Introduction

 

Wordle is a free web-based application that lends itself readily to language teaching for vocabulary training.

 

Clicking on the thumbnail below takes you to the full-size version of the word cloud produced in a matter of seconds using wordle.net.

 

It's simply a matter of pasting text into the box provided and the cloud is generated automatically.

 

Afterwards you can play around with the colour scheme, fonts, language (word choice) and layout.

 

 

Below you will find some practical examples of how Wordle can be used in your teaching, and further down still some links to more ideas and uses of this popular application.

 

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Activities:

  

1. HIGH FREQUENCY WORDS

 

Level: Beginner

Aim:    review the most common words in the English language

 

Activity:

 

1. Do a brainstorming on the board getting students to give you a list of the most commonly spoken words in the English language. 

(The words they already know)...

 

2. Ask them which they think are the most popular. You can even give them the boardmarkers and get them to RANK them with stars.

 

3. Give them copies of the HIGH FREQUENCY worldle (you choose, there are three options):

    onetwothree

 

Homework: Learn the words.

 

Note: The list of words was originally downloaded from WORLDENGLISH. I made the wordle by importing around 150 of them into an excel sheet and then multiplying the words in order of frequency. (Karenne Sylvester). 

 

2. LEXICAL SETS

 

Level: Beginner - Pre-Intermediate

Aim:    Review of a specific word set, ie. Clothes /Body Parts/EngineeringTerms (whatever really)

 

Learning vocabulary.

 

Note: this works best as a homework (post-task) activity.

 

1. Get students to choose an article from a fashion magazine / a wikipedia entry / a manual.

 

2. Tell them to cut and paste the text they've chosen into wordle and to create their own cloud.

 

3. Ask them to bring it into class and explain the smallest(!) words. (Karenne Sylvester) 

 

3. PRE-TEACH VOCABULARY / INTRO to a reading activity

 

Level: Intermediate and above

Aim:    Getting the students to become familiar with a subject and potentially difficult vocabulary before doing a reading

 

Prep (10-15 mins)

 

1. Find an article you would like to do as a reading in class.

2. Go to wordle, copy and paste article and make your word cloud.

3. Print out wordle and your article.

4. Make copies.

 

Task (60+mins)

 

1. Present cloud to students and ask them what they think today's reading will be about.

2. Discuss and review the vocabulary and predict issues in the reading.

3. Present article for reading.

4. Discuss.

 

Post-task

 

1. Ask students to do a followup/research into subject for the next day/lesson.

2. Join a social-networking site and link to teacher.

  

EXAMPLE:

With a group of IT students/webdesigners, I "adapted" an article from business week on social-networking. Go to  ARTICLE and then I created this WORDLE about FACEBOOK.  (You may use it as you like).

 

For their homework (1) they were required to report on how social-networking sites are becoming a part of new business.  What is being reported on in their countries, what are the number one sites globally/in their country.

Next week's task (2) will be to study the different types of social-networking sites, what's out there and to join one (if they aren't already in). (Karenne Sylvester)

 

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More suggestions and specific ideas for how to use this tool here please:

  

Here are some other sites buzzing with ideas on how to use wordle in the classroom:

 

Wordle in the Classroom

 

Five Reasons to Use Wordle in the Classroom

 

Fun with Web2.0: A Wordle game

 

23 Ways to use Wordle in the MFL Classroom

 

I have considered using wordle with students preparing for job interviews. I would ask them to make a wordle pictures themselves creatively on a flipchart and present it as a self profile. After this, we would enter the words into the tool and see how the layout differs. Are the strengths highlighted or do they fade into the background? (Hazel)