words their way activities 5th grade

Phonics Practice for Your Structured Literacy Classroom with Words Their Way Classroom

• Multisensory phonology and morphology practice
• Hands-on sorts plus interactive digital activities

Teach Word Study with Words Their Way Classroom

Words Their Way Classroom provides personalized word study instruction and engaging, hands-on word sorting practice.

Personalized Instruction and Practice

The program personalizes word study instruction and practice based on the five developmental spelling stages, making it easy to meet students’ diverse learning needs and grow their literacy skills.

Engaging, Hands-on Word Study

Students actively explore, compare, and categorize word patterns and relationships through hands-on and interactive word sorts, helping them build true word knowledge (not rote memorization!).

Easy, Manageable Instructional Routine

Teachers only need 15 to 20 minutes per day to provide students with engaging, effective word study. Each lesson provides strategies to model the sort, practice it, and apply and assess learning.

Interactive Word Sorts and Digital Resources

Every lesson has an associated digital word sort where students can click-and-drag pictures, words, and/or spelling patterns. Printable games and other resources add extra practice options.

Strengthen Literacy Skills with Words Their Way Classroom Supplemental Literacy Program

How the program personalizes word study, fun and engaging word study for students, easy and manageable word study for teachers, the 5-day weekly word study routine, the 5 developmental spelling stages.

• Developmental Spelling Stages Words Their Way Classroom offers a complete set of ready-to-use resources — lessons, sorts, and activities — for each of the five research-based stages of spelling, so teachers have everything needed to personalize word study based on each student’s developmental spelling stage.
• Small-Group Instruction Students are grouped by developmental spelling stage so each student can get instruction and practice that matches their instructional needs. The program can also be used for whole-class and individual instruction.
• Meeting Individual Needs Each lesson includes ideas for providing extra support (or challenge) for students who may need it, as well as strategies for supporting multilingual learners. The Implementation Guide provides additional tips for differentiating instruction according to individual student needs.

• Hands-on Practice Each developmental spelling stage has an associated full-color, consumable Word Study Notebook (available in print or as a digital printable). These pages are designed so students can cut and paste words into sorting categories for hands-on practice.
• Digital Interactivity Kids love digital interactivity! These online word sorts allow students to click-and-drag pictures, words, and spelling patterns, plus instantly check their work. There’s an Interactive Sort associated with each lesson.
• Big Book of Rhymes Designed for students in earlier developmental spelling stages, the Big Book of Rhymes provides vividly illustrated poems that teachers can use to introduce the sort and grow students’ vocabulary.
• Games and More Digital resources include printable word study games, picture and word cards, and more to give students additional support and practice.

• Everything Needed for Word Study One of the greatest challenges to implementing word study in the elementary classroom is developing all the materials needed for effective word sorts. Words Their Way Classroom provides everything teachers need to deliver effective, personalized word study for all students in their classroom!
• Easy, Step-by-Step Lessons The Teacher Resource Guide provides a simple and effective lesson plan for each sort. The guide includes objectives, routines, multilingual learner strategies, differentiated support, and assessment ideas.
• Group Students The Qualitative Spelling Inventory helps teachers place students in their correct developmental stage of word study. Students then work in small groups based on their developmental spelling stage.
• Monitor Progress Prebuilt spell checks can be used as a spelling pretest to assess prior knowledge, or as a posttest immediately following instruction.
• Reinforce and Extend Core Instruction Words Their Way Classroom is an ideal complement to core ELA instruction! Use word study to give students additional practice with the phonics, vocabulary, and spelling skills learned in their core reading program.
• Additional Teacher Resources The Implementation Guide provides teachers with helpful background and information about the program, along with strategies for implementing and managing the program in an elementary classroom.

• 15-20 Minutes Per Day Teachers who use this 5-day routine only need about 15-20 minutes per day to provide students with engaging, effective word study.
• Day 1: Introduce & Model On Day 1, teachers introduce vocabulary using a Big Book of Rhymes or a curated Word List, then model a picture, sound, or word sort for students.
• Day 2: Practice the Sort On Day 2, students practice the sort and pattern using hands-on print and interactive digital sorts.
• Day 3: Practice Writing Sorts On Day 3, teachers can use a writing sort to connect the pattern or skill to writing. Interactive digital writing sorts are also available!
• Day 4: Word Hunts On Day 4, students can hunt for words and patterns in reading. Each Words Their Way Classroom lesson provides a digital Classroom Library book for word hunts!
• Day 5: Word Sorting Games On Day 5, students can play engaging word sorting games. Teachers will find a printable PDF with a fun game included in the Teacher Resource Guide for each sort.

• Five Research-Based Stages Words Their Way Classroom uses a developmental model that recognizes the synchronous nature of reading, writing, and spelling. The program personalizes instruction based on which stage students are at along the literacy continuum.
• Emergent – Early Letter Name Students at this stage have an incomplete knowledge of the alphabet and may not use any sound-symbol correspondence.
• Letter Name Students apply the alphabet literally or spell phonetically, representing most strong sounds and beginning consonants, but omitting silent letters and preconsonantal nasals.
• Within Word Pattern Students correctly spell most single-syllable words with short vowels, and can recognize consonant digraphs and two-letter consonant blends.
• Syllables and Affixes Students correctly spell long-vowel and high-frequency words, but may make errors at syllable juncture points and in unaccented syllables.
• Derivational Relations At this stage, students spell most words correctly. They are growing their knowledge of vocabulary and spelling patterns of low-frequency, multisyllabic words derived from Greek and Latin roots.

