Word sort activities encourage learners to study and categorize words for themselves. This helps them notice common patterns and other features in words. This can be used to assist in reading or spelling.
To prepare for a word sort, print words the student knows on cards (or use words from the student’s word bank). Give the student the set of cards and ask him or her to group them in one of the following ways:
You tell the student to sort the cards according to some pattern or feature that you want him or her to be aware of, e.g., common spelling patterns (in, ain), common endings (ed, ing), common letters, silent letters.
The student decides how to sort the words. In this case, the student has to look for common features and decide on categories. After the student has sorted the words into categories, ask for an explanation of how they were sorted.
Norton, M. (1990). Preparing literacy tutors: A trainer’s manual. Cold Lake, Alberta: Lakeland College. ISBN 0-980683-10-X. Used with permission.
Handout 8.8