WordUP!

Why is SPELL-Links WordUP! Unique?

Unlike traditional phonics and word study programs that start with written letters and match them to sounds, SPELL-Links WordUP! takes a unique approach. We begin by focusing on the sound structure of spoken English, helping students connect the sounds they say and hear with the letters they see in written words. This approach mirrors the brain’s natural learning process, promoting a more effective and intuitive path toward becoming proficient readers and writers.

Download for iPad

Requires iOS 8.1 or later. Compatible with iPad.

"No Fouls!" Activity
"No Fouls!" Activity

Four Great Activities!

Choose an activity — Catch the Beat, Stress this Mess, No Fouls or Build on the Base — adjust settings, and select words to support a student at the appropriate level.

SPELL-Links WordUP! is compatible with any instructional curriculum.

When used with the SPELL-Links to Reading & Writing curriculum, the No Fouls! activity directly aligns with the Strategy #6: No Fouls! This strategy develops awareness of phoneme-grapheme correspondences and improves decoding skills while strengthening phonological awareness, vocabulary, and mental orthographic images of words, which ultimately improves reading fluency and spelling accuracy.

Skills & Content

  • Awareness of sounds in words (phonological awareness)
  • Letter-sound relationships (orthographic knowledge)
  • Spelling
  • Reading

Position cursor on image below. Scroll mouse or use arrow keys to cycle through images. On mobile, swipe to cycle through images.

  • 1. Select the activity.

  • 2. ​​​On the Settings screen (shown above), select and listen to any English sound, like the long vowel ‘e’ sound that you hear in "bee". You can also select the number of syllables, grade level, and familiarity of words to be presented.

  • 3. On the Play screen (shown above), say the displayed word out loud and touch the letter or letters that spell the selected sound in that word.

  • 4. A combination of colorful graphics and engaging sound effects lets you know if your response was correct. Earn graphical rewards for correct responses.

  • 5. Receive feedback and correct mistakes before moving to the next word.

  • 6. Challenge yourself to correctly identify the letter or letters that spell the selected sound on five words in a row!

SCROLL MOUSE, USE ARROW KEYS, OR SWIPE TO VIEW NEXT IMAGE. BE SURE TO POSITION CURSOR ON IMAGE FIRST.

Watch these short videos to see how the SPELL-Links WordUP! No Fouls! activity improves students’ reading, spelling, vocabulary, and oral language skills.

Vowel sound example

Consonant sound example

SPELL-Links WordUP! complements any instructional curriculum.

When used alongside the SPELL-Links to Reading & Writing curriculum, the Build on the Base! activity correlates with Strategy #11: Build on the Base! This strategy enhances morphological awareness of base words, early prefixes, and suffixes, while reinforcing phonological awareness, letter patterns, and spelling rules for multi-morphemic words. It also boosts vocabulary and mental orthographic images to improve reading fluency, comprehension, and spelling accuracy.

Skills & Content

  • Awareness of base words, prefixes, and suffixes (morphological awareness)
  • Awareness of sounds in words (phonological awareness)
  • Letter patterns and spelling rules (orthographic knowledge)
  • Vocabulary, Spelling, & Reading

Position cursor on image below. Scroll mouse or use arrow keys to cycle through images. On mobile, swipe to cycle through images.

  • 1. Select the activity.

  • 2. ​​​On the Settings screen (shown above), select the type of words to be presented. You can also select the number of syllables, grade level, and familiarity of words to be presented. Turn the response timer on/off.

  • 3. On the Play screen (shown above), read the displayed word out loud. Touch the letters of the base part of the displayed word.

  • 4. A combination of colorful graphics and engaging sound effects lets you know if your response was correct. Earn graphical rewards for correct responses.

  • 5. Receive feedback before moving to the next word.

  • 6. Challenge yourself to correctly identify the base word in five words in a row!

SCROLL MOUSE, USE ARROW KEYS, OR SWIPE TO VIEW NEXT IMAGE. BE SURE TO POSITION CURSOR ON IMAGE FIRST.

Watch these short videos to see how the SPELL-Links WordUP! Build on the Base activity improves reading fluency, reading comprehension, and spelling accuracy.

Base + Suffix: -s, -es, -ed, -ing

Base + Suffix: -ed, -ing (only) 

SPELL-Links WordUP! can be used with any instructional curriculum.

If using SPELL-Links WordUP! in conjunction with the SPELL-Links to Reading & Writing curriculum, the Catch the Beat! activity correlates directly with the Catch the Beat! strategy. Strategy #3: Catch the Beat! develops phonological awareness, phoneme-grapheme mapping, and decoding skills and simultaneously strengthens vocabulary and mental orthographic images of words to improve reading fluency and spelling accuracy.

Skills & Content

  • Awareness of sounds in words (phonological awareness)
  • Letter-sound relationships (orthographic knowledge)
  • Spelling
  • Reading

Position cursor on image below. Scroll mouse or use arrow keys to cycle through images. On mobile, swipe to cycle through images.

  • 1. Select the activity.

  • 2. On the Settings screen (shown above) select a group of vowel sounds for the words to be presented on the Play screen. You can also select the number of syllables, grade level, and familiar of words to be presented.

  • 3. On the Play Screen (shown above), read the displayed word out loud. Touch the letter(s) representing the vowel sound in a syllable. Use a different color for each syllable.

  • 4. A combination of colorful; graphics and engaging sound effects lets you know if your response was correct. Earn graphical rewards for correct responses. Correct your response before moving to the next word. Challenge yourself to correctly identify the vowel phoneme-grapheme correspondences in five words in a row!

SCROLL MOUSE, USE ARROW KEYS, OR SWIPE TO VIEW NEXT IMAGE. BE SURE TO POSITION CURSOR ON IMAGE FIRST.

