Vocabulary Words, words and more words

The types of vocabulary Receptive Vocabulary  Vocabulary one can understand You may read metamorphosis and understand it, but few of us would ever use it in our everyday speech  Vocabulary such as this can also be referred to as “academic vocabulary”, or vocabulary that we usually only see in an academic setting Expressive or Productive Vocabulary  Vocabulary one can use This is the vocabulary that we use often The above information is from Shedd, Meagan (2008). More Letter-Sound Knowledge, Vocabulary, and Morphology. Presentation for TE 301, East Lansing, Michigan

Vocabulary Stages Learning words typically goes in this order: You get a clear visual and auditory image of the word. Next you learn the meaning of the word. After this you make strong memory connections between form and meaning of words and then use the word multiple times to cement it into memory. A person’s knowledge of a word also has a natural progression… The above information is from Mumford, S. Grammar and vocabulary: learning vocabulary - connecting form and meaning.

Vocabulary Stages Cont’d The natural progression:  No knowledge You have no knowledge of the word  General sense Having an idea about what a word means  Knowing indignant implies something bad for example  Narrow, context-bound knowledge Knowing a word only in the context in which it was heard The above information is from Shedd, Meagan (2008). More Letter- Sound Knowledge, Vocabulary, and Morphology. Presentation for TE 301, East Lansing, Michigan

Vocabulary Stages Cont’d  Having knowledge of a word, but not being able to recall it in appropriate situations Generally leads to the feeling of the word being on the “tip of the tongue”  Rich, decontextualized knowledge Knowledge of the meaning of the word, its relationship to other words and extensions/metaphoric uses of the word The above information is from Shedd, Meagan (2008). More Letter- Sound Knowledge, Vocabulary, and Morphology. Presentation for TE 301, East Lansing, Michigan

How Vocabulary is learned Vocabulary is learned through direct instruction, exposure or both Direct instruction  During direct instruction, teachers specifically spell out and teach the meaning of vocabulary words  Teachers also put the word in various contexts to deepen the meaning and strengthen connections  The main way to assess students knowledge of vocabulary learned through instruction is by a spelling test The above information is from Shedd, Meagan (2008). More Letter-Sound Knowledge, Vocabulary, and Morphology. Presentation for TE 301, East Lansing, Michigan

How Vocabulary is Learned Cont’d Exposure  This vocabulary is learned from reading, conversations with peers, T.V., etc. Example: My girlfriend’s little sister learned the term “wack” at the age of 7 By creating an environment in our classrooms that is rich in language and by choosing the right words for direct instruction, teachers can help facilitate an ever increasing vocabulary for students The above information is from Shedd, Meagan (2008). More Letter-Sound Knowledge, Vocabulary, and Morphology. Presentation for TE 301, East Lansing, Michigan

How Vocabulary is Learned, Cont’d Since we can’t teach students every word they will need to know though, they are taught ways to figure out unfamiliar words that they learn through exposure  Contextual analysis: using the context before and after the word to figure out the meaning  Morphological analysis: Using the parts of words and their meaning to figure out the meaning of the word as a whole  Lexical Resources: Using reference tools like dictionaries, thesauruses, etc. These resources are limited though in that only the definition of the word is given  Children’s peers are another good source in that they may be able to explain the meaning in a way/make connections that an adult wouldn’t The above information is from Shedd, Meagan (2008). More Letter- Sound Knowledge, Vocabulary, and Morphology. Presentation for TE 301, East Lansing, Michigan

Vocabulary issues for SLL’s There are many problems that face Second Language Learners when it comes to learning vocabulary  They are often trying to learn vocabulary in their own language at the same time  Academic vocabulary is more of a challenge because it is often only learned/discussed during school, where as everyday vocabulary is used all of the time (lots of repetition/practice)  Words that have multiple meanings in English that only have one meaning in their language can pose a particular problem There are some advantages that SLL’s have though  Learning a word in one language may help in figuring out the meaning of a word in English  Also, learning a word in both languages gives SLL’s a deeper understanding of the word The above information is from Shedd, Meagan (2008). More Letter-Sound Knowledge, Vocabulary, and Morphology. Presentation for TE 301, East Lansing, Michigan

Assessments and Activities Word of the Day  Teach a new word each day Give a quiz at the end of each week to test the words learned during the week This will help build vocabulary Vocabulary across the curriculum  While reading in a history textbook, create a list of vocabulary for the students to learn for each chapter, prior to reading the chapter Have the students read the chapter, making sure to pay special interest to the vocabulary words Read the chapter aloud with the class while asking what vocabulary words mean as they come up in the text (Field Notes, February 19 th )

Assessments and Activities ABC books  Have students create ABC books that include vocabulary on a unit of study Students then discover the meaning of these words and the context to which they apply Illustrations can be added for further effect When the books are completed, they are shared with the class and then are used as a resource for the entire class (

References Shedd, Meagan (2008). More Letter-Sound Knowledge, Vocabulary, and Morphology. Presentation for TE 301, East Lansing, Michigan Mumford, S. Grammar and vocabulary: learning vocabulary - connecting form and meaning. Field Notes (2008). February 19 th visit to Mt. Hope Elementary Henry, L. ABC Bookmaking Builds Vocabulary in the Content Areas.