Megan Reynolds

I am a teacher & designer. Connecting with students & seeing them enjoy learning is my favorite feeling on earth! I hope you enjoy this article!

7th Grade Vocabulary Choice Board Tutorial for Teachers

Build your own Vocabulary Choice Board for 7th Grade in minutes! Keep kids engaged & learning using these tactics & templates

Common Core Standards: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.7.4, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.7.5, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.7.6

To use a choice board in your 7th Grade Classroom during Vocabulary you will need to create the Vocabularychoices (there are lots of examples), organize the classroom, and have a goal;

Time-saving, differentiation, and dynamic classroom management are my favorite reasons to use a choice board!

Integrating choices every day you will need to hone in on the best way to apply 7th Grade Vocabulary choice boards to your classroom style!

Here are a few ideas and instructions on choices, classroom management and getting buy-in from your7th Graders

Ideas & Examples of Great 7th Grade Vocabulary Choices

Synonym Story Swap

Synonym Story Swap: Write a short story, then exchange with a friend. Replace words with synonyms and see how the story changes. Share and discuss!

Word Detective Diary

A Word Detective Diary is a fun journal where you track down new words, write their meanings, and note where you found them. Like a word sleuth!

Flash Fiction with New Words

Write a short, exciting story (under 500 words) using 5 new vocab words. Explain any tricky words. Be creative!

Vocab Visual Posters

Create a colorful poster with a new word, its definition, a picture that represents it, and use it in a sentence. Make it fun and creative to help you remember the word!

Crossword Vocabulary Challenge

Solve puzzles with clues to find words that fit across and down. It’s like a word hunt where each letter is a piece of the puzzle. Have fun and learn new words!

Poetic Vocabulary Collage

Create a collage with words and images that evoke emotion and paint a picture in your mind, like a poem. Cut out words from magazines or write them artistically!

Vocab Video Diary

Create a short video each day using your phone or camera where you explain a new word, its meaning, and use it in a sentence. It’s like a fun, personal word journal!

Word Roots Comic Strip

Create a comic strip where characters use words with common roots. Show how these roots form different words. Example: “spect” in inspect, spectacle. Have fun drawing and learning!

Character Vocab Interview

Pick a character from a book. Pretend to interview them. Ask questions about their life, feelings, and actions. Write down their “answers” using new words you’ve learned.

Using a Choice Board to Differentiate Vocabulary in a 7th Grade Classroom

Keep It Simple

Everyone “teacher & student” should know exactly what they are doing. If you don’t make it even easier!

Differential Instruction vs Saving time?

There is nothing more irritating than “Saving Time” with a Choice Board & ending up with “More work!”. Are you using this to hit standards or save time or both?

"Self Guided" or "instruction-based"?

If you giving out work, should they do it on their own or are these more instructions for each choice?

General rule, if the grade is > 3 there is more work per choice.

FREE Blank Fillable & Custom Choice Board

All ages, all grades where you need 9 grid choice board. Start loving learning again!

How To Manage Your 7th Grade Classroom During Vocabulary (With a Choice Board)

I find its easiest to use a big board at the front of the classroom where all students can see the choices then decide what they want to do.

This often will be coming in from a break or transition between subjects.

If you can get all students to know whats expected during a choice activity it becomes one-hundred times easier to manage the class & have everyone know what choices they have!

There are three core steps you have to hit when using a Choice Board;

1) The Set Up
2) The Instruction
3) The Q+A

1) The Set Up

Select your choices, decide on how you are going to use this time in your classroom. Build the choice board

1) The Instruction

Tell the students what they are going to be doing (this becomes easier over time) Simply start with 3 options & move from there.

1) The Q & A

Does anyone have questions? This will help you or the next time. Remember the goal is to make this easier each time!

Why Use A Choice Board?

So, let’s chat about choiceboards and why they’re like the coolest thing ever in your classroom.

Picture this: kiddos bouncing into the room, eyes lighting up because they get to pick their own adventure in learning new words.

It’s like a mini vocab party, and everyone’s invited!

We all have our own jam, right? Some of us are little artists, others are born performers, and some love to get lost in stories. Choice boards are like a buffet of fun learning snacks, so every munchkin finds something tasty that helps the vocab stick!

And here’s the kicker – when the little ones get to steer the ship, they turn into these mini captains of learning. They’re making the calls, and with every choice, they puff up a bit more with confidence. It’s a win-win – they’re learning and feeling like the boss at the same time.

Plus, for us teachers, it’s like having a secret helper in the room. We get to sprinkle in all sorts of activities that match our students’ levels and what makes their hearts tick. It’s like custom-making a learning playlist that gets every kid grooving to the vocab beat. How cool is that?