Watch these short videos to see how the SPELL-Links WordUP! Catch the Beat! activity improves students’ reading, spelling, vocabulary, and oral language skills.

SPELL-Links WordUP! can be integrated with any instructional curriculum.

When used with the SPELL-Links to Reading & Writing curriculum, the Stress this Mess! activity is directly tied to Strategy #5: A Little Stress Will Help This Mess! This strategy enhances phonological awareness, phoneme-grapheme mapping, and decoding skills, while also improving vocabulary and mental orthographic images for better reading fluency and spelling accuracy. 

Skills & Content

  • Awareness of sounds in words (phonological awareness)
  • Letter-sound relationships (orthographic knowledge)
  • Spelling
  • Reading

Position cursor on image below. Scroll mouse or use arrow keys to cycle through images. On mobile, swipe to cycle through images.

  • 1. Select the activity.

  • 2. On the Settings screen (shown above) select a duration for a single round of play. You can also select the number of syllables, grade level, and familiar of words to be presented.

  • 3. On the Play Screen (shown above), touch the Word UP! button to start the timer. Read the displayed word out loud. Touch the letter(s) representing the vowel sound in the syllable(s) that have primary stress. A combination of colorful; graphics and engaging sound effects lets you know if your response was correct. Earn points for correct responses. Correct your response before moving to the next word.

  • 4. Challenge yourself to beat your own score on successive rounds of play!

SCROLL MOUSE, USE ARROW KEYS, OR SWIPE TO VIEW NEXT IMAGE. BE SURE TO POSITION CURSOR ON IMAGE FIRST.

Watch these short videos to see how the SPELL-Links WordUP! Stress this Mess! activity improves students’ reading, spelling, vocabulary, and oral language skills.

Professional Teaching Tool

SPELL-Links WordUP! is a time-saving professional teaching tool designed to be used by or under the supervision of a literacy professional. This tool maximizes instructional minutes and makes it super easy to extend practice outside of sessions.

Demonstration videos and professional training are available to support implementation for the best learning outcomes. Activity assignment sheets are available at no charge, making it easier for busy professionals to assign word study practice for each learner.

Use this unique and powerful tool for online or in-person instruction, one-on-one, in small or large groups, or at independent workstations. Simply adjust settings and select words to support students at the appropriate level.

  • Introduce or reinforce new concepts
  • Deliver teacher-facilitated intervention
  • Supplement classroom instruction
  • Provide engaging warm-up activities
  • Continue learning during “breaks” between other learning activities
  • Deliver extra practice at school or home

Distance Learning and Home Study Options

SPELL-Links WordUP! assignment sheets are available free of charge, making it easier for you to assign targeted word study practice for your students at home. 

Support extended practice beyond instructional sessions, engage learners, and enhance both classroom and at-home literacy activities to boost word study skills. 

Download the assignment sheets for each activity:

You can also email the sheets to teachers, students or parents to ensure students receive the support they need.

Teachers & Students Love WordUP!

K-8 Tutor
This is a great tool for my students to practice their word level reading and apply what they know about allowable spellings. It’s a fun way for them to really think about how words are spelled. I use this at the end of our tutoring sessions and like that I can customize the words for all the different ages and levels of kids who come to our center for tutoring.
Parent
I wanted a game for the iPad to boost my son's spelling skills. This app is different than other apps we've tried because it makes my son hear a sound and then pick what letter(s) spell that sound. We have fun with this app and love the sound effects.
Speech-Language Pathologist
This app has been a wonderful, quick start to my early literacy-based sessions. My first-grade students are quickly engaged with the simplicity of the app (they learned the buttons/options quickly), and they cheer each other when they get an answer right. My older students are even willing to give it a try. I have noticed progress with their auditory perception of sounds and their ability to link sounds and letters. Great app!
Susan Condrin, Speech-Language Pathologist
My students love SPELL-Links WordUP! and I use it at the beginning of a session and for a break sometimes. I have some parents who use it regularly and a student who enjoys the challenge of stretching herself to higher grades.
Sherry Givens, Speech-Language Pathologist
There are so many times when my sessions are cut short because of all the folderol in the school schedules that I use SPELL-Links WordUP! as my back-up plan for students working on anything. It's nice to have a set of grade-level words to utilize at the flick of a...well not a switch but a virtual dial.
User Review
“I used SPELL-Links WordUP! with a small group of three students. They were great at taking turns and the game goes quickly enough to avoid wasting time.”
User Review
“I like that it’s a fun way to practice specific skills aligned to the SPELL-Links program.”
User Review
"SPELL-Links WordUP! is very cool and the sound effects are great. It’s engaging and a great learning tool."
User Review
​"I like that the SPELL-Links WordUP! games are challenging and not kiddish for young adults…motivating without being distracting for an 8 year old."
User Review
“Kids like it! My students enjoyed the flashiness of a correct answer and the game-like qualities.”
User Review
"SPELL-Links WordUP! is very cool and the sound effects are great. It’s engaging and a great learning tool."
Download for iPad

Requires iOS 8.1 or later. Compatible with iPad.

A Fun, Effective Learning App

Skills & Content

  • Awareness of sounds in words (phonological awareness)
  • Letter-sound relationships
  • Letter patterns and spelling rules (orthographic knowledge)
  • Awareness of base words, prefixes, and suffixes (morphological awareness)
  • Spelling
  • Reading
  • Vocabulary

Target Audience

Grades K-12+

SPELL-Links WordUP! is perfect for all students learning to read and spell, especially those who struggle with reading and spelling, including students with Dyslexia, Developmental Language Disorder, and English language learners. It is effective in one-on-one settings, small or large groups, independent work stations, and at home

Download for iPad

Requires iOS 8.1 or later. Compatible with iPad.