Spelling Guessing Game

There is a lot of research being done on how children learn and retain information. From this research teachers are beginning to put less emphasis on memorizing spelling lists. Children learn best when they are able to relate what they are learning to the world around them and old fashion memorization leaves little room for children to make connections between the words on their paper and their environment.

Education.com offers a unique way to help those spelling words stick in a childs mind.

What You Need:

• Two players
• Child’s vocabulary list
  

What You Do

1. Start by explaining to your child that you will be playing a guessing game together. Let her know that you will be giving her three clues to try to guess which vocabulary word from the list you are describing. It may be helpful to have the list of vocabulary words available for your child to look at when playing the game. As your child begins to feel more comfortable with the vocabulary words, she can try to guess words without the list.
2. Give your child three clues to describe the vocabulary word you have in mind. For example, when thinking of the word “weight,” the first clue may be: “You use a scale to measure this word.” Your next clue may be: “A pound is one unit of this type of measurement.” The third clue may be: “Ounces is another unit of this type of measurement.” If your child is unable to guess the word at this point, give her additional clues as needed.

Variation: For a fun twist on the “Guess My Word” game, switch roles. Let your child give you three clues to describe a word, as you try to guess. This strategy will allow for a deeper understanding of the vocabulary words, as your child will need to generate her own clues to describe the word. And kids will love getting to play the “teacher” by giving you clues.

What's going on? You're helping your child move beyond the overwhelming and often tedious job of sifting through lists of words, and you're building strong foundations of language development that can last for years to come. So guess those words, and remember them, too!