What are Priority Words?
Priority Words are the high-frequency Core Words that are designated as no-excuse words that students are responsible for proofreading in their everyday writing.
For clarification on Core Words and Priority Words, see our Appleseed archive, November, 2006. Click on the tab "Sourcebook Teaching Tips."
When should I start Priority Words in my class?
Students are most successful with the Priority Word component of the Sourcebooks when you wait until you have taught five Sourcebook units. This gives your students opportunities for developing the essential visual skills practiced in the Word Preview. Development of visual skills enables students to proofread for high-use writing words. Additionally, by waiting, you have time to establish the rest of your Sourcebook routines.
What resources are available to help me?
The Priority Word Teaching Notes in your Sourcebook outline how many high-frequency writing words students at your grade level should be responsible for proofreading by the end of the school year. You will find that this section of your Sourcebook lists your grade-level Priority Words in order of frequency. In your Sourcebook you will also find a Priority Word Blackline Master, in alphabetical order, for student use.
Start Slowly:
Even though the alphabetized Priority Word list Blackline Master contains all Priority Words designated for your grade level, we recommend that you start off with a smaller number of words and then build up to that final number as the school year unfolds. Adding one to two words at a time seems to be most effective, giving students ample time to demonstrate success with proofreading for the previously designated words before adding more words to their list.
Choosing your starting words
Start off by examining student writing samples for high-frequency writing words that many students at your grade level tend to misuse (such as homophones) or misspell. Next, compare these commonly misspelled or misused words with the Priority Words listed in your Teaching Notes for your grade level. Locate the single most commonly misspelled word that you identified in the writing samples. When initiating Priority Words with your students, let them know that they will be responsible for proofreading all words, up to, but not including, the designated problem word.
For example, if a group of 3rd grade students tends to misuse or misspell the word "they" (word # 19 in order of frequency), you would initially assign words 1-18 as your students' Priority Words, reserving "they" as the next word to be added.
By beginning with the words that your students tend to be successful with in everyday writing, you are showing them that they can be successful at proofreading the Priority Words.
Adding to the Priority Word list
Little by little, add additional words to students' Priority Word lists. Try adding one to two new words, in order of misspelling frequency, on a regular basis. By the end of the school year, your goal is for the entire Priority Word list to be highlighted, indicating that students have become responsible for their entire grade-level Priority Word list.
Highlight the Priority Words
You can indicate which words students are currently responsible for by highlighting them on each student's personal Priority Word Blackline Master, in the optional Practice Books, or on the optional Spell Check cards.
Preparing students for new Priority Words
Let your students know that the next word, in order of misspelling frequency will be highlighted on their Priority Word list soon. Many teachers even set a date for specific high-frequency words that students are challenged by in everyday writing.
In our 3rd grade example, "they" will be added to their Priority Word list next. In preparation, each time you check for Priority Words in students' everyday writing, circle the word that you are preparing to add to their list on the designated date, calling their attention to this problem word. Ask students to check for correct usage and spelling when an upcoming word is circled.
Not all words need this amount of preparation. But we certainly have a number of high-frequency words that students tend to misuse or misspell often, such as "have", "what", "when" or "there". Preparing students for the addition of these words to their Priority Word list helps them become aware of the words' proper spelling and usage.
When adding trouble-free words, such as "at" and "I", simply ask students to leave out their Priority Word list during lunch recess, or as they are leaving for the day. Then you or a student helper can go around and highlight these new additions to each student list. When students return, tell them that two more words were highlighted on their Priority Word lists and challenge them to find them!
Setting students up for success
In addition, it is helpful to model how to proofread for Priority Words on a regular basis. When you are writing in front of the class, whether shared writing, modeled writing, guided writing or interactive writing, you can always wrap up the lesson by demonstrating how you would proofread for Priority Words yourself.
Some teachers make their own large Priority Word chart that hangs on the wall. Others use the supplemental 100 Words Poster as their Priority Word chart, highlighting and focusing upon the words that are anticipated as the initial student Priority Words.
Your initial modeling will help prepare students for success. The Word Preview practice activity that opens each unit and the Proof It option in the Exercise Express section of each unit are also important tools for developing necessary visual skills. The Sourcebooks for grades Fifth through Eighth also have a Proofreading Test in each unit that makes excellent practice for this skill. For those of you who are using the Practice Books, a Proofreading Test is included for each unit for grades 1-6.
Holding students accountable
We recommend that teachers regularly spot check for Priority Words in students' everyday writing. Elementary teachers usually find it manageable to check for Priority Words in one sample of each student's everyday writing each week. Middle school and junior high teachers find that they can check two to three writing samples each grading period. For students who are producing lengthy pieces of writing, just bracket a small section, perhaps about a paragraph to a half page in length for your routine spot check.
Regular spot checks serve as a great tool for keeping students on their toes, holding them accountable for checking for their no-excuses words each time they write!
Teachers find that the Priority Word component of the Sourcebook series really lifts the look of literacy where it really counts, in student writing!