I prefer words blown up in strips of about 12 words each about 1″ high. I won’t be doing word “walls” next year but those word “strips”. They are new for me. I experimented with them this year and I like it. You can see them in the Krashen video I took but haven’t had a chance to edit yet but will do so maybe over spring break.
So what I do is punch a little hole in each (laminated) strip of 12 words and then hook them all on a hook and only have 12 words and 12 verbs on two hooks visible to the kids. I know, this cuts down on their using the words for writing, but that loss is outweighed by the gain of wall space and the simpler feel in the classroom.
I never go to a new strip until the previous one can be rattled off in English by all the kids. Still thinking this through, but doing strips ensures that we don’t move on to new words before the kids know all the words presented up to the bottom of the strip. Plus, when reviewing words on various strips, instead of a wall, the kids can’t take a mental picture of the wall, as happens often, which is not real acquisition.