My educational philosophy and website motto is about making learning fun and relevant.  I read an article by Leanna Landsmann last week that provided a vocabulary website that does both.  The site is www.freerice.com. 

Here is what her article said about the site:

 “It's just a couple of months old, and it has taken off like a rocket. It works like this: When you land on the site, you're presented a word and possible definitions. Click on the answer that best defines the word. Get it right and you get a harder word. A wrong answer gets you an easier word. For every word right, FreeRice.com donates 20 grains of rice to the United Nations World Food Program.

The site's motto is "Learn Free Vocabulary and Give Free Rice." Its simple, inspiring, game-like proposition can get kids and adults interested in new words. With your teens, the trick is to make the learning stick so that they can "own" the words and use them in their writing and conversation. As you play, list them in a Free Rice Word Journal. Use the words in sentences. Write the sentences on "sticky notes" and put them throughout the house. Find synonyms and antonyms for the new words.”

I found myself on the site long enough to get 1000 grains of rice donated.  The site is relatively new (October 2007) and relies on sponsorship to pay for the donations. 

We all recognize that vocabulary is essential.  I recently came across some facts on the website http://reading.uoregon.edu/voc/voc_why.php about the importance of vocabulary;

1. An average student in grades 3 through 12 is likely to learn approximately 3,000 new vocabulary words each year, assuming he or she reads between 500,000 and a million running words of text a school year.
2. Between grades 1 and 3, it is estimated that economically disadvantaged students' vocabularies increase by about 3,000 words per year and middle-class students' vocabularies increase by about 5,000 words per year.
3. Children's vocabulary size approximately doubles between grades 3 and 7.
4. Massive vocabulary growth appears to occur without much help from teachers.

I say let us all try to implement more vocabulary in the classroom.  For those of you that already do, add the site to your list of classroom activities.  Freerice.com can be used in any grade level and discipline (7-12) as a simple sponge activity or as the basis for a vocabulary lesson, while simultaneously benefiting society.  What a great win-win, energizing activity for the classroom.   The only advice I have for you is to refrain from frustration when you miss one.  My competitive side found myself seeing how many words I could consecutively get correct.  It is difficult to leave the site.