Literacy

Ages 11-16

This is a spelling game called Vowel Slap. Ask pupils to sit with their elbows on the desk and their arms in the air, palms facing forwards.

Choose a vowel to focus on, then call out a word. The object of the game is to work out how many times that vowel appears in that word.

If it appears once, they slap down one palm. If it appears twice, they slap down both. I have also added variants in which pupils put their hands on their heads if the vowel appears three times.

This game has helped my pupils to spell many tricky words, including definitely, as most think it contains an a.

It’s a game that works well with all abilities, but you need to plan carefully, and focus on a few words each time.

Fran Nantongwe teaches at Acle High School in Norfolk.