Word Walls for Teachers
Are word walls a part of your strategy for boosting literacy skills in the classroom? Or maybe you're looking for word wall ideas and printables to add to your teacher toolkit?
The Teach Starter teacher team has carefully created and curated this collection of word walls for primary teachers to cover your needs — whether you're helping your kindergarten class stay on track with sight words or introducing new social studies vocabulary to your year 3 class!
New to this concept? Our expert English teachers have got you covered with a few quick tips to help you determine if a word wall is right for your classroom!
What Is a Word Wall?
A word wall is pretty much what the name implies — a classroom wall display with words in large print that can be read by students from across the room.
What goes on a word wall? Oh, the possibilities!
- Sight words
- Unit vocabulary
- Parts of speech
- Prepositions
- Content area words
- High-frequency words
- Word families
- Spelling words
- And more!
Used as an interactive tool, word walls tend to start out small and grow as you progress through a lesson or unit and students learn new sight words or vocabulary to be added to their word wall.
One idea for a word wall is to add words throughout the school year as students learn new vocabulary.
How to Make a Classroom Word Wall
If this all sounds good so far, let's talk about how to actually create a word wall. There are plenty of ideas out there, from using pictures alongside the words to printing your words on fun shapes, but here are some important tips our teacher team stands by:
- Make sure your words are printed in large text that can be easily read even by students seated across the room.
- Keep contrast in mind to ensure readability — you might want to use a dark background with lighter text.
- The organisation is key! Many word walls are set up in alphabetical order to make it easier for students to find the words they are looking for right when they need them, but you may want to organise unit vocabulary terms by how they connect to one another or group word families together.
- Choose a spot on your classroom wall that has space for additional words to be added.
- Keep your students' usage in mind when you mount words to the wall. Using sticky tack or similar mounting putty will make it easier for students to remove a word and take it back to their desks when necessary. You can also set up a word wall with wall hooks and place words on book rings (or looseleaf rings) so students can take them down to flip through!
Easy Word Wall Ideas
Looking for easy-peasy word wall ideas? Our team has got those for you, too, with word lists developed by teachers for teachers! Explore this collection of printable word walls that cover a variety of subjects and grade levels to save your precious planning time.
- Print and display the vocabulary cards that are provided.
- Use the customise option to add content words of your own.
- Use the blank cards at the end of the resource to add any specific words that your class finds during their learning experiences.
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Space - Word Wall Vocabulary
Use these space vocabulary words and space terms to unlock the solar system for your elementary students as they learn about space, the solar system, and the world far beyond your school.
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Christmas Word Wall Vocabulary
Create a Christmas Vocabulary display with a set of 60 Christmas terms for a word wall.
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Strong Verbs Word Wall
Print a set of strong verbs word wall cards to help your students boost their writing skills!
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Poetry Vocabulary Words – Word Wall
Display and discuss vocabulary related to poetry and figurative language with a set of 30 word wall cards.
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Rainbow Word Wall Vocabulary
A set of vocabulary cards for your classroom word wall.
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First Fleet Word Wall
A vocabulary word wall to display and use in the classroom when learning about the First Fleet.
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Early Explorers Word Wall
A vocabulary word wall to display and use in the classroom when learning about early explorers up to the late eighteenth century.
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What Makes Australia Unique Word Wall Vocabulary
A set of Australian related vocabulary word wall cards.
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Blank Lined Paper for Word Walls
Blank lined paper for identifying content specific vocabulary.
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British Colonies in Australia - History Word Wall Vocabulary
45 British Colonisation in Australia related vocabulary cards.
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History of Planet Earth - Word Wall Display
Introduce your students to Earth's history with a printable vocabulary word wall.
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Rock Cycle Photo Vocabulary Word Cards
Promote daily rock cycle vocabulary review with a printable rock cycle vocabulary word wall.
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Mixtures & Solutions – Vocabulary Cards
Reinforce science vocabulary in your classroom with this set of word wall cards that focus on mixtures and solutions.
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Describing Matter – Word Wall
Help your students learn to describe matter using physical properties with an illustrated matter word wall.
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Cartesian Planes and Graphing – Vocabulary Cards
Introduce cartesian planes to your students with this set of 18 vocabulary cards.
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Transportation Word Wall Vocabulary
Create a fun transportation word wall with a set of printable word and picture cards featuring different modes of transport.
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Writing About Animals and Characteristics Activity Pack (F-1)
Help your young students read and write about features of animals with a printable Animals and Characteristics Write the Room activity.
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Wildlife Conservation Vocabulary Words
Build academic vocabulary with a printable Animal Conservation word wall.
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Music Word Wall Vocabulary
Build a comprehensive music vocabulary display with a set of 80 printable music vocabulary word cards.
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Ocean & Marine Word Wall Vocabulary
64 marine life word wall vocabulary cards.
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Desert Word Wall Vocabulary
Spark discussion and build academic vocabulary with a desert related vocabulary word wall.
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Soil Word Wall Vocabulary Cards
Immerse your students in subject-specific vocabulary related to soil types and their properties with this set of 16 illustrated vocabulary cards.
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Understanding Angles – Word Wall Vocabulary Cards
Promote maths vocabulary development with this set of 15 vocabulary cards focusing on angles.
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Bills and Laws in Australia – Word Wall
Learn vocabulary related to bills and laws in Australia with this set of 16 word wall cards.
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Living and Non-Living Things - Word Wall Vocabulary
Discover the world of living and nonliving things, starting with a printable vocabulary word wall.
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Ancient Egypt Word Wall Vocabulary
Download a printable set of 36 Ancient Egypt-themed vocabulary word wall cards for your classroom
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Water Cycle Words - Illustrated Word Wall
Boost vocabulary skills and understanding with an illustrated water cycle word wall.
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Night and Day Word Wall
A set of vocabulary words related to night and day.
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Biography Writing Word Wall
A set of 30 vocabulary words related to biography writing.
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Lavender Glow – Word Wall Template
Create a generic word wall with this lavender glow inspired design.
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Technology and Technologies Terminology - Word Wall
96 vocabulary word wall cards and a poster about technology, to display in your classroom.
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Winter Olympics Word Wall Vocabulary
Forty Winter Olympics related vocabulary cards for a word wall.