Word Ladders
Definition and Purpose
Word ladders are game like activities in which children change one word into another through a series of steps, altering one letter at each step. The goal of this activity is to use as few steps as possible to change the first word into the last word. Lewis Carroll who is the author of Alice in Wonderland developed this type of puzzle activity. Typically, the first and last words are related in some way, and all the words in the middle of the ladder must be real words.
Teachers can create a word ladder for children to practice phonics, spelling, and vocabulary skills. At the same time children are able to think further about the meanings of words. Teachers will guide children to build a series of words as they provide graphophonemic and semantic clues about the words within the word ladder.
Steps
1. Teachers create word ladders including 5 to 15 words. They can choose to include words from spelling lists or phonics lessons. They write clues for each word to incorporate both graphophonemic and semantic clues.
2. Teachers can allow students to use whiteboards and marking pens for this activity or papers with word ladders already drawn onto them.
3. Teachers read the clues aloud and have children write the words. Children take turns identifying the words and attempting to spell them correctly. If necessary teachers can provide additional clues and explain any unfamiliar words, phonics rules or spelling patterns.
4. Once children have completed their word ladder, they reread the words and talk about any that they had difficulty writing. They also may volunteer other words they can write using these letters.
Application and Examples
In word ladders, children are given directions from the teacher and work to transform one word to another by changing one letter at a time.