Interactive Whiteboard Activities for Literacy
As children move through their education, they are continually working to build their literacy. Literacy is an individual's ability to understand information presented through writing. Teachers employ many tactics in their quest to build their students' literacy. Reading and writing extensively are seen as effective literacy building practices. Teachers can also integrate technology rich games into their literacy instruction. There are arrays of interactive whiteboard games that teachers can use in their classrooms to help their students in obtaining the requisite literacy skills.
-
Alphabet Soup
-
Playing with your food is encouraged in this PBS Kids game aimed at students in grades kindergarten through second. Players participating in this interactive whiteboard game are presented with a giant bowl of delicious soup and an incomplete sentence. Upon clicking on the soup, letters float to the top, and the players must figure out how these letters should be arranged to create a word that can be used to complete the incomplete sentence. Adding to the excitement of the game, the sentences provided are often puns or riddles, giving the students extra motivation to determine the answer. This game could easily be played with the whole class, allowing students to take turns at the board, or teachers can allow small groups to take turns testing their smarts and solving the literary puzzles.
Spin to Win
-
Upper-elementary and middle school students have the opportunity to test their word part knowledge in this slot machine themed game. To play this game, students pull a digital slot machine lever, and are presented with a root word and a potential suffix. If the provided combination creates a real word, the player may click on "correct." If the combination is not a real word, the player must hit a "nudge" arrow to move through other possible suffixes or roots. After successfully nudging to create a real word, the player can hit "correct" to submit his answer. This game could be effective in introducing the concept of word parts, or in providing more practice to students who struggle to grasp the complex concept.
-
Contractions
-
This simple matching game allows elementary students to practice their contraction identification skills. Players in this game are presented with a grid of cards, some of which contain contractions and others that contain verb long forms. To complete the game, players must click on matching contraction and long form pairs. Teachers could use this game one-on-one with a student, or as a whole class introduction to or review of contractions.
Whomp!
-
Mysterious monsters are pitted against each other in a word formation battle in this elementary or middle school appropriate literacy game. Players can select from an array of infamous monsters, from Bigfoot to Nessie, and represent that monster in a word creation skills match up. In this game, players are presented with a grid of letters, and must click on the letters to create words. While they work to create their words, a monster opponent also rushes to create a word list. The player must beat their opponent by creating more words before the time runs out to win this game. This game serves as a great way to get students' brains in gear and begin class, or can be used as an enjoyable way to practice basic literacy skills in a competitive arena.
-
References
- Photo Credit Books image by Marina Bartel from Fotolia.com
