Personal Dictionaries

Hi, Jo,
I've taught second grade for 16 years. Here's what I do for personal spelling dictionaries. I use a wallpaper sample book and tear pages out of there. I cut them to fit 8 1/2"long by 5 1/2" wide lined writing paper. Fold the wallpaper sample in half for a cover and staple the lines writing paper pages inside. You'll need 13 pages. Then at the top I print one letter of the alphabet at the top of each page. Put their names on the cover and you're done! The wallpaper, especially if it's vinyl, will hold up all year to the wear and tear they can put them thru! Have a reat year in second grade!

Hi there! I made my own dictionaries for my students. I got a list of essential third grade words and typed it up on my computer, punched holes in the papers and placed them into a laminated folder. I made enough for each of my students to have one.

This is an idea that really works great for writing in my classroom:
I have a dictionary and thesaurus wall in my room (bulletin board) that I divide in half. I use colored library pockets and index cards. When a student needs to know the spelling of a word, they first go to the word wall and look for their word, second look in the dictionary I made, third, look the word up in a "real" dictionary, fourth ask a neighbor for the correct spelling, fifth use spell check on computer, finally, they can ask me if the do not know how to spell it after trying all of the above. All of my students have a sticky note pad on their desk and they must have the word sounded out on this when they come to me. I then explain the spelling and write it on an index card. The student then writes it correctly in their work and place it in a library pocket in alphabetical order. Oh!!!! I have a pocket for each letter of the alphabet.

The thesaurus side is for "Dollar words". We have three new vocab words that I intro. each week for the thesaurus wall. Such as big. The students spend the first day using a thesaurus finding other words for big and we write them on an index card and place it in a pocket with the word big written on it. Then all week we see how many times they can get caught using the "dollar words". This increases writing and cuts down on me being the class speller

I've tried to post twice to this message board, and I don't know what is happening. I have a spelling dictionary that I made. I cut and pasted abc pictures from another dictionary that is why it doesn't have abc headings. It does not have the word wall words that I teach, because the kids write those words in. I can also attach it as a word document if someone wants to customize it. I hope this post works...sorry I am new to this.

Ta da--I finally remembered!

It's in 3 documents--the cover page, the alphabet pages, and then the blank "my words" pages.

Here ya go

The dictionary pages.

I made this one a few years ago. It's in word. I put all of the first grade Dr. Fry words on it already and then I have my kids write their 2nd grade words in it. Any other words we use, they add as well.

Here are a few of things we have done in the past years: we take the 100 most frequently used words in writing and turn them into an alphabetized "portable word wall" for each student. These words are typed out, listed in alphabetical order, glued onto file folders, and laminated. I am often surprised to see how often kids pull these out to use when they are writing stories or doing other activities. They also make good "stand-up" privacy walls when taking tests. Another thing we have done in the past is to have students purchase a few spiral wide-lined spiral notebooks as part of their supplies in fall. We have used one of the notebooks as a writing journal, one as a math journal, and one as a personal dictionary. In the dictionary, we start the year off by putting the alphabet letters in, and then entering the color words and number words throughout the first few weeks. It takes some practice to teach them to write smaller on the lines, but the catch on after the first couple of weeks. We also paste sheets of holiday words, people words, months, days, etc. in the back of the notebook.

HI
I make a dictionary for my kids. I cut 26 pieces of white tag board about 1 yard long and 7 or 8 inches wide. At the top of each page I glue a letter of the alphabet then I send them all to laminating. When they return I have hung sticky backed cup hooks on the wall under my chalk board. I punch holes in the top of each card and hang them under the chalk board. I call this my class dictionary. When a child doesn't know a word they get the page of the dictionary they need. First they check to see if the word they need is written on the page. If not we spell it together and I write it on the page with a
vis-a-vis pen. The child uses the dictionary page to spell the word and then returns it to the wall. By the end of the year many of the pages are full front and back. My kids love our dictionary and use it daily.

This year I decided to make my own dictionaries for the kids. I used the list of most commonly used words from the stories of previous years.
I alphabetized them and typed them in COMIC SANS
#24. I like that font because it is the closest to their own printing. After that I ran off enough copies for everyone and put them in the plastic sleeves you use for scrapbooks. I then
added lined paper ( about 10 pages ). I put all this together in a paper cover with the three brads in the middle and pockets on each cover.
The kids wrote the letters of the alphabet on the lined papers. ( about 3 lines to a letter ) When they need a word that is not in the dictionary, they must come to me with the dictionary turned to the right letter and a pencil in hand. I spell the word for them to add to their own dictionary. It is really nice to have this reference and the parents see their dictionary at the end of the year and marvel at the words their
kids have wondered about . Have Fun

I made these for my fourth grade students. I used a word processing program to create the cover. I used a page with two columns. In the second column, I wrote My Personal Spelling Book and, at the bottom, their name. I printed it on some of the neat paper one can buy. Some years, I used the sheet with school supplies or a big stack of books; other years I used a sheet showing a flag blowing in the wind. Inside, I used just six sheets of lined paper torn from a letter sized writing pad. On the first page, I wrote a large A, turned that page over and wrote a B and so on. Near the back, there was just one page for WXYZ.
Anytime during the day that they needed a word spelled, they turned to the page where it would go, and raised their hand. I went to their desk and wrote the word. Words missed ont he weekly spelling test had to be added to the book. I praised students who used their books frequently and this caused them to add lots of words on their own. Some students asked for one for the next year.