Vocabulary and spelling for fifth graders

Have you ever used the wrong word by mistake in speaking or writing? President George Bush was famous for his malapropisms when he would use a similar sounding word to what he intended to use, changing the meaning of his sentences with sometimes humorous results.

Students frequently do that in their writing, especially when they love the sound of a word or want to impress the teacher with their large vocabulary. Part of the problem is that the students haven't learned to write for themselves, instead trying to please the teacher.

Add to the mix that many fifth graders are still struggling to become consistently correct spellers while writing. That's why I love to read to them the book Miss Alaineus: A Vocabulary Disaster by Debra Frasier.

The main character of this story is Sage, who misunderstands one of her teacher's spelling words for the week. The story follows her "freak out" as she explains how one simple misunderstanding of the teacher has left her devastated. It's a funny book with great vocabulary for the students to delve into.

After reading the book and discussing some of the vocabulary with the class, I ask the students to review any new descriptive words they learned from the spelling. We then discuss how vocabulary choice and spelling mistakes can really make a difference.

I then whip out some choice sample writings for the overhead to be edited together for spelling and vocabulary errors. As we do this, I ask the students to think about how these edits make the piece of writing better or more easily understood.

At the end of the lesson I ask the students to complete a Exit Slip explaining what was the important message they learned from the lesson and how they would use it in their own writing. The Exit Slip gives me an idea of what the students really understood from the lesson and then a good starting point for a follow up lesson.

Fifth Grade Writing Standards:
15. Proofread writing, edit to improve conventions (e.g., grammar, spelling, punctuation and capitalization) and identify and correct fragments and run-ons.