Word Work

Each week your child will sort words that have been selected to meet their individual needs.  The boxes at the top of the word sort that contain a word pattern are called headers.  They may have a letter with a symbol over the top followed by CVC (C=consonant, V=vowel), or they may have part of a work like 'ire' or 'ou.'  The words that are bold are called guide words.  They are words that follow the pattern and are intended to help guide students while finding other words that fit in that category.  As you help your child with their word sort, point out that the words follow patterns, this will help them to spell similar words in the future.  If your child comes home with the same word sort two weeks in a row, it means they did not pass the test (graded tests are usually sent home on Mondays).

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Word Sort Symbols:  
           A curved line (smiley) on top means a short vowel sound (cat,
                  pen, pig, pot, cut).
           A straight line on top means a long vowel sound (cake, feet,
                  pine, home, mule).
           C stands for consonant.
           V stands for vowel.
           CVCe stands for a word spelled consonant-vowel-consonant-e.
           An open syllable is when a one syllable word ends with a long
                 vowel sound (i.e., 'hi' or 'bye').
           Hard C is like the C in cat.
           Soft C is like the C in cent.
           Hard G is like the G in gate.
           Soft G is like the G in giraffe.
           When letters are bracketed by slashes (/ed/), then the header is
                   referring to the sound of the letter(s) inside the slash marks.
           An oddball is a word that does not fit in any of the spelling
                  patterns.

Here is our word sort schedule:

Monday - Students will bring home a sheet of words.  They need to cut the words apart, read them to you, and sort them.  When they are finished, put the words in a baggie and save them for tomorrow.

Tuesday - Students need to sort the words.  Write the words and their headers.  Read the words to you.

Sort, then write

Wednesday - The activity for this day can vary.  It may be to write the words in alphabetical order, to rainbow write them, to write vowels in one color and consonants in another, or something else.  See the homework packet for more information.

Thursday - Blind buddy sort.  The parent pulls words from the bag, reads them to the student, and the student writes them without looking.

Friday - test day at school.  Please note that students are not always given the same exact words that are in their sort.  The purpose of sorting words is not to memorize individual words, but rather to notice patterns in words.  So, test words will follow the spelling pattern of the sort, but they may be different words than are actually in the sort.

Click here if you want to learn more about the research behind word sorts.