Coaches

What equipment and resources do I need to get started?

To play Scrabble, you'll need a board (preferrably one that rotates), racks, tiles, and a tile bag. Then you'll need pen/pencil and paper if you're keeping score, and a dictionary to check words. A "Cheat Sheet" is handy for beginning Scrabblers as they master their 2- and 3-letter words. A clipboard is handy for holding your paper, and a timer will be necessary once you start playing timed games. In competitive Scrabble, each team has 25 minutes on their clock, for a total for a 50-minute game. This is usually an adequate amount of time to play a game, but having a timer may be nerve-racking for new players and is something you may want to work up to.

What are the rules of Scrabble?

Watch this short video tutorial to learn the rules of Scrabble. If you want to know the exact rules of tournament play, here are the NASPA official tournament rules as of January 4, 2017. If you want to know what to do in unexpected scenarios, such as drawing too many tiles or trading when there aren't 7 letters in the bag,  NASPA Know the Rules is very helpful.

How do I teach Scrabble to student players?

Scrabble Champion Will Anderson has many helpful tutorials for more experienced Scrabble players, including his Scrabble Tips series, his Better Know a Letter series, and his How to Win at Scrabble series. 

How is School Scrabble different from Adult Competitive Scrabble?

School Scrabble players are not allowed to use use "bad" words. Also, they play in teams of two-on-two. Rather than one-on-one.

What about "bad" words?

School Scrabblers are not allowed to use words that are slurs or words that are vulgar. If they are played, they count as a non-word and can be challenged off. For the most part, these banned words are obvious, but there is a printable list of the words that can be referred to if necessary. Some words, such as "ASS" have a vulgar meaning, but because they also have a non-vulgar meaning (e.g.: donkey), they are acceptable in School Scrabble.

Do I have to use a timer? 

In Youth and Adult Competitive Scrabble, the players have 25 minutes per side - for an approximately 50 minute game. When Youth Players are learning, they have a lot on their minds. Anagramming, scoring, collaborating with a teammate, and learning to have a "poker face." While timers are required, longtime Scrabble coach Cornelia Guest recommends using them so they get used to playing with a clock. She says, "I use timers with all of my students, even new students. I also use sand timers on occasion to limit the amount of time a player takes a turn. My classes are just an hour long, so if one player or team takes too long on their plays, it is unfair to their opponents - and a bore. I don't want players taking longer than two minutes on a turn when they start out."  

What North American organizations exist to support Scrabble?

There are two main organizations that support Scrabble: NASPA and WGPO. They are great sources for information about local clubs, upcoming tournaments, rules, players, etc. There are very few groups dedicated exclusively to School Scrabble, though some youth players choose to play in clubs with primarily adult players.

What study tools are there?

In general, games like Word Scramble, Hangman, Boggle, Bananagrams, and Wordle are excellent tools to introduce the concept of anagramming and letter frequency distribution. For more hardcore players, there are the following tools:

• Zyzzyva - used for tournament play to check valid words, as as a word study tool

• Quackle - artificial intelligence game analysis tool

• Xerafin - online study tool (undergoing Beta testing as of 12/18/23)

• Woogles - in addition to being a place to play (using OMGWords), Woogles has several built-in study/play tools (Anagrams, License to Spell, Puzzle Mode, Aerolith, Random Racer, and Word Tree)

How do I run a youth Scrabble tournament?

Read here to learn how to run a youth Scrabble tournament.

Read here to learn how to run an online tournament on Woogles.

Read here for information about troubleshooting a Woogles tournament.