Unit 8 Teaching Vocabulary Unit 8 Teaching Vocabulary

Aims of the unit: 1.What does knowing a word involve? 2.Methods for presenting new vocabulary items 3.Ways to consolidate vocabulary 4.Ways to help students develop vocabulary building strategies

Prerequisites Students should preview the unit (P116) for the main idea before they come to the class. Students should prepare TASK 2 (P117), read the assumptions about vocabulary in English learning and try to give reasons for their decisions.

8.1 Understanding vocabulary & vocabulary learning People have different understandings of: What a vocabulary item is; How an item can be learned and consolidate; Which items should be learned; To what extent the items should be learned and practised. (p. 117, Task 2)

8.2 What does knowing a word involve? A simple answer would be (1)knowing its pronunciation & stress; (1)knowing its pronunciation & stress; (2) knowing its spelling & grammar; (3) knowing its meaning; (3) knowing its meaning; (4) knowing how & when to use it to express the intended meaning.

Passive & active vocabulary(p.120) Receptive/Passive vocabulary 被动词汇 : refers to words that one is able to recognize and comprehend in reading or listening but unable to use automatically in speaking or writing. Productive/Active vocabulary 主动词汇 : refers to words that one is not only able to recognize but also able to use in speech and writing.

8.3 Ways of Presenting new words (p.124) Different teachers have different ways to present new words. Different teachers have different ways to present new words. Some suggestions: Try to provide a visual or physical demonstration to show meaning Provide a verbal context to demonstrate meaning. Use synonyms, antonyms etc. to explain meaning. Use lexical sets or hyponyms to show relations of words and their meaning.

Translate and exemplify. Use word formation rules and common affixes to build new lexical knowledge on what is already known. Teach vocabulary in chunks. Think about the context in real life where the word might be used. Introduce new words in real-life context.

happy / glad / pleased/ delighted…

surprised / amazed / shocked / astonished / startled …

sad / depressed / sorrowful / blue…

afraid / scared / fearful / frightened / horrified …

happypleasedexcited Various Degrees of Emotions

A comparison between 2 teachers Teacher A: a) wrote “grumble” on the blackboard; b) said “grumble means to complain about someone or something in an annoyed way”; c) translated the word into the students’ native language; d) gave more examples (sentences) for the students to translate into their native language.

Teacher B: Said “some people grumble about everything. For example, they grumbled about the weather. If it is sunny, they say it is too hot. If it is cool, they say it is too cold. They are never happy with the weather. They always grumble about the weather”. Then set out to check the students’ understanding by asking “So what does ‘grumble’ mean?”

Which of the above do you think is more effective? Why?

词汇教学可采用 3C 模式，即 Convey meaning （呈现 词义）， Check understanding （检查理解）和 consolidation （巩固运用）。运用这一模式时，教师应 首先通过实物、动作、图画和语言描述等方式介绍生 词的意思，帮助学生理解词义；然后再通过提问或其 他方式检查学生是否正确理解了该生词的含义；最后 ，创设情景，帮助学生在真实的语境中运用所学词汇 ，从而在实际运用中加深对生词的理解和记忆。以单 词 boring 的教学为例，其 3C 模式的实施过程如下：

Step 1: Convey meaning 教师创设语言情景 ： Last night I went to see a movie. It was not interesting. It made me fall asleep. Not interesting. It was boring. Step 2: Check understanding T: Do you understand the word “boring”? what does it mean in Chinese? S1 : 枯燥的，没有意思的 。Ｔ : Good! (to S1) Do you like boring movies? S1: … T: (to S2 ) Is this lesson boring? S2: … T: (to S3) Is this book boring? S3: … Step 3: Consolidation T: Ask the persons next to you if they had a boring weekend. If they say “yes”, find out the reason.

Some more suggested ways Use pictures, diagrams and maps to show the meaning; Use realia (plural of realis); Use pantomimes or actions; Use lexical sets, superordinate and hyponymy; e.g. cook: fry, boil, bake, grill, roast Translate and exemplify( 举例说明 ), esp. with technical or abstract words; Use word formation rules and common affixes. e.g. deduction, induction

Pork beef mutton chicken bacon duck Food group: meat steak M3 Unit 2 Healthy eating

in on over above through across below under ① ② ③ ④ ⑤ ⑥ ⑦ ⑧

8.4 Ways of consolidating vocabulary Since learning is subject to forgetting, it is normal that we hear students complain that they keep learning and forgetting, especially when they do not understand the meaning of the vocabulary item. When students study vocabulary individually, very often it is rote learning.

