Additional Resources

Letter Tiles

Click here for the website that we are currently using for letter tiles.

Manipulating letter tiles to make words and word elements is an important part of the Wilson learning experience. While we are distance learning, we are constantly looking for the best materials available online. While this particular letter tile program is not ideal, we find that it has many of the functions we are looking for.

As we find new and better materials you will be able to find them here!

Newsela

Newsela is a great resource for finding high interest, reading level appropriate material. The articles on Newsela range in topic from Sports to Arts to Kids’ Interests. The reading level can be adjusted on each story, making it easy for students and parents to find the version that is most appropriate.

A free account can be made using your Google login information. While some articles will be locked with a free account, there is an abundance of available material.

You can also view “text sets” made by teachers that have similar themes or grade levels. This option can be found in the navigation bar of the website:

Reading level is selected inside of each individual article with the language/reading level menu on the top right of the screen:

Different levels are available for each article. Note: The Lexile ranges below are approximations. Lexile ranges generally have overlapping grade bands, but there cannot be any overlap on Newsela, because each article level can correspond to only one grade.

• Grade 2: 300-500.

• Grade 3: 501-620.

• Grade 4: 621-780.

• Grade 5: 781-920.

• Grade 6: 921-1010.

• Grade 7: 1011-1109.

• Grade 8: 1110-1180.

• Grade 9-10: 1181-1260.

• Grade 11-12: Above 1260

In light of the Coronavirus outbreak, Newsela has made information available to parents for distance learning. More can be learned here: https://learn.newsela.com/item/video/distance-learning-parent-accounts

Zap!

Zap! is a game used to solidify the conceptual understanding of word structure, develop automaticity, and extend vocabulary practice.

During Wilson lessons, rapidly reading lists of substep-appropriate words is a key way to practice newly developed skills. To keep things fun, we have turned this word reading into the game Zap!

To play the game you will need two players and a deck of Zap! cards. You can create your own by putting words from your child’s substep (both can be found in the Resource Room Google Classroom or on the Hillel Online Portal) on index cards. We recommend playing with 30 - 50 word cards, each with one word. You will also need to create 2 of each action card: Zap!, Triple Card, and Zap! Back.

Most students in Wilson lessons will recognize the game, and maybe even show you the ropes if you’re feeling unsure!

Playing Zap!

Materials:

30-50 cards with one substep-appropriate word each

2 cards that read Zap!

2 cards that read Zap! Back

2 cards that read Triple Card

Rules:

Shuffle the deck, mixing in the action cards, and place cards in one stack.

Players take turns drawing a card from the top of the stack and reading it aloud. Cards that are read correctly are kept by the player - the player has as many chances as necessary to get it right. (Often reminding the student to “tap it out” will help them if they are struggling!)

If a player receives a Zap! Card on their turn, they must put all of their cards to the side. These cards are not counted in the final score of the game.

If a player receives a Zap! Back card on their turn, they may take back one pile of cards that have been Zapped. This card may be saved if no Zaps have occured yet.

If a player receives a Triple Card, they can read three word cards in a row.

At the end of the game, players count their cards. The player with the most cards wins!