Here are four free sites that you could use on your IWB in writing sessions….
Magnetic Poetry
In this virtual edition of magnetic fridge poetry, students are given a large bank of words which they can drag, arrange, and rearrange to create a poem or story. There are four type of magnetic kits to chose from: Kids Kit, First Words, Best Friends, and Storymaker. There is a refrigerator, locker, or whiteboard background to chose from. Completed poems can be emailed (to parents perhaps) or saved on the site. Great for small groups to create texts together on the IWB! A downside is you can’t use any punctuation but this could be done by annotating with the pen on the IWB.
PicLits
On this site students create their own PicLit by chosing a picture and then chosing words from the wordbank (or their own imagination) to describe the picture. “The object is to put the right words in the right place and the right order to capture the essence, story, and meaning of the picture.” Great to develop create writing skills. Can be used on the IWB with the whole class, a small group or with individuals on computers. Created PicLits can be saved embedded on blogs or emailed. The could also be printed out and made into a class book!
Power Proofreading
On this site, students develop their proofreading skills through fun and interactive games. They are introduced into a real-world situations where proofreading skills are needed eg. fixing TV scripts, memos, and other writings at the tv station. Students select their grade level (2-8) and enter their name before beginning.
Scholastic Story Starters
This is a fun writing site for Grades 1 to 6. The Story Starter machine generates writing ideas for newspaper articles, letters, notebooks, or postcards. Students are given prompts that focus on character, plot and setting. Students can get a new idea by keeping some elements of the idea and spinning again to change elements. Students can then write their story, draw a picture and print it off. Great to use as a whole class, small group or individual writing prompt.