Take a Closer Look at Words Their Way Classroom

Program Overview

Get a quick overview of Words Their Way Classroom

Teacher Resources

Explore teacher resources for word study

Student Resources

Explore student resources for word study

Try a Words Their Way Classroom Lesson

• Emergent – Early Letter Name
• Letter Name
• Within Word Pattern
• Syllables and Affixes
• Derivational Relations

Sort 8, Beginning Sounds r, s

At this stage, the word study focus areas are: concept sorts, rhyming sorts, beginning sounds, letter recognition, ending sounds, and digraphs.

Sort 9, Word Families -op, -ot, -og

At this stage, the word study focus areas are: beginning consonants, same vowel word families, digraphs and blends, mixed vowel word families, short vowels, preconsonantal nasals, r -influenced vowels, and contractions.

Sort 31, Vowel Digraph oo

At this stage, the word study focus areas are: short and long vowels, other long vowel patterns, r - influenced vowels, diphthongs and other ambiguous vowels, complex consonant clusters, and homophones

Sort 49, Suffixes -y, -ly, -ily

At this stage, the word study focus areas are: compound words, inflected endings, open and closed syllables, accented syllables, unaccented syllables, consonants, prefixes and suffixes, homophones, and homographs.

Sort 30, Greek and Latin Elements cap, ped, corp

At this stage, the word study focus areas are: prefixes and suffixes, Greek and Latin roots, advanced spelling-meaning patterns, and prefix assimilation.

Word Study: An Interactive Approach for Teaching Word Knowledge

• What is Word Study?
• How Do Word Sorts Work?
• Words Their Way Classroom
• Phonics, Spelling, and Vocabulary

Word Knowledge, Not Memorization

Word Sorts: Actively Engaging Students in Word Study

How Words Their Way Classroom Teaches Word Study

At the heart of Words Their Way Classroom is the hands-on or interactive sort. The sort invites students to group words or pictures representing specific sounds into categories. Most sorts begin with teacher-directed instruction along with questions to guide student learning and generalizations.

How Word Study Grows Literacy Skills

Developed by Literacy Experts

Word study resources for educators.

• The Essential Elements of Word Study
• Scope and Sequence
• 10 Ways to Word Sort
• On-Demand Webinar
• Word Meaning and Word Study

Dr. Donald Bear: Word Study to Teach Phonics, Vocabulary, and Spelling

Scope and Sequence for Grades K-5

10 Effective Word Sort Techniques

Strengthening Phonics and Vocabulary with Word Study

Dr. Shane Templeton: The Critical Role of Word Meaning in Word Study

Enhance Word Study with Interactive Digital Resources

The digital components of Words Their Way Classroom are all hosted on the award-winning Savvas Realize® digital platform. Realize integrates with a wide variety of digital tools and systems, such as Google Classroom, Canvas, Schoology, OneDrive, and many more!

Digital components include drag-and-drop word sorts with audio support, an interactive Teacher Resource Guide, printable PDFs of word lists and word study games, interactive spell checks, and more!

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Words Their Way

We’ve just started year two of Words Their Way (WTW) at our school.  Managing 4-5 groups within your classroom seems like a daunting task, but with a little planning, training, and organization, it’s possible!

I have created a SMARTboard file that houses all of our activity slides.  At the start of WTW, we use the first few slides to remind ourselves:

• which group students are in
• what the WTW expectations are
• what the WTW routines are
• what the WTW schedule is

It’s important to note that the schedule is flexible.  While I may have four WTW groups, they may not all be doing the exact same activity each day; AND they may not move onto the next sort all at the same time.  I find that it’s important to be diagnostic with my teaching.  What this means is that students are observed and assessed.  They move when they’re ready.  This type of flexible teaching is important for student growth and development.  Would it be easier to keep every student on the same schedule and to have them do the same activity and move at the same time?  Of course!  It’d be easier on me, but not my students.  It’s not what’s best for them.

Below you can see the activity slides, with a short description.

Basic Sort (above): Students receive their new sort.  They color the back (as a measure to indicate who the sort belongs to).  They then cut and sort.  In subsequent days I model the sort to demonstrate how it’s done (display category cards, read categories, read words out loud, sort words).  We also develop vocabulary knowledge in subsequent days too!

Words in Sentences (above): Students sort their words first.  Then they select at least four words and write a sentence for each.  I challenge my higher level kids to find a way to write a short story with the words, so the sentences are connected and form a story!

Book Look (above):  Students sort their words.  They then read a familiar book and look for words that follow/have the same spelling pattern.  This is definitely a challenging task, and so it’s done after a lot of modeling.

