Word Sorts
Word sorts are an effective way to get small groups of 3-4 students talking about
vocabulary or concepts and negotiating meaning. Sorts can be closed, with categories
provided by the teacher, or open, with no suggestions given for categories. Open sorts
generate more discussion. There is no right or wrong way to categorize but students
explain to the teacher their reasoning for the categories they choose. Sorts can be
used at many different points.
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At the beginning of a unit to activate prior knowledge or to determine which
words are unfamiliar
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Pre-teach new vocabulary from a story or textbook. Do open word sort. Then
read the text and regroup the words.
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To review for a test
For example, students reviewing for a history test on the American Revolution could
group important people according to their roles or colonies according to their resources
or products. In science, students could categorize types of plants or animals as they
wish, perhaps according to habitat, size, or food source.
Alternative Assessment
Students who are learning English can better demonstrate
their understanding of the material covered if allowed to tell the teacher what they
learned or draw a diagram or picture of the material. Creating alternative assessments
need not be time consuming. Providing a blank sheet of paper for a drawing or a
familiar graphic organizer for a student to complete is simple. See the page labeled
“Activity Behaviors for Levels of English Language Learners” for more ideas.
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A child in the silent period could point when the teacher shows him photos in the
textbook and asks which one is Abraham Lincoln. He could also label a map or
match animals and the foods they eat.
A student who produces a few words of English could list five things a country
produces or write the steps in the water cycle on a graphic organizer. She could
also answer simple oral questions with yes or no or one word answers. Or she
could do a word sort by herself.
An intermediate English learner could define vocabulary or give reasons for a
war. He could write a paragraph summarizing a story read in class. He could
orally describe the main character in a story.
Barbara Linek University of Illinois Extension