VOCABULARY
What is it?
A person's vocabulary is the set of words within a language that are familiar to that person. A vocabulary usually develops with age, and serves as a useful and fundamental tool for communication and acquiring knowledge. Acquiring an extensive vocabulary is one of the largest challenges in learning a second language. |
The Road to Adjectives
The student will be able to identify adjectives in a sentence, be able to use them correctly in a sentence, and have a better understanding of how adjectives describe nouns.
lesson_plan-vocabulary.doc | |
File Size: | 45 kb |
File Type: | doc |
Teaching Vocabulary Using Word Wall
Vocabulary Ball Lesson Plan
Verb Ball Lesson PlanThe student will be able to identify what verbs are and know the verb’s meaning.
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Vocabulary Worksheets
Color Lessons
Techniques for Teaching Vocabulary to Elementary Students
STUDENT ENGAGEMENT
Subscribe to RSSTechniques for Teaching Vocabulary to Elementary Students MAY 16, 2011
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Photo credit: Old Shoe Woman via flickr (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
Updated 01/2014
So, I'm sitting in a workshop on vocabulary development listening to a bunch of research as to why kids lack the language to effectively comprehend and communicate. The largest factor (found by this specific research) that determines a child's vocabulary cache is . . . (Drum roll) . . . In-home communication between adult and child using rich language. No talking, no vocabulary -- makes sense, right? The more you hear it, the more likely you're going to use it, the more you're going to "own" it. It's the purest form of contextual usage. It's life. This makes total sense to me. As a teacher, writer, and father of a three-year-old, I'm always exposing my son to strong, healthy vocabulary. It's not rocket science; it just takes some extra effort to recognize those special times to work on vocabulary (I'm not using the term "teachable moment" here because working on vocabulary really shouldn't seem like a formal lesson; it should be as natural as a friendly conversation).
Let me give you a play-by-play to give you a sense of how I do it at home.
- Setting: Playing in the backyard.
- Max: It's getting hot.
- Me: Yes, the temperature is going up.
- Max: It sure is.
- Me: The temperature is increasing.
- Max. Yup.
- Me: Yeah, it's rising.
DON'T: Force ItI left the workshop thinking about how I personally teach vocabulary without making it seem like I'm forcing new words into the absorbent brain tissue of my students. The key to "real-life-like" vocabulary instruction is not to force it. Let it happen, my friend (like a friendly conversation). Avoid fill-in-the-blank worksheets, matching, and vocabulary quizzes at all costs. Forcing students to quantify their learning in a quiz or test sets the brain to stun, not kill (Stun= regurgitated-on-paper-never-to-be-used-again. Kill= embedded-and-owned.). In his book, On Writing, Stephen King states that vocabulary should be on the top shelf of your writing toolbox, and "Don't make a conscious effort to improve it." To the beginning writer and teacher that might sound weird. However, Stevie continues with, "You'll be doing that (improving vocabulary) while you're reading." Ah-ha! Now we're talking; now we're learning new vocabulary on the go, in the field, and LIVE (naturally). But how do we get kids to do that? Patience.
DO: Model InquisitivenessTeaching kids new words and definitions is very important, but what's more crucial to ongoing vocabulary development is modeling when and how to be inquisitive about words. Here are a few "moments" that I use to model how to naturally investigate words and directly teach them as well.
1. Read Aloud: I read out loud to my students every day. Please, oh please, don't ever cut this from your daily routine. It's so important for kids to hear how words and punctuation intertwine to create a coherent story. This is a great time to discuss the word choice of the author, the good and the bad. I like to use the think-aloud technique to show students how I mentally investigate words. Gaetan's mental thoughts: wait a minute -- what does that word mean? Re-read the sentence..okay it could be... but maybe not. Do I see a pre-fix or a suffix? I'm sure you get the idea. When parents ask me how they can help their child improve their reading, I tell them to investigate a word a day that appears in their reading homework and plant the "word seed."