Illustrated Words (above):  After sorting their words, they select at least four words and illustrate them (and add the word as a label).  For students that have pictures (instead of words) for their sort, they do the same thing.  They draw their word, but are then challenged to spell each word.

Sound Hop (above): This is done with me.  Students either create a work mat, or I create one for them.  The frog (math frog manipulative) sits in the middle on his lily pad and waits for the word to be called out.  Students then listen for the “target sound” and jump to the correct quadrant.

Sound  Hop w/ Video (above):   Similar to the above mentioned game, but we add a video from YouTube to the routine.  The video demonstrates/teaches the target sound(s) on which we’re focusing.

Blind Sort (above):   After a quick sort, students participate in a blind sort.  I’ve seen a couple of variations of this activity.  We do blind sorts by partnering up, preferably with someone who has the same sort.  Students create categories in their notebooks.  They then call out words for their partner to spell and also spell words that their partner calls out to them.  Once a partner has written a word, their partner checks it and provides feedback.

Partner Memory (above) :  Students must work with someone who has the same sort that they do.  The partners combine word cards, turn them word-face down, and then play memory.  Students read (out loud) each word they turn over and try to match words.  They keep the words they match.

Free Choice (above):   After demonstrating each of these options, students are able to self-select a way to practice writing their WTW words.

Be sure to check out new REVAMPs to our Words Their Way routine, since the writing of this post!

Do you you have any favorite Words Their Way routines, activities, or resources?

11 Comments

Really enjoyed reading how you manage the groups when using WTW. Thanks for sharing!!

Glad to help!

We are also doing our second year of WTW and I find it so confusing. Thank you for these examples. I am wondering what Daily 5 things do you do after WTW? Tara

Students select between 3 and 4 session options on our workboard (smartboard file). I work with guided reading groups while they work independently (Read to Self, Read with Partner, Word Work, Listen to Reading, iPads, Work on Writing). You can see my work work activities by searching for “word work” on my site. Let me know if you need more help!

Hi Jessica! Your website has been such a blessing to me and I still use a lot of your reader’s and writer’s workshop units to guide my planning – and I’m in my 4th year of teaching 1st grade! Thank you so much for sharing your work! I’m also muddling through WTW, which I like, but I’ve been stressing out about how to fit in working with my groups. Do you pull spelling groups at a different time during the day? Are your students doing these WTW activities during “work on words” time during D5 (which I’m also using)? Last year I pulled spelling groups in the morning, during student morning work time, but this year that’s been more difficult. At other times I’ve alternated pulling groups during D5 time and during writer’s workshop, but I would really like to devote that time to my reading groups and writer’s conferences. Any advice? Thanks!

Last year our grade level switched for WTW groups three times a week. We assessed, grouped students, and created flexible groups that were changed with ongoing observation and assessment. This year, we aren’t switching, so WTW is in the classroom. I tried it as a stand alone time in my classroom, but am preferring doing it as a task during my Guided Reading time. Rather than have all student in the group do the same thing at the same time, I stagger it. SO if I have a group of three students…one starts with guided writing, another starts with their word sort, and the last one reads with me. I start with the book talk/preview if they happen to reading the same book before they start their work. Feels a little like I’m a circus master, but it seems to work for us! If there are four in a group, it gets trickier…but we make it work!

Hi, Jessica! What amazing activities and resources you have created!!! We are beginning to use WTW program, and, like many other teachers, I am confused and don’t know how to set up the program in an efficient way. I work in a special school, and it is often very difficult to handle several groups at the same time, as not very many of our students are able to work independently. Your resources gave me hope that it is possible. Thank you very much!!! May I also ask what fonts you use in creating your activities and resources? For example, how did you create your title – “Words Their Way”? Is there such a font? What other fonts do you use in your resources? I would be very grateful if you could find time to answer my questions. I may have more questions once I set up my program. Again – THANK YOU VERY MUCH! Kind regards, Eugenia

Hello! The specialized fonts are actually alphabet letters from Lettering Delights: http://www.letteringdelights.com/ . I love them! Recently I’ve moved away from whole group WTW to incorporating it into Guided Reading.

Here’s how: Group of three— — rotation 1- one student reads a part of the book, one does WTW, and one does guided/independent writing — rotation 2 and 3 are the same (kids rotate activities)

I’ve been loving this method so far!

Hello from Australia! Thank you, Jessica, so much for finding time to reply my comment! Very much appreciated! Could you, please, send me the links to YouTube videos that you use in your “Sound Hop w/ Video” activity? Thank you in advance! For your “Partner Memory” activity, do you have a laminated placemat on which the children place their words face down? How do you do it? Is there any chance of your sharing some resources that you use? If not, I will understand. Thank you very much again! Kind regards, Eugenia

Hey! Truth be told, I’m a Last-Minute-Nelly and usually end up finding YouTube vids at the last moment! I have a dream though…that one day my Words their Way planning doc will include lesson resource links. One day… Sigh! Maybe this summer I’ll feel inspired? For the Partner Memory, I don’t have a template, but that would definitely help them keep the area neat and tidy!! Great idea!