Group learning through various activities and under the teacher’s supervision can be more fun and effective. Some vocabulary consolidation activities:

Labelling. Use pictures. Write down the names. Spotting the differences. Use pair work and pictures. e.g.:

Describing and drawing. Use pair work. One describes while the other draws. Playing a game. Show the students some words/objects, and then ask: “What did you see just now?”

Using word series. e.g. Example: Cutlery: knife, fork, spoon Transport:,, ; Vehicles:,, ; Furniture:,, ; Buildings:,, ;

Word bingo. e.g. Suppose you have learned the following words that are related to shopping: shopper, customer, seller, sale, shop, store, market, supermarket, discount, goods, price, sell, bargain, buy, pay, receipt

Now make a table of 9 blocks. Write 9 words of shopping in the table, then listen to me. When you hear the word that you have written, cross it out in your table. e.g.:

sellermarketshop pricebuyreceipt shoppersalesupermarket

If you have crossed out all the 9 words in your table, say “Bingo!( 猜中了 )” If you are the first one to say “Bingo!” in your group, you are the winner.

Word association. The teacher says “travelling”, and then the students write some words connected with travelling. Odd man out. e.g. cheese, eggs, oranges, bread, soap, meat Synonyms and antonyms.e.g.

e.g. Find Synonyms and antonyms. fulljumperoptimistic go on choosedirty awakeselect wait a minute pulloverpessimisticrude cleancontinue hang on emptyasleeplazy Awful hard- working impoliteterriblethinthick

Using word categories

Using word net-work toothpaste, TV, alarm clock, stove, video, towel, cupboard, sofa, dressing table, wash-basin, slippers, mirror, shower

（鲁子问： 2005 ）

词 汇 交际活动 角色扮演解决问题猜词游戏 编 写 小故事 用单词 造 句

8.5 Developing vocabulary building strategies Vocabulary building strategies are very important outside the class. Review regularly. Forgetting curve: Forgetting law is slow after the first fast, just keep in mind that material is forgotten fastest in the early hours.

Guess meaning from context. e.g.:Guess meaning from context. e.g.: 1. The captain asked the seamen to throw the anchor 2. Let’s synchronize our watch so that we can start the game at exactly the same time. 3. Susan went to the shop and bought some bananas, mangoes, and cherimoyas.

Expanding meaning of familiar words  Zhang ziyi bagged five last night. 章子怡昨晚囊获了五项大奖。  My experience shapes me a lot. 我的经历造就了我。  Mum milks her child at every effort. 母亲尽一切所能哺育她的孩子 。

Organize vocabulary effectively.

Use a dictionary. Manage strategy use

How do we teach the new words, e.g., 20 new words, in a unit of a textbook? Do we teach all the 20 word at a time in an isolated way, i.e., without context? or: Do we use context and allow the new words to occur in a natural way?

A possible way Before reading the text: T: We are going to read a story about Nelson Mandela, the first black president of South Africa. Which of the following words do you think may be used in the story? prison, rights, violence, lawyer, youth, league, position, matter, fact, president; vote, accept; continue black, equal, poor, young, wrong, worried Make a guess.

While reading the text: The students can guess the meaning of some new words from the context. The students can guess the meaning of some new words from the context. After reading the text: The teacher can ask the students which words in the text they don’t know, and help them to know the meaning of the words, and if necessary the teacher can translate the words into Chinese.

Summary Two problems in vocabulary learning: Students treat vocabulary items indiscriminately, or without context. Many students learn vocabulary in ineffective ways such as rote learning.

The teacher should help the students to use the context in vocabulary learning. Besides, the teacher should also help the students to develop vocabulary building strategies.

Homework 1. What does knowing a word involve? 2. How can we present new vocabulary items effectively? 3. What are some effective ways to consolidate vocabulary?