Spelling…If I’m being honest, I haven’t always been a fan. I used to hate it. Making students memorize a list of words so they can spell them correctly for the test on Friday. By the time Monday comes around, they’ve forgotten them. Forget about using those words correctly in Writers Workshop! I knew there had to be a better way—a more engaging and meaningful way to teach students how to spell. I'm sharing how to use Boom Cards to teach spelling skills in this post.
I was not too fond of spelling until I started teaching patterns. Not math patterns but word patterns! Teaching students how words work…and the patterns that makeup words. Now I use Boom Cards to help my students learn how to spell successfully. If you want to get started using Boom Cards during your spelling instruction, you will want to check this out.
First, if you don’t know about Boom Cards, you can read more about them here. They have been a complete asset to my classroom, and we use them all the time! I especially love using them for spelling.
Using Boom Cards to Teach Spelling on the Smartboard
Using Boom Cards on the Smartboard is a great way to introduce the deck and get the entire class involved in learning. I love to do this as a review before a spelling test! I bring students down to the carpet with their whiteboards and markers. I display the deck focusing on the spelling skill we are learning that week, and students spell the word shown. Then I pick one student to come up to the board and play that card. Then everyone erases their boards, and we play the next card. Students will write the word, I call on a student to play that card, and then we go on to the next. This way, all the students are engaged even though only one student is playing the deck at a time. Try this deck of CVCe Word Building Boom Cards for FREE today!
Using Boom Cards in Spelling Centers
Do you do word work centers? Boom Cards are a constant center each week, which saves me time (and sanity) because I know it’s a center that students can be successful at and complete each week independently. I display the FastPlay Pin for the deck I want students to play every week. Then they type it in and get started! That’s it! Boom Cards are an easy center to incorporate that wastes no time for me to prep! If you want to learn more about FastPlay Pins, you can check out this blog post.
Using Boom Cards for Spelling Interventions
I can provide intervention whenever I have students who struggle with a specific spelling pattern. While we use many hands-on, multisensory activities for intervention, another easy way for them to get extra practice on a particular spelling skill is to assign a deck of Boom Cards! I assign the deck to the specific student who needs additional support. You can learn more about how to assign decks to students here!
Using Boom Cards for Spelling Homework
If you could hear the sounds of my students when I say, “Today, your homework is Boom Cards,” you’d be shocked. My students cheer when they hear Boom Cards are being assigned as homework. I have an entire blog post about how I assign Boom Cards for homework and a freebie to help you get started. You can learn more about that here. I like to give the deck that focuses on the spelling skill we are working on for homework the night before the spelling test.
If you’re tired of searching the internet for activities that focus on the specific spelling skill you teach each week, I’ve got something for you! I have compiled a massive list of all the spelling skills I teach in First Grade and the links to Boom Cards for each spelling skill. Save yourself time (from searching and prepping) and grab this list so you’ll have easy access to hundreds of no-prep spelling activities at your fingertips.
Grab this cheat sheet and find Boom Cards for the spelling skill you’re teaching in seconds without having to search the internet for activities! Want to check out a bundle of Boom Cards that includes a deck for every spelling skill I teach in First Grade? Look at my Year Long Spelling Boom Card Bundle for First Grade!
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