2. Reading/Writing Conferences: Individual reading/writing conferences are the epitome of differentiation. This is where a teacher can really access student needs and meet them at their wordsmith level. Along with discussing words, for those of you who need something concrete and documented, "the list" is always a good idea. I have my students create individualized spelling lists and vocabulary lists in their writing journal, which are updated during conferencing or just on-the-go. I also create class lists of good words, such as "Buff Verbs" and "Instead of Said" words (speaker tags). It's always nice to have a reference.
3. Poetry: Almost everything a student needs to know about reading and writing can be taught through poetry. The poem is very versatile: its length is less intimidating than a short story or novel; poets usually use strong words (they have to because of the length); the definitions of the words can usually be deciphered through context clues; and, although poems are awesome fun to use, make sure you use age-appropriate poetry. We all know poets can be "out there." Sometimes after reading a difficult poem we all kind of just stare and "Dig the Heaviness." That's really all we can do. I try to "unpack" at least two to three poems a week, digging out some good words to discuss.
4. Morning Message: If you are into the responsive classroom thing, you can definitely use the morning message to increase the student word power. When I interned at the Nancie Atwell Center for Teaching and Learning (read my blog of the experience: Five Practices that Transformed My Teaching), I was amazed at how Ted DeMille, 1st/2nd grade teacher, taught with the morning message. He started with phonics and ended with comprehension. It was quite amazing.
Contextual vocabulary acquisition is the most effective way to get words to stick, but it takes time and patience. Just think about how toddlers learn to speak. They learn from adults, brothers and sisters, and their peers over several years of listening. They don't learn from worksheets or memorizing word lists. Their word acquisition begins by listening, and then moves to learning from books and conversation. Although teachers will never make up for lost home-life vocabulary development, they can make a huge impact on their students by consistently planting those "word seeds" in a natural, conversational way.
Vocabulary Parade
Books that support learning about vocabulary
ELL Students and Vocabulary
Vocabulary Instruction for English Language Learners
by Judie Haynes
Here are some tips on providing effective vocabulary instruction for your English language learners.
Teaching Content Area Vocabulary to English Language Learners has been reprinted from Essential Teacher, March, 2008.When I started teaching in an ESL pullout program in the 1980s, few materials were available for elementary ESL programs. So I adapted textbooks and workbooks from the general education curriculum to meet the linguistic needs of students who received ESL instruction for 30–45 minutes a day, but spent most of their time in the general education classroom. It became evident to me that classroom teachers needed to learn to adapt their teaching methods and materials to meet the needs of English language learners (ELLs) in their classes. I began to examine ways that I could help them do this. I focused on vocabulary development and modifying content area teaching methods and materials. In this issue, I discuss methods for teaching vocabulary to ELLs that can be used by ESL and content area teachers alike.
Use explicit instruction of vocabulary.I believe all students need direct instruction of vocabulary, but it is especially imperative for ELLs. They need much more exposure to new vocabulary than their native-English-speaking classmates (August & Shanahan, 2006). ELLs need to learn cognates, prefixes, suffixes, and root words to enhance their ability to make sense of new lexicon. Understanding context clues such as embedded definitions, pictures, and charts builds schema that ELLs need in order to comprehend the text. New vocabulary needs to be explicitly taught, and each new word should be directly linked to an appropriate strategy. ELLs should actively engage in holistic activities to practice new vocabulary because learning words out of context is difficult for these students. Even if they memorize the meanings of the words on a list, they will not be able to use the words in their own writing or verbal production until they really understand the meanings.
Introduce the most essential vocabulary before beginning a new chapter or unit.Don’t overwhelm students with too many words or concepts. Pick what is absolutely essential in each chapter. Pronounce each word for students, and have them repeat after you. Introduce the vocabulary in a familiar and meaningful context and then again in a content-specific setting. For example, in a unit on weather and tornadoes that I taught, the word front needed to be reviewed in a familiar context and then taught in the context of the unit. Provide experiences that help demonstrate the meaning of the vocabulary words. In my unit, diagrams and photographs were particularly helpful.
