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"I’m finished – what can I do now?"

Sound Waves Literacy 3/8/12

Sound Waves Literacy gives you the opportunity to extend fast finishers and keep them busy with a wide variety of activities. Here are several ideas for quick, simple activities that will keep students engaged and learning as they apply their spelling skills.

Use the Challenges

Some units in the student book include a challenge. Let your fast finishers know they can tackle the challenge after they complete the other student book activities.

Use Black Line Master (BLM) games

The Sound Waves Literacy online teaching resources includes a range of BLM games – such as match up games and board games – in every unit. Download these BLMs at the start of the year and cut and laminate them as required. Store these games on a shelf or in a box in your classroom and allow students to access them when they complete their work.

Use the Extension Words

There are many ways students can use the Extension Words available for every sound unit. For example:

• Ask students to identify the grapheme (letter/s) for the focus sound in the Extension Words.
• Ask students to segment the Extension Words into graphemes on a piece of paper or using the Segmenting Tool (available at Sound Waves Literacy Online)
• Ask students to write sentences or paragraphs containing the Extension Words, or sort the Extension Words according to the number of sounds in the words.
• Ask students to create their own puzzles like Word Searches or Jumbled Word Sentences using these words.

Next time you hear a student say, ‘I’m finished. What can I do now?’ remember that you have a variety of Sounds Waves Spelling activities that will keep them busy, engaged and extended all at the same time.

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