1. Building Powerful Word Walls in Every PAISD Classroom
Department of Curriculum, Instruction, and School Leadership
August 21, 2007
District-Wide Professional Development
Johnny E. Brown, Ph.D.
Superintendent

2. Training Outline Purpose and Desired Outcomes of Training
Why Word Walls?
Elements of a Powerful Word Wall
Importance of Word Walls
Strategies for Engaging Students in Building the Word Wall
How to Teach Students to Provide On-Going Maintenance of the Word Wall
Sharing Ideas for Building Powerful Word Walls
Campus-Wide Word Wall Implementation Activities
District-Wide Monitoring Expectations

3. Purpose and Desired Outcomes of Training
This training is designed to assist teachers in
all content areas to:
appreciate
build
use
maintain Word Walls

4. What is a Word Wall? A word wall is
a systematically organized collection of words
displayed in large letters on a wall or other large display place in the classroom
a tool to use, not just display
designed to promote group learning
to be shared by a classroom of students

5. Why Word Walls?
Words -- the most important tools of a reader or a writer
Words -- absolutely essential in our classrooms
Words -- must be in full view so that
teachers and students can work through texts together
so that students can see them and use them in their writing

6. Importance of Word Walls
Word Walls promote vocabulary growth and lead to improvement in literacy.
Word Walls serve many purposes:
Provide meaningful building of vocabulary with emphasis on student engagement and higher level thinking skills
Build vocabulary thereby improving reading comprehension and writing styles

7. Importance of Word Walls
Provide students with high-frequency words that will be encountered in particular units of study
Reinforce understanding of subject-specific vocabulary with a focus on students internalizing key concepts
Help students to improve spelling and spelling patterns

8. Importance of Word Walls
Provide visual clues for students
Encourage increased student independence when reading and writing
Regardless of the grade level or the subject area, word walls are an extremely effective teaching and learning tool.

9. Elements of Effective Word Walls
Build over time with shared student-teacher responsibility
Words added with caution—at least five words per week
Simple and uncluttered as possible
Practical and used on a daily basis
Space efficient -- easily seen
Hands-on

10. Types of Word Walls Personal Genre Content or Thematic High Frequency
Current Events
Genre
Common patterns, phonograms, phases

11. Strategies for Engaging Students in Building the Word Wall
Use students’ ideas and suggestions in determining words to be used
Use word walls daily
Vary activities for using words on the word wall

12. Word Wall Activities Erasing Relay Mind Reader Hot Seat
Word Wall Bingo
Mystery Words
Visiting Words
Word Pictures/Word Relationships
Word Origins and Root Words
Description to come

13. How to Teach Students to Provide On-Going Maintenance of the Word Wall
Students may
Serve as weekly Word Wall Monitors to assess condition of the wall
Easy to read and use
Words in good condition or in need of repair
Suggest words to be added to the wall
Develop ideas for Word Wall activities

14. Sharing Ideas for Building Powerful Word Walls
Word Walls should be used in every content
area and every grade level.
For example…..

15. Elementary Word Walls

16. Grade 2
Grade 2

17. Kindergarten

18. Color coded with content

19. Grade 5 color coded social studies

20. Hanging word wall

21. Hanging word walls when space is limited

22. Individual word wall

23. kindergarten

24. Urbanization

25. Migration

26. 13th Amendment

28. Middle School Word Walls

29. American history color coded

30. Dairy of Anne Frank

31. ELA words using shapes

32. Hazardous Environmental Conditions

33. Social studies across the top of the chalkboard

34. Texas history key words and concepts from the text

35. Words, illustrations with connotative meanings

37. Primary Sources
Grade 6

38. Secondary Sources
Grade 6

39. Renewable Resources

40. Bill of Rights

41. French and Indian War

42. High School Word Walls

45. White board

46. 1492

48. Cold War
World history word wall

49. Albert Einstein

50. Cultural Change

52. Campus-Wide Word Wall Implementation Activities
Review PowerPoint presentation of Powerful Word Walls
Share Word Walls used in the past and ideas for future ones
Meet by grade levels and subject areas to brainstorm appropriate Word Walls
Make long-range plans for the first six weeks
Visit peers’ room to view Word Walls
Assess degree of implementation at each grade level/department meeting

53. District-Wide Monitoring Expectations
Each teacher will establish classroom Word Walls
Word Walls will be appropriate for grade level/department
Students and teachers will use Word Walls daily
Word Walls will be changed as necessary to accompany units of study

54. “Make no mistake about it: when we teach a child to read, we change the world.”