Build background knowledge. Explicit links to previously taught text should be emphasized to activate prior knowledge. Review relevant vocabulary that was already introduced, and highlight familiar words that have a new meaning. Access the knowledge that students bring from their native cultures. In learning about tornadoes, for example, my students talked about some extreme weather found in their home countries and used Google in Korean and Japanese to find examples of such weather. They also watched videos of typhoons and a tsunami. Videos from your school library, Internet resources, and carefully selected educational TV programs (e.g., Discovery Channel shows, something from the 60 years of NBC News archives now freely available for teachers) should be used to introduce each unit. Doing so will increase vocabulary and provide ELLs with background knowledge. Key vocabulary can also be introduced through a fictional story before it is taught from the textbook. For example, I read an excerpt from The Wizard of Oz before teaching the information about tornadoes from the textbook. My students then gathered around the classroom computer to watch a video of a tornado. “Look at the funnel! It’s twisting! It’s going to touch down!” students exclaimed. They had already learned some of the vocabulary from The Wizard of Oz, and I was pleased to hear them use these words as they watched the video.
Use visuals when introducing new words and concepts.Elementary-aged ELLs are usually visual or kinesthetic learners. When a teacher simply lectures, ELLs have very little understanding of the concepts being taught. It is therefore helpful to use realia, pictures, photographs, graphic organizers, maps, and graphs. Write key words on the board, and add gestures to help students interpret meaning. Have students create their own visuals to aid their learning. In the tornado unit, each student was assigned a few content-specific vocabulary words. They had to write simple definitions and draw pictures to show what the words meant.
Provide a variety of activities to practice new vocabulary.Research has shown that learning is more effective when students give input into the vocabulary they need to learn (Echevarria, Vogt, & Short, 2000). To give students plenty of practice with words, I recommend providing two word walls. On one wall, I write everyday words that students need to learn and practice. These words are removed when students no longer need them. On the second wall, I write unit- or content-specific vocabulary. This wall is changed to make room for new units. I then ask students to post unfamiliar words from the text. They select key vocabulary by looking at chapter titles, headings, and bolded words. I also have students make a portable word wall which they keep in their binders so that they have their vocabulary handy when they do homework.New vocabulary should be reviewed every day. Students can work together to write a simple sentence for each word or complete a cloze activity. They can also draw pictures to illustrate vocabulary, make flashcards, or compile their own dictionaries in a notebook.
Promote oral language development through cooperative learning groups. ELLs need ample opportunities to speak English and authentic reasons to use academic language. Working in small groups is especially beneficial because ELLs learn to negotiate the meanings of vocabulary words with their classmates. When students work on the previously mentioned vocabulary activities in pairs or small groups, they can better understand and discuss the key concepts of the content area unit.
by Judie Haynes
Here are some tips on providing effective vocabulary instruction for your English language learners.
Teaching Content Area Vocabulary to English Language Learners has been reprinted from Essential Teacher, March, 2008.When I started teaching in an ESL pullout program in the 1980s, few materials were available for elementary ESL programs. So I adapted textbooks and workbooks from the general education curriculum to meet the linguistic needs of students who received ESL instruction for 30–45 minutes a day, but spent most of their time in the general education classroom. It became evident to me that classroom teachers needed to learn to adapt their teaching methods and materials to meet the needs of English language learners (ELLs) in their classes. I began to examine ways that I could help them do this. I focused on vocabulary development and modifying content area teaching methods and materials. In this issue, I discuss methods for teaching vocabulary to ELLs that can be used by ESL and content area teachers alike.
