I am always looking for new ideas to grab my students attention as we are learning new skills. This year, I decided to teach compound words by connecting all activities to football!
After introducing compound words using the word football as an example, students will be given a football necklace to wear. I attached the cards using tape to the front of each necklace. Students will then walk around and find their compound word partner. This is a great way for students to practice creating real compound words. I always start off this activity using visuals with the word and eventually will challenge students to complete the task with words only. 
Pin the Football game is a quick and easy center! The football cutouts are provided in the set. I chose to use one game and students kept the "not real" compound word footballs in the basket. You could also create a goal for "not real" compound words. 
Using Football Stadium Trays and Realistic Football Stress Balls, students will sort real compound words and "not real" compound words. To create this center, write words on each stress ball. Students will love to squeeze the stress balls as they are sorting each word. For an additional activity, students could toss the balls into buckets to sort the words or throw into a teacher made goal post. 
As an extension, students can write a silly story using compound words and this adorable funny face football magnet. The example I provided is based on football compound words, which would be a great challenge for high learners. Students who are not ready for that challenge can use ANY type of compound word in their silly story. The goal of this activity is to practice using compound words in context.