[…] previously written about our Words Their Way routines and shared several resources.  This year we made a few changes that I wanted to […]

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Words Their Way : The Ultimate How To Guide

Around here we are big fans of Words Their Way, an assessment-based, differentiated, leveled approach to spelling and word work.

Here’s a little background on our experience with the Words Their Way program:

• It’s encouraged, not required in our district. Teachers can implement the program however they see fit.
• Heidi has taken some trainings but most of our know-how is from the book and trial and error .
• We use the sorts weekly but we do not use the program for spelling . Visit our post about Chunk Spelling to learn more about the approach we use.

Hopefully this post will give you some insight and tips if you’re looking to learn how to implement and organize Words Their Way in your classroom.

DISCLAIMER: At this time, we no longer use Words Their Way. We now use Word Play , a word study program that incorporates differentiated word sorting and other elements like chunk spelling. Some of those activities and games would make great companion resources to Words Their Way .

But we will always keep this post available to you as a resource!

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ABOUT WORD PLAY PHONICS

Click here to try a 1 Week Free Sample of Word Play Phonics!

To begin using Words Their Way, we recommend that you gather some supplies.

• The  Words Their Way book is a must. If you are teaching early childhood, we recommend Words Their Way for PreK-K book .
• You may have access to the sort books at your school. If you don’t you will want the sort books as well. The sort books in order from easy to advanced are: Letter and Picture Sorts for Emergent Spellers , Letter Name- Alphabetic Spellers , Within Word Patterns Spellers , Syllables and Affixes Spellers , Derivational Relations Spellers . In 2nd grade, we usually only needed the Letter Name- Alphabetic, Within Word Patterns, and Syllables and Affixes sort books.
• Post-it notes
• 3 ring binder for holding master copies of sorts
• zipper pockets for holding sorts (1 per student)
• highlighters (a few colors, enough for a small group)
• spiral notebooks for sorting and gluing the sorts each week (1 per student)
• 6 pocket folders ( similar to these )

The first step in implementing Words Their way is giving the class a (rather lengthy) spelling test. We use the Primary Spelling Inventory (PSI) for 2nd grade. On the Pearson website there are examples of the different tests and run down on scoring them.

Grading the assessment can be tedious, but it’s so great to see all the data.  Each of the words is broken down into key components—beginning sounds, vowel sounds, suffixes, etc. You don’t analyze every part of every word, so you need the feature guide to show you what you’re looking for. You put the student’s test in front of you and start checking off what was written correctly.  We made a form for the students to write their answers on. This form allows us to do a little record keeping right on their forms.

The feature guide in the book is horizontal but we found it easier to grade quickly with a vertical page so we made our own vertical form . We use the same page all year so it is easy to track student growth. Tip: We use a different color pen each time we give the assessment and color the key at the top of the page accordingly.

After checking each word, total the number of checks in each column . The different columns represent different levels of spelling mastery. Each feature is checked in 7 different words. If a student correctly writes the feature (for example, short vowel sounds) 6 or 7 times you know it has been mastered. If a child gets 5 or fewer correct, that’s considered the student’s instructional level. This is the level the child will benefit most from practicing.

Want our spelling test sheet and vertical spelling inventory?

Click here to get our FREE Words Their Way Spelling Inventory & Resources.

Making Groups

After testing your students, the next step is to organize them for word study.

The simplest thing is to grab a piece of paper and list the levels down one side. Then look through the assessments and see who fits each category. I write the number they got correct in that category on top of their name.

Here’s an example:

Keep in mind that this isn’t an exact science!   In a Words Their Way workshop I once heard, “Do what you can!” That’s the key. If you can manage 8 different groups with weekly reassessments, go for it. But if you are only ready for 2 groups with word sorts every other week, that’s okay too. Make it work for you!   What is important is that you’re getting at least some differentiation.

I decided I could handle 5 groups. I made a little notebook to keep track of the groups. There is a half-sheet form for each week. I cut down a post-it note for each group and added the kids’ names. (Tip: Using post-it notes makes it easy to transfer the information to the new sheet each week.) Then I list the sort for each week.

Want to our group planning pages?  Click here to get our FREE Words Their Way Resources.

Materials Prep

Now to deal with the actual sorts. This is the make-it or break-it point when it comes to using Words Their Way. If you can handle this circus, the rest is easy.

At Emily’s school, they ordered a ton of copies of each sort and she had a filing cabinet full of sorts at her disposal whenever she needed them.  In case you aren’t that lucky, here’s a method that worked for me .

I got some 6 pocket folders from Really Good Stuff, similar to these . I numbered each folder 1-6 and then used a post-it to label the pockets inside with the group level and number of kids. Each folder holds one week’s worth of sorts and each group has its own pocket in that week’s folder.

The next step took me awhile, but now that it’s done I’ll never have to do it again! I went through the different sort books (for 2nd grade that’s Letter-Name Alphabetic, Within Word Patterns, Syllable & Affixes) and copied each sort on yellow paper . I did them double sided to fit in one binder.

Now, every 6 weeks or so, I take my folders, binder, and record notebook to the work room. I figure out what each group needs for the next 6 weeks and put the copies in the correct pocket. This is when having the master in yellow comes in handy- I never mix it with the copies!

