Word walls are a wonderful addition to any classroom! This interactive tool can help young readers improve their foundational skills, as well as occupy wall space in a helpful way for students. Word walls can be used in various ways, including serving as a tool to help improve student vocabulary, reviewing high-frequency words, and building phonics word walls. Alphabetized word walls can be a huge asset to students, so check out these 28 ideas to get inspired to build your very own classroom word wall!
1. Digital word walls for older students
Digital word walls are a newer twist on the traditional idea. These are best suited for higher grades and older students. Students can create their own personalized word walls or work on a shared, virtual word wall document for the class as a whole.
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2. Be creative
Be creative in terms of the display when you create this tool for students. It can be magnetic, portable, or simply stuck on a wall in a blank space. You could have more than one if you need them for different purposes.
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3. Model how to use the word wall
Words walls can be used to build grammar, literacy, and vocabulary skills. No matter what you are using them for, it is vital to model how to use them so that students will feel more comfortable when referring to the word wall.
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4. Include visuals
This idea is especially helpful for ELL students- including visuals on a word wall is a great benefit. A class word wall paired with images, actual photos, or even student-drawn pictures could be helpful. This will help students make a stronger connection and apply shades of meaning to new words.
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5. Limit how many words you add each week
One of the keys to success with having a worthwhile word wall is knowing how to introduce the right words each week. Limiting the number of words added to your classroom wall at each time is important as you don’t want to overwhelm learners with too many at once!
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6. Design activities that allow students to use word walls
Basic word wall techniques, like modeling its use and designing activities to use in conjunction with it, are some of the best ideas for using your word wall. These work with everything from a kindergarten word wall to a science wall. Weekly vocabulary activities are great ideas for using word walls.
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7. Portable Word Walls
Portable word walls are great for saving space but also adding benefits for students. These work well with students who have been properly trained on how to use this tool. It’s perfect for building vocabulary and academic vocabulary and using it with an interactive vocabulary notebook.
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8. Use word walls when conferring with students
Word walls can be a powerful tool if used well when conferring with students in both reading and writing. Reference the word wall and show students how to use it. Be clear about its purpose and reward students when they use it independently. This is especially helpful when targeting key vocabulary.
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9. Let students be part of the process
Students feel more invested and engaged when they take more ownership of a specific activity. Allow students to add to the word wall in their own handwriting. You can hand out pre-printed picture word cards, and students can add the words themselves.
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10. Think about including a sound wall as well
Word walls have been around forever, but sound walls are fairly new. These sound word walls are a great way to help students strengthen phonemic and phonological awareness, all while providing images to help students learn proper mouth formations.
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11. Location matters
Knowing where to put your word wall is very important as well. Proper placement matters because if you want students to utilize it, students need to be able to clearly see it. It shouldn’t be too crowded and should be alphabetized for ease of reference.
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12. Even PE classes can have a word words
Any and all content can be enhanced by using a word wall, whether for social studies vocabulary or mathematical vocabulary. Even in physical education classes, teachers can help students benefit from word walls. Teaching students themes in special areas is often a great way to incorporate word walls.
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13. Use with exit tickets
Especially for older students, word wall exit slips are a great tool for ending your day and exiting your class. This is a great comprehension check that can incorporate difficult vocabulary as well. This could be used in a fill-in-the-blank format for younger students as well.
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14. Word Wall Games
Word walls can bring fun into the classroom. A friendly game of vocabulary charades or even a matching game can be a great way to use words and meaning to bridge the gap by helping students retain academic vocabulary.
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15. Make them editable
It is important to remember that word walls should be flexible and editable. As younger students need to learn more words, like high-frequency words, keeping the word wall editable is important. Using Velcro or clothespins on the ribbon are easy ways to do this.
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16. Themes
For specific content areas, like science and math, themed word walls can be extremely beneficial. Focusing on specific content-related vocabulary will help students soak in the new definitions and help apply them to their learning, ultimately building a larger vocabulary reserve over time.
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17. Bilingual is ok too
English Learners have shown growth in both languages when vocabulary expands. Having a bilingual word wall is a great way to help students hold on to and build up their home language while continuing to acquire their second language as well.
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18. Individual word walls
Allowing students to create their own word wall booklets is a perfect way to personalize learning to meet their own needs. These booklets are a great way to help students take ownership and begin using their own awareness of their learning as they add words to their books. Use these during small groups or conferences with students.
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19. Word-family word walls
Your younger students will love these word-family word wall booklets. Portable and highly focused on phonics development, these small word-family word wall books are a great resource to use in small group reinforcement lessons.
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20. The 5 W’s
A unique spin on a word wall is this 5W word wall. It focuses on teaching students words that can be used to show “who, what, where, when, and why”. These words can be helpful for writing, especially when learning sentence formation.
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21. Environmental print word wall
Building pre-literacy skills are very important for young readers. Providing environmental print is an important thing for youngsters to see and begin building pre-reading skills. Helping students understand environmental print is a key to building confidence and motivating young readers.
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22. File folder word walls
Another good space saver- these file folder word walls can be picked up and used by students and then returned to their hook on the wall.
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23. Word walls aren’t just for elementary classrooms
Remember that word walls can be for older students too. High school students may benefit because providing word walls is a benefit to all learners. Using colors and visuals will enhance learning even more for these learners.
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24. All content areas can utilize word walls
As mentioned above, math and science may benefit from content word walls. Literally, all content areas can use them. Building vocabulary, showing examples or helping students with other skills like finding synonyms or antonyms are all important skills that word walls can help with.
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25. Desktop word walls
Having a desktop word wall is a great benefit to students who work well independently. They can simply look down and see their most commonly used vocabulary. Students can add words to their desk plates as they need.
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26. It can include more than pictures and words
Word walls can become whatever you want them to be. Adding pictures is a great idea, but why not take it a step further and add realia? Let students have a voice and choice in this and allow them to add things that will help them connect to content.
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27. Color code your word wall
Color coding is a great way to consolidate new learning areas in order to bind the learning to memory. Helping students form visualizations is a great idea. This helps them connect thoughts to new meanings and new words on the word wall.
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28. Word wall space saver
If you are short on space for a word wall, try this little recipe or index card box. Easy to alphabetize and personalize for each student, this is a good idea for students to use and manage independently. They can simply add the content they need to each index card.
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