VocabularyCharisse Cronon and Franchesca Hill

Vocabulary Acquisition

INTRODUCTION

Introduction

“Learning, as