I can copy and organize 6 weeks worth of sorts in less than 30 minutes !

The only other supplies you need are a spiral bound notebook for each student to do their daily sorting, a zipper pocket for each student to hold the weekly sort (we reuse these for a couple of years until they are too beat up), and highlighters for introducing the sorts on Day 1.

With Words Their Way, the focus of the program is sorting the words. It’s a great way for children to learn but it can be tedious to do it day after day. The book has lots of different sort suggestions and I’ve tried most of them.

Over the years, my weekly system has evolved, but this is how it looks most recently.

On Fridays, I give each child their sort.  They cut the words apart and label the back with initials (so simple, but so handy when you find random words on the floor!), and store the cards in a little zipper pocket. ( Tip: We share an even easier way to do this in another post! )

While they’re working, I call each group back to the table one at a time. We discuss the sort and they highlight an exemplar for each category. That helps them to remember what features they’re sorting for.

I like to have them start sorting the words while they’re still at the table.  If it’s an easy sort or an advanced group, I might only need to see them sort a few words before I know they’ve “got it.”  If it’s a trickier sort or a struggling group, I may want them to finish the entire sort with me right then so I can offer guidance and address questions.  Depends on the group and it depends on how much time I have at the moment!

Since starting the Daily 5 a few years ago, word sorts are the first thing my students do when they go to the Work on Words station.

Sorting Routine

On Monday, they sort and write. Tuesday is the favorite: speed sort. I got some sand timers for them to use for speed sorting. Wednesday they sort and graph. Thursday they sort and glue the words into their notebooks. And on Friday we start with the new sort. They can do each sort in less than 5 minutes.

There is no one right way to do this. Find what works for you!

I like to use visual sort instructions to remind the class how to do each type of sort.

Small Group Lessons

Now that I’m doing Daily 5 , I have much more free time for working with small groups (Hooray!!).  If I can’t meet with a group on Friday, I use one of my Daily 5 rotations on Monday to catch them up.  I also try to meet with every group once during the week to play a game that relates to their sorts. We have mentioned some of these in previous posts. We have some phonics games in our store that you can use with Words Their Way (but were designed to correlate with our Word Play Phonics curriculum .)

Because I don’t use Words Their Way for spelling words, I don’t do a “spelling test” of their sorts every week though it would be easy to do a quick 4-6 word check of a few words with each group at the end of the week.

However, I do repeat the PSI assessment (mentioned at the beginning of this post) every quarter. After assessments I will rearrange the groups as necessary.  The Words Their Way level sort books provide periodic assessments that I have great intentions of using, but don’t always (okay, very rarely) get time to use.  I’ve found they provide helpful, but not crucial information, so don’t beat yourself up if you can’t fit them in to your schedule.  Doing the PSI a few times a year is really a good measure of where my kids are and they don’t typically change so much in a quarter that you need weekly assessments.

Words Their Way is so thorough in scope and sequence that most of my students progress from one sort to the next in order.   Occasionally (especially with my ELL students), there will be a big jump in acquired skills, but most students will go step-by-step.  The PSI assessments are still important, though, so you can make sure they are actually progressing and that students are still working at their instructional levels.

It sounds like a lot to take on, but once you establish your organized system, the whole thing will run like a well-oiled machine. And the growth you see in your students will be worth all the hassle of setting it up.

In the years I’ve been diligent with the program, my kids were much more confident in their understanding of spelling patterns. In the years when I’ve let it slide, I may have some really good natural spellers, but they don’t understand why words follow certain patterns.

If we want to shape good little spellers, it just makes sense to teach them how to think about words.

Click here to get our FREE Words Their Way Resources.

• Read more about: 1st Grade , 2nd grade , 3rd Grade , Daily 5 , words their way

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Word Study Activities from Words Their Way

The following activities come from what many consider to be the bible of word study, Words Their Way: Word Study for Phonics, Vocabulary, and Spelling Instruction by Donald Bear, Marcia Invernizzi, Shane Templeton, and Francine Johnston.

If you like these exercises, you might consider purchasing this book–it”s packed with even more great ideas. We thank Prentice-Hall, Inc. for their permission to link to the following lessons from the Words Their Way web site.

Lesson for the Letter Name-Alphabetic Stage

(Pre-Kindergarten to the middle of first grade)

Alphabet Sort for Different Fonts of “A” and “B”

As students identify letters in differing cases and fonts, they become better able to recognize letters in new contexts. Should you decide to continue this exercise with other letters in the alphabet, it”s quite easy to print similar pages using different fonts in your word processing program.

Lessons for the Letter Name-Alphabetic Stage

(Reading Level of Kindergarten to the middle of Grade Two)

Picture Sort for Initial F and T Picture Sort for ch, sh, and th Digraphs

I”ve seen for myself how well “picture sort” activities help students make connections between spoken sounds and their corresponding letters or letter groups. The student will pick up a card picturing an object such as a shoe, and try to determine if it begins with “ch”, “sh”, or “th.” This simple game may supply the missing link that your student needs to “crack the code” of written language!