Use explicit instruction of vocabulary.I believe all students need direct instruction of vocabulary, but it is especially imperative for ELLs. They need much more exposure to new vocabulary than their native-English-speaking classmates (August & Shanahan, 2006). ELLs need to learn cognates, prefixes, suffixes, and root words to enhance their ability to make sense of new lexicon. Understanding context clues such as embedded definitions, pictures, and charts builds schema that ELLs need in order to comprehend the text. New vocabulary needs to be explicitly taught, and each new word should be directly linked to an appropriate strategy. ELLs should actively engage in holistic activities to practice new vocabulary because learning words out of context is difficult for these students. Even if they memorize the meanings of the words on a list, they will not be able to use the words in their own writing or verbal production until they really understand the meanings.
Introduce the most essential vocabulary before beginning a new chapter or unit.Don’t overwhelm students with too many words or concepts. Pick what is absolutely essential in each chapter. Pronounce each word for students, and have them repeat after you. Introduce the vocabulary in a familiar and meaningful context and then again in a content-specific setting. For example, in a unit on weather and tornadoes that I taught, the word front needed to be reviewed in a familiar context and then taught in the context of the unit. Provide experiences that help demonstrate the meaning of the vocabulary words. In my unit, diagrams and photographs were particularly helpful.
Build background knowledge. Explicit links to previously taught text should be emphasized to activate prior knowledge. Review relevant vocabulary that was already introduced, and highlight familiar words that have a new meaning. Access the knowledge that students bring from their native cultures. In learning about tornadoes, for example, my students talked about some extreme weather found in their home countries and used Google in Korean and Japanese to find examples of such weather. They also watched videos of typhoons and a tsunami. Videos from your school library, Internet resources, and carefully selected educational TV programs (e.g., Discovery Channel shows, something from the 60 years of NBC News archives now freely available for teachers) should be used to introduce each unit. Doing so will increase vocabulary and provide ELLs with background knowledge. Key vocabulary can also be introduced through a fictional story before it is taught from the textbook. For example, I read an excerpt from The Wizard of Oz before teaching the information about tornadoes from the textbook. My students then gathered around the classroom computer to watch a video of a tornado. “Look at the funnel! It’s twisting! It’s going to touch down!” students exclaimed. They had already learned some of the vocabulary from The Wizard of Oz, and I was pleased to hear them use these words as they watched the video.
Use visuals when introducing new words and concepts.Elementary-aged ELLs are usually visual or kinesthetic learners. When a teacher simply lectures, ELLs have very little understanding of the concepts being taught. It is therefore helpful to use realia, pictures, photographs, graphic organizers, maps, and graphs. Write key words on the board, and add gestures to help students interpret meaning. Have students create their own visuals to aid their learning. In the tornado unit, each student was assigned a few content-specific vocabulary words. They had to write simple definitions and draw pictures to show what the words meant.
Provide a variety of activities to practice new vocabulary.Research has shown that learning is more effective when students give input into the vocabulary they need to learn (Echevarria, Vogt, & Short, 2000). To give students plenty of practice with words, I recommend providing two word walls. On one wall, I write everyday words that students need to learn and practice. These words are removed when students no longer need them. On the second wall, I write unit- or content-specific vocabulary. This wall is changed to make room for new units. I then ask students to post unfamiliar words from the text. They select key vocabulary by looking at chapter titles, headings, and bolded words. I also have students make a portable word wall which they keep in their binders so that they have their vocabulary handy when they do homework.New vocabulary should be reviewed every day. Students can work together to write a simple sentence for each word or complete a cloze activity. They can also draw pictures to illustrate vocabulary, make flashcards, or compile their own dictionaries in a notebook.
Promote oral language development through cooperative learning groups. ELLs need ample opportunities to speak English and authentic reasons to use academic language. Working in small groups is especially beneficial because ELLs learn to negotiate the meanings of vocabulary words with their classmates. When students work on the previously mentioned vocabulary activities in pairs or small groups, they can better understand and discuss the key concepts of the content area unit.