Application: Word Magnets
Triptico is a site working towards developing some quality and useable interactive tools for the classroom. One of the best that I’ve come across from them (and I am writing from a junior school perspective) is their Word Magnet tool.
This application takes the idea of those word magnets that are for refrigerators and makes them interactive in your classroom. When I showed this application to some colleagues they were excited about the potential it could provide for class learning and one on one lessons. I’ll continue this post as steps in using Word Magnets.
Step One – Loading
Opening the link you are shown a flash movie. On our school network this took some time to load and play on the desktops. Persevere with letting it load. When the movie stops playing (goes for about 5 seconds) you are presented with a ‘Next’ button in the bottom right hand corner. 
Step Two – Word Input
Clicking ‘next’ gives you a screen where you type in the text. You need to keep in mind your final result as you type. If you want multiple words on your magnet you will need to type ‘Word A’ and then hit enter on your keyboard for a new line before entering ‘Word B’. If you want single words on magnets, simply type your sentence. Please note that a ‘space’ allows for a new magnet. If you are wanting punctuation you will need to put a space between your last word and the full stop. See examples below.
Example for Multiple Words on Magnet
Example for Single Words on Magnets
Step Three – Backgrounds
The third step is to choose a background. This is slightly confusing when you first see it because the blue background of the site blends in so well with the blue background you will use. Using the arrows either side of the ‘Change’ button you can scroll through them. There are forty to choose from, including Venn diagrams, charts, steps, triangles, and other educational formats. When you have selected one to suit your needs click ‘Done’ to move on.
Step Four – The Interface
The interface is very self explanatory, and I think using it is the best way to learn it. You can change the colours and size of magnets, as well as add and remove magnets.
In The Classroom
As I wrote earlier, when I showed this to some colleagues they were excited thinking of the possibilities. Though it lends itself more freely to literacy, you could easily adapt number activities.
You could write an entire spelling list up there and order it any way you like. You could teach sentence structure and grammar. Using the add and remove tools there’s the possibility of a ‘find a better word for this sentence’ activity. This morning I had a literacy group trying to piece back a passage from a book they were reading. I used the Mastermind approach of colours. Red was correct word, wrong place, while yellow was correct word, correct place. They found it both fun and engaging and after half an hour they were still wanting to keep going.
I’d love to know of any that you’ve come up with.
Raw Link: http://www.triptico.co.uk/flashFiles/wordMagnets/WordMagnets.html
Popularity: 22% [?]
The site is easy to navigate and comes with a banner menu consisting of a ‘search’ window and grade selection buttons.
Classroom Use: The website is ultra friendly to navigate and the more you explore it the more you will find. If you are planning a maths or literacy lesson make Game Classroom one of your first stops. In terms of resources, ease of use, fun and educational value this has it in spades. You can use it as a whole grade focus, or you can allow students to further develop concepts and skills.