Word Sort for the it, ip and ill Families

Word sorts are highly effective in teaching students to find patterns that make decoding easier. Word sorts are used extensively to teach concepts from elementary word families to more sophisticated language concepts. Exercises such as this word sort enable students to more easily recognize word families, which helps in decoding new words with similar patterns.

Lessons for the Within-Word Pattern Stage

(First Grade to the middle of Fourth Grade Reading Levels)

Word Sort for Long-a Patterns, Compared to the Short Vowel Pattern Diphthongs and Other Vowels

Lessons for the Syllables and Affixes Stage

(Reading levels of grades three through eight.)

Word Sort for Doubling Before -ed Word Sort for Prefixes

Lessons for the Derivational Relations Stage

(Reading levels of grades five through twelve.)

Prefix Sort for astro-, photo-, bio-, chlor-, eco-, hydro-, and hypo- Millennium Word Study and Sort Supplementary Sort: -um, -ium

I”ve included these exercises to demonstrate how word study may be used to teach even more advanced concepts in spelling and vocabulary. But if your student is in a literacy program, he or she is likely to need practice in the earlier reading levels, above.

Click here to return to the “Working and Playing With Words” Page

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Words Their Way: Word Study for Phonics, Vocabulary, and Spelling Instruction (5th Edition) (Words Their Way Series) 5th Edition

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The developmentally driven Words Their Way ® instructional approach is a phenomenon in word study, providing a practical way to study words with students. The keys to this successful, research-based approach are to know your students’ literacy progress, organize for instruction, and implement word study. The Fifth Edition features an innovative redesign and introduces technology integration aligning text to all new classroom video, an interactive classroom assessment application, prepared and create-your-own word sorts, games, and more specific to each chapter. It gives you all the tools you need to carry out word study instruction that will motivate and engage your students, and help them to succeed in literacy learning. Ordered in a developmental format, Words Their Way ® complements the use of any existing phonics, spelling, and vocabulary curricula.

We invite you to see what’s new in Words Their Way ® …

• all new how-to classroom videos
• interactive classroom assessment tool featuring new user-friendly navigation
• prepared and create-your-own word sorts
• games, templates, and more!
• Complimentary 12-month access packaged with each new Fifth Edition
• To learn more, please visit: http://pdtoolkit.pearson.com
• Innovative redesign of the book introduces technology integration aligning text to online videos, sorts, and assessments specific to each chapter.
• Unprecedented inclusion of progress monitoring throughout the book.
• Brand-new continuum of support model offers tips for better planning and carrying out word study lessons in the classroom.
• Expanded discussion on oral vocabulary, secondary instruction, writing, and early/middle/late phases in the derivational relations stage .
• Updated collection of classroom activities helps build the skills students need to move on to the next developmental stage.
• New “Resources for Implementing Word Study in Your Classroom” provides information about resources teachers can use in their instruction.
• Enhanced coverage of English learners provides tips and strategies for modifying instruction.

Classroom-ready appendices contain all the assessment instruments described in Chapter 2 as well as word sorts, sound boards, and game templates to get instruction underway. (Note: Includes reproducibles and perforated pages.)

• ISBN-10 0137035101
• ISBN-13 978-0137035106
• Edition 5th
• Publisher Pearson
• Publication date June 24, 2011
• Part of series Words Their Way
• Language English
• Dimensions 8.5 x 0.6 x 10.8 inches
• Print length 464 pages
• See all details

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From the back cover, about the author, product details.

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Pearson; 5th edition (June 24, 2011)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Paperback ‏ : ‎ 464 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0137035101
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0137035106
• Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.87 pounds
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8.5 x 0.6 x 10.8 inches
• #254 in Language Experience Approach to Teaching
• #953 in Reading & Phonics Teaching Materials
• #1,745 in Educational Certification & Development

About the authors

Donald r. bear.

Donald is director of the E. L. Cord Foundation Center for Learning and Literacy and professor in the College of Education, and with preservice, Master’s and doctoral students, teaches and assesses children who struggle to learn to read and write. Donald has been involved in innovative professional development grants, and has developed assessments used in school districts throughout the country. Donald is involved in numerous studies that examine literacy development including studies of the orthographic development in different and second languages.

Marcia Invernizzi

Marcia Invernizzi is a professor of reading education at the Curry School of Education at the University of Virginia. Marcia is also the director of the McGuffey Reading Center, where she teaches the clinical practice in reading diagnosis and remedial reading. Formerly an English and reading teacher, she works with Book Buddies, Virginia's Early Intervention Reading Initiative (EIRI), and Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening (PALS).

Shane Templeton

Shane Templeton is Foundation Professor Emeritus of Literacy Studies at the University of Nevada, Reno. A former classroom teacher at the primary and secondary levels, Shane did his graduate work at the University of Virginia, receiving his M.Ed. and Ph.D. degrees in Education there. Shane's research has focused on developmental word knowledge in elementary, middle, and high school students. He has published in a number of research and practitioner journals, and is co-author of "Words Their Way"; "Vocabulary Their Way: Word Study for Middle and Secondary Students"; "Words Their Way with Struggling Readers, Grades 4-12"; and "Words Their Way with English Learners." His other books include "Teaching the Integrated Language Arts," "Children's Literacy: Contexts for Meaningful Learning," and with Kristin Gehsmann, "Teaching Reading and Writing: The Developmental Approach (K-8)." Shane has contributed chapters to a number of research handbooks, including the "Handbook of Reading Research (Vol. III)", "Handbook of Research on Teaching the English Language Arts," "Handbook of Literacy and Technology," and "The Encyclopedia of Education (2nd ed.)."

