Differentiating with Wordly Wise i3000, First Look

Wordly Wise (Twitter @ss_eps) is a well-known vocabulary curriculum for grades 2-12. In my experience the print workbooks have been limited in their support for learners with special needs or those reading below grade level, so I am very interested in the new Wordly Wise i3000. This is my first look at the program and a summary of my initial thoughts.

The Wordly Wise i3000 has several features that support instructional differentiation and Universal Design for Learning (UDL), which should help students that struggle with reading and students with learning disabilities such as dyslexia. The program provides differentiated reading passages and the teacher selects the appropriate passage for each student through the teacher dashboard. There is also support for multiple means of action and expression with drawing tools and images. The Illustrated Images activity is similar to the concept of three-column visual dictionaries, and students can draw or upload a picture and write a related sentence using the vocabulary word.

Also, to expand the practice resources, EPS partnered with Quizlet to create online review activities for students. The program used to have wordlists and practice games on the website, but according to their announcement the old resources will be discontinued after 12/31/2017. Quizlet offers several ways to review that should improve student engagement with the material and, hopefully, increase long-term retention. I look forward to seeing the new review activities and the whole program in action.

This video provides an introduction to the new product. Make sure to view the other videos in my Wordly Wise i3000 playlist for more helpful information.

Is your school planning to use the new Wordly Wise i3000? Let me know what you think about it!

[Note: My First Look blog posts share my initial thoughts about a technology, curriculum, or other education topic. These posts are not intended to be in depth reflections.]