Get Up and Move Vocabulary Matching Activity

I have just completed my first of four days of training from the SOESD or Southern Oregon Education Service District. This has been hands on training, just what we have been waiting for. My favorite activity was called Vocabulary Matching. We used vocabulary from a lesson on Language Acquisition. This would work with any new vocabulary from a unit of study. This was more interesting than simply writing new words and defining them in a notebook.

Vocabulary Matching

We lined up with half of the group against one wall and the other half of us facing them across the room. One side was given a word and the other side received definitions. When we heard GO, we found someone on the other side of the room and each read what we had.

A. If the word and definition matched, we 1) came up with ideas of how to remember the word and 2) the spelling. 3) We tried to put the word in a sentence. 4) Optional step: Write the word and the definition on word strips and post it on a post-it poster on the wall. (Word Wall of the day)

B. If the first person we met did NOT have a match, we switched papers - so that the person with the word now has a chance to read a whole sentence! (esp for ELL and struggling readers). We continue this way until we find someone who has our match. Then we proceed as above steps 1-4.

Those who have finished all steps above can then copy the words and definitions off the word wall (or overhead if the wordstrip step is omitted) into a notebook, starting with the ones they feel least competent in. They can leave room after each one and then go back to use them in a sentence as time permits (differentiation according to ability). At a certain point, the words and definitions are discussed and students can share ideas of how to remember them and share sample sentences.