Since 1987, Shane has been a member of the Usage Panel of the "American Heritage Dictionary." He is educational consultant on "The American Heritage Children's Dictionary." He is also consultant on and wrote the foreword to the recently published "Curious George's Dictionary."

Francine R. Johnston

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• Meet the Teacher
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• Guided Reading and Accountable Independent Reading (GRAIR)
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• Components of English Language Arts (ELA)
• Our spelling program is called "Words Their Way"(WTW).  "Words Their Way" (WTW) is a developmental spelling, phonics, and vocabulary program that is conducted as a word study.  In the beginning of the year, a word assessment is given to determine where to begin instruction.  Based on the results of these assessments, learners are given words to study with a similar word pattern or attribute. Students learn the feature of the word list with word games, highlighting, drawing and labeling.   A weekly spelling test will be given each week. Students should be reviewing their word list throughout the week to be best prepared for the test.     How to do a word sort How to do a blind sort   How to do a speed sort How to do a word hunt  
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Teaching with Jennifer Findley

Upper Elementary Teaching Blog

Word Work Activities for 4th and 5th Grade

Word work is an effective way to help students practice and work with words in engaging ways. But it can be difficult to find engaging and rigorous word work activities for 4th and 5th graders. Rainbow words and writing words in sentences are not the most exciting (or rigorous) ways to work with words. This post will share more details about what word work is, why it is important, and different word work activities that you can use to engage your students and help them build their spelling and vocabulary skills.

What is Word Work?

Word work is just like it sounds…. working with words. Word work is any activity that helps students learn, practice, and manipulate words.

During word work, students can work on a variety of skills involving words. Don’t limit yourself to just spelling rules and patterns. Word study is a great way to incorporate the following word skills:

1. Vocabulary -> Click here grab to vocabulary graphic organizers that are perfect for incorporating vocabulary into word work.

2. Morphology –> Click here to read more about morphology instruction and sign up for free resources.

3. Advanced Decoding Strategies –> Click here to read more about teaching syllable types as an advanced decoding strategy in grades 3-5.

4. Parts of Speech Skills -> Click here to check out a collection of free parts of speech activities for grades 4-5.

Here are some example skills that move beyond just spelling and incorporate the above skills:

• Finding synonyms and antonyms
• Finding connections between or among words
• Building new words by adding, deleting, or changing parts of existing words
• Determining the meaning of a word using context clues or word parts
• Organizing words by categories
• Identifying the root word or base word
• Identifying prefixes or suffixes and how they impact words
• Adding affixes to create new words
• Exploring homophones and their usage
• Making sense of grammar rules that impact spelling or usage of words (plural rules, past tense rules, possessives)
• Exploring specific phonic rules (blends, silent letters, etc.)

Why is Word Work Important?

There are so many reasons why word work is important to fit into your instruction. Here are just a few:

• Word work helps students learn and remember new words, which increases their vocabulary.
• It can help students understand how words function in sentences which can increase grammar and writing skills.
• Students learn to read and spell words correctly (and in ways that are not just memorization).
• It provides students with a chance to be creative and have fun with words.

Word Work Activities

Here are some word work activities that work with any word list or group of words that your students are learning.

1. Word Sorts

Word sorts are a great way to help students explore and categorize words. Students can sort words by their parts of speech, spelling patterns, or other connections.

There are two types of sorts: closed and open.

Closed Sorts- The teacher provides categories for students to use to sort the words.

Open Sorts – The students create the categories to sort the words. This allows them to think creatively and more critically about the words.

Sorts can be done independently or with partners. Students can also sort their words independently and then compare with partners after sorting.

Students can sort words based on grammar skills, phonics skills, or morphology skills.

2. Making Connections

Students can choose a target word from their word list and make connections to other words. To read more about this word work activity and see example connections students can make, click here.

3. Put the Words to Use

Students can create unique sentences and stories that include their words. Make this more engaging by allowing students to use specific writing utensils or work with partners.

4. Creating New Words

Here are a few activities for creating words:

• Using a spelling list or list of words, students can challenge themselves to make as many words as possible using only the letters of a target word from the list.
• Students can create words using specific prefixes and suffixes.
• Students can use morphemes (word parts that hold meaning – affixes/bases/roots) to create words.
• Students can use a morphology matrix to create words with a common root/base. Click here to read about word matrix activities and grab free teaching posters to introduce this activity here.

5. Building Words

Building words is a typical word work activity.

Students can use physical or digital manipulatives to build their spelling words, build words with prefixes/suffixes, build words with common bases or roots, or build words with specific phonics patterns/skills.

