Tagxedo Word Clouds, how to use in class.

When I first run into Tagxedo I was really amazed by the beauty of the images that I could produce, however I had little insight of how to use it in class. I have to admit I gave it a LOT of thought, because my time in class is very limited and tight and I didn't want to use this website just for show - off. I wanted it to be worthwhile. Giving the children something to do with the language they learn is the best way for them to learn, there is no doubt about that. Moreover their ability to use technology is undeniable, it gives them satisfaction and the false idea that they are actually playing, not doing homework. So I came up with a bunch of activities that we can do in class using Tagxedo and I am thinking of gradually introducing them to our lessons, depending on the aim, time availability and of course the children's age. 

Here are some of the ways you can use Tagxedo to teach vocabulary: 

Vocabulary Introduction:

1. While eliciting new vocabulary, ask on of the students to act like your helper. As you elicit, ask the helper to type the new words in Tagxedo, then the whole class decides on the colours, shape, font and theme of your new word cloud. You can even divide your new vocabulary into categories: Nouns, Adjectives, Verbs and so on. 

Ways to use the clouds: 

• You can use these clouds for sentence construction activities, in which a child picks a word they know and the rest of them have to produce a correct sentence using that word. 
• You can play Red Word Green Word. Divide the class in two groups. Ask one student to act as the game host. The host randomly picks words from the white board, then the teams take turns either producing a correct sentence, or giving the definition of the chosen word. Each team notes down the words they have used correctly. When they make a mistake, they loose five words. The game finishes when all the words are used. 

2. You can also make the word clouds before the class is introduced to the new vocabulary. In your cloud, include the word definitions in the mother tongue. Ask the children to identify and connect the definitions to the words. 

Vocabulary homework

1. You can also use these clouds for vocabulary practice, if you have a website or blog that you can upload your clouds. Give each child some word definitions in their native language. Ask them to go to your page, find the equivalent English word in the cloud and produce a short text or sentences using the words they found. 

2. Ask the children to make their own clouds at home as copying practice. Typing the words in can be very helpful for them in order to remember the spelling. It would be a good idea to ask them to type the list in Word first, spell check and then copy paste the words in Tagxedo. 

Depending on the age, you can even ask them to download their clouds and send them to you via e-mail. 

Here are some word cloud examples I have made for my FCE students using Tagxedo. The words are used can also be found in my Spelling City page, so have a look and tell me what you think! 

Vocabulary That Sticks For Advanced Learners

One of the most demanding tasks our students undertake is to learn new words. With younger learners we mostly focus on picture-word association, but when it comes to advanced learners, this may not be applicable.What is more, we often ask our students to memorise words with abstract meaning, that is not often found in simple contexts. My university  professors used to claim that people cannot easily memorise new vocabulary, unless they find it in context, however this is not always easy to provide. I have encountered this problem as a teacher numerous times, especially while preparing students for Cambridge exams like FCE and CPE, as well as with my 6th grade students. I think I have found the answer in a combination of traditional as well contemporary approach to teaching vocabulary. Literature and technology are a killer combination.

Literature

I have always been a fun of reading, not only because I find it a great way to spend one's time, but I have also come to appreciate its educational value. Once more I try to bring my love for books in my teaching, and I have come to realise it actually works. It provides the necessary context for the vocabulary to be understood and retained. It also provides a lot of variety of new words, that are introduced in a pleasurable way.

This year I am hooked on mystery chapter books. They remind me of endless nights staying up reading my books to the last page to find out who the culprit was. I am also somewhat of a retro fan, so I have started re reading my Enid Blyton collection. After that I am going to bury my teeth into Nancy Drew novels and probably the Boxcar Children. I am also planning to recommend them to my students. They are teenage novels, relatively easy to read while providing a challenge, and they have a mystery to solve. I have started making the materials I am going to use along with the books. 

I am using a sample paragraph from Enid Blyton's The Secret Island to show you how I do this. 

sample paragraph


The three children listened, their eyes wide with astonishment. An island on the big lake! Oh, if only they could really go there and hide - and live by themselves - with no unkind aunt and uncle to slap them and scold them and make them work hard all day long!
“Are you too tired to walk down the lakeside to a place where you can see the island?” asked Jack. “I only found it quite by chance one day. The woods come right down to the lakeside opposite the island, and they are so thick that I don’t think anyone has ever been through them, and so no one can have seen my island!”
“Jack! Jack! Take us to see your secret island!” begged Nora. “Oh, we must go. We’re all tired - but we must, must see the secret island.”
“Come on, then,” said Jack, pleased to see how excited the others were. “Follow me. It’s a good way.”

After the students read a chapter, they have to fill in a new words form. I provide them with a dictionary that they can use to do that. Looking things up in a dictionary, printed or online, is a basic study skill.

See-Cover_Copy_Word_List

 In order to make it more appealing for them, I try to involve them in as much sleuthing as I can. This is why I have made a Mystery Case File,that the children have to fill in as real detectives. This includes main list of characters, suspects, evidence and clues. 

Mystery Case File Cover
Χρηστίνα Τσιαγκλή

Technology

I know that students prefer spending time online rather than reading a book. In order to accommodate that I have opened a Spelling City account. In this account my students can find word lists from our lessons, and practice on them. I use this account for my FCE and CPE candidates as well as my other students. Unfortunately I haven't got a premium account, but maybe one day I will. 

Have a look at the current lists I have added:

FCE Wordlist 1

FCE Wordlist 2

FCE Wordlist 3