Higher Order Thinking Skills

Do you use word sorts in your classroom?  Word sorts are such a great tool to use with students to learn patterns and chunks in words for reading, spelling, and writing.  For a full explanation of how to do word sorts, visit my blog, Conversations in Literacy, where I have detailed this for you and the importance of using the transfer words with a word sort.

Classifying and sorting are higher level thinking skills and word sorts are a great way to practice that skill.  Students sort the words and decide what rule applies (classify) to why they were sorted that way- great thinking skills put into practice!  Plus, sorting words can be used in a variety of subjects.  As a reading specialist, I especially see the value in word sorts for learning patterns in words to help with reading skills.  Here are just a few ways you could use word sorts for reading:

• short vowels
• long vowels
• vowel teams
• prefixes
• suffixes
• root words
• syllables

Another great thing about word sorts is they can easily be differentiated.  Students can complete them individually or in a group, as an open or closed sort, gluing the word cards or writing the words and using a colored pencil for chunking, etc...

I have been looking for just the right word sorts for my students and never could find ones with the right words in the progression that I needed.  So I made my own.  These word sorts are common core aligned (reading foundational skills) and contain 24 complete lessons (word sort- open or closed, transfer words, & silly sentence).  I have also included 8 different themed main word sort pages so students don't have to use the same form over and over.  

I hope you will give word sorts a try!  Truly a fun and valuable way to build reading skills along with higher order thinking skills.