6. Word Work Choice Boards

Word work choice boards are another great word work activity that allow students choice and ownership of the tasks they complete with their words.

Want a free set of word work choice boards for Grammar Skills?

These free word work choice boards (printable and digital) work with any list of words assigned to your students. There are also three boards which include differentiated word work activities and tasks. You can decide which level best meets the needs of your students or you can allow your students to choose the level they feel most comfortable with.

Here are some examples of the options on leveled choice boards:

• Write what part of speech the word is, and prove your answer
• Use the word in a unique sentence
• Write a synonym or an antonym for the word
• Does the word have multiple possible meanings? Write all of the possible meanings
• Write another word that is the same part of speech as the word. Explain how both words are that part of speech.
• Write the word accurately as many times as you can in a minute.
• Write the word in a declarative sentence, an interrogative sentence, and an exclamatory sentence.
• Create an analogy with the word.
• Create 3-5 new words using some or all of the letters from your word.

Download the word work choice boards by clicking here or on the image below.

These word work choice boards can be used in literacy centers (using the printable or digital version) or you can project the digital choice board for a whole class activity.

7. Word Work Jenga

Want to get really engaging with your word work activities? Try the Jenga version of the activities on the choice board. Read more and grab the directions for this activity here.

Unlock MORE Word Study Resources

Need help getting started with word study in your 4th or 5th grade classroom? Or just want some fresh tips and ideas to make your current word study more engaging and effective? Either way, this video series is for you! Sign up now for instant access to three videos you can binge watch and lots of free resources!

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Welcome Friends!

I’m Jennifer Findley: a teacher, mother, and avid reader. I believe that with the right resources, mindset, and strategies, all students can achieve at high levels and learn to love learning. My goal is to provide resources and strategies to inspire you and help make this belief a reality for your students.

Words Their Way Word Search Activities Bundle 2nd and 3rd Edition

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Description

Get ready to add a fun, impactful word study activity to your routine! Words Their Way Discovery word searches are an engaging way for 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade students to recognize correct spellings and word patterns as they identify words on their WTW word list.

You can differentiate with more ease and save 20% with this bundle of word study word search activities as it includes four levels: 1) Letter Name Alphabetic Stage 2) Within Word Pattern 3) Syllables and Affixes Spellers , and 4) Derivational Relations Spellers . Designed as a companion to the WTW word sorts books , this download includes word searches for both the 2nd Edition (published in 2009) and the 3rd Edition (published in 2018).

In my word study routine, students begin their individualized word study sequence with a "blind" word search as their first activity. As students search and find 2-3 words, they begin to see the pattern(s) for the word list emerging. This helps students recognize other words in the sort. The word searches do not contain an accompanying word list as the goal of this activity is for students to discover and seek out correctly spelled words.

This routine activity is meant to be an engaging, fun way for students to discover their word study words and sharpen their ability to recognize words that are spelled correctly (a major key to spelling improvement!).

⭐⭐ Although student word searches do not contain the word list, a Word List Reference Tool is included for Teachers (PDF) ! ⭐⭐

Each level of Word Searches Include:

✔ 50-69 word searches

✔ Two formats to choose from:

- 1 on a page with a sorting chart

- 2 on a page for 1/2 sheets to glue into word study notebooks

✔ Answer keys

✔ Tips for implementing a word search routine

✔ Editable word study schedule

✔ Student notebook covers

✔ Words Their Way Word Lists Teacher Reference (3rd Edition Resources only!)

This resource complements the WTW Word Sort books, but can be used without the books with the inclusion of the Teacher Word List Reference PDF.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

⭐ MORE TO KNOW! ⭐

Learn more about my word study routines from my Word Study blog series:

⇒ My Word Study Routine

Want to take an even closer look at the discovery word searches?

See the preview or try out the word searches Letter Name-Alphabetic Spellers, Within Word Pattern, Syllables and Affixes, and Derivational Relations Spellers in this free download .

Word Study Word Searches:

★ BUNDLE of ALL WORD STUDY WORD SEARCHES (save 20%)

★ Letter Name Alphabetic Spellers Word Searches

★ Within Word Pattern Word Searches

★ Syllables and Affixes Spellers Word Searches

★ Derivational Relations Spellers Word Searches

Word Study Notebooks:

Another thoughtful word study component to add to your routine--Go beyond traditional spelling activities while you scaffold students into deeper analysis of spelling, word patterns , and "word-studying" concepts with the Words Their Way aligned Word Study Notebooks bundle. Teachers love the reinforcement and independent learning these notebooks provide! ❤️‍

★ Letter Name-Alphabetic Spellers Stage

★ Within Word Pattern Spellers Stage

★ Syllables and Affixes Spellers Stage

★ Derivational Relations Spellers Stage

★ BUNDLE of ALL WORD STUDY NOTEBOOKS (save 30%)

Games, Centers, and Independent Activities

Meaningful, fun, and impactful?! Yes! Increase the level of engagement in your word study routine with games and independent activities that are perfect for centers!

★ See all Word Study Games and Activities Here ★

Copyright © Tammy Roose, Tarheelstate Teacher

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