For preschool and kindergarten children, mix up a set of alphabet cards. Children alphabetize them as fast as they can. They can time themselves or play with others. Children can also play different versions of this game as their skills improve. Give older students cards with the same 10 words to alphabetize. They can race each other. Words can become more difficult as they alphabetize down to the second, third and even fourth letter.
In this online alphabetizing game at the website Roy the Zebra (www.RoytheZebra.com), children click on words and drag them to put them in alphabetical order. The computer registers correct lists. To undo a word and move the correct one to the spot the student wants, simply click on a little bird. The lists consist of five words, appropriate for advanced kindergarten students or first to second graders.
Younger and older students, up through middle school years, can put words in alphabetic order as well with online computer games. The website SoftSchools.com categorizes the lists by grade level or subject matter, such as sports, holidays, geography and jobs. The site has dozens of categories which should work for most students.
Spelling & Vocabulary Website: SpellingCity (spellingcity.com) offers vocabulary and alphabetizing lists by theme, such as beaches and history. In addition, the site includes lists from popular children's books like "Goodnight Moon" and "The Black Stallion." Educators and parents can also create their own lists once they register with the website.
This game works well for a variety of ages, if you don't mind a little noise and chaos. Divide your students into two groups. Create two alphabetical lists with similar difficulty and write each word on a piece of paper, keeping the two lists separate. Line up the students in their groups. Give them plenty of room to move around. Next, pass out each word in the list to each person in group one. They should not look at their words yet. Do the same for group two. When you say, "go," the students will race to get in alphabetical order as quickly as they can, according to the words they hold.