Wordle

Wordle is a fun site where you can enter text and create a "word cloud". The word cloud is formed by words from the chosen text and those words that are used the most are bigger than the other words of the text. Any text can be used. When you get to the site, click on create and then paste the text you wish to create a word cloud for in the box. You then click go and you are taken to the completed word cloud. You can then change the font, colors, and shape of the cloud to suit your tastes. You may either print it or publish it to the Wordle site. This site would be a great to use with students and their original compositions. In this way you can show them what words they are using the most when they write.

I created a word cloud by using the text from "The Highwayman" by Alfred Noyes. (If you choose to capture by using screen capture software (as I did) you will need to be sure to credit the image as coming from http://www.wordle.net/.)