in flat boxes from Target (they are awesome and come in various sizes...I think they are Sterlite or however you spell that...clear with blue latches on the sides to keep the lids on). I have a salt box instead of a sand box (I keep a paintbrush in there so the kids use that instead of their Swine-flu coated fingers). I also have Wikki Stix, bean spelling (they line up beans to create each letter), Bananagrams or letter tiles, letter magnets, and letter stamps. I have 2 of each box so I can have half of my class doing WW at a time. Oh- and I laminated a plain piece of construction paper for the kids to use as a "mat" for Wikki Stix and the beans. I have a small magnetic whiteboard in the magnet boxes, too. I have a student in my reading group that has celiac disease so I can't have Playdoh.
i do my regular spelling and language arts at this time. we were doing "fun" activities for spelling, but they can't handle it (and, yes, i did model and all that). LC
