Tagxedo: Shaped Word Clouds

While searching for something else online, I came across a site called Tagxedo. Tagxedo is similar to Wordle except that you can choose what shape you want your word cloud to be displayed in along with the colors. I can see so many possibilities for this with my first graders. They could use the word clouds as graphic organizers to brainstorm ideas in a fun and exciting way. They could type adjectives to describe the various shapes such as the animals. They could use the word clouds to create gifts for their families at various holidays such as Christmas, Mother's Day, and Father's Day. They could use them to create beautiful affirmations as a part of Capturing Kids' Hearts. They could use the United States template to list historical characters. So many different things...

Here are two examples from Tagxedo that I created by copying in the URL to Bishop's Blackboard.

 

Year in Review

Happy New Year! We've had an exciting first half of the school year and I look forward to all of the milestones the students will acheive over the next several months. As a look back at all we've done, I created a Wordle from the key words of our year. Wordle is a fun and creative way to help your children with their spelling.

Words of Thankfulness

Today we brainstormed a list of people we were thankful for on the outside frame of a Circle Map. Then the students brainstormed reasons they were thankful for that person using only one word. After our Circle Map was complete, we went to the Computer Lab to type them into an online program called Wordle. The students typed the name of the person they were thankful for several times and the word "thankful" several times to make these words stand out. They then used the class created Circle Map to list as many characteristics about that person that they were thankful for. After they were finished, the students used the program to turn their lists into word art. The students were able to change the colors, size, and fonts. We then printed out their work to take home. Below are a few examples of their Wordles. Wordle is a great tool you can use at home. Have your child practice typing their word wall and word family words into the program. You can also have them brainstorm nouns, verbs, and adjectives into the program. If you print them out, the could be used as study guides.

A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words

Today the students created Bubble Maps to brainstorm all of their favorite things from First Grade. After the Thinking Maps were complete, I compiled their words into a collage using an online program, Wordle. Wordle is a great way to have students practice their spelling and typing in a fun and creative way. Here is the Wordle of the students' favorite things from this year:




To see a larger image, you will need to click on the picture above which will take you to a new window. The image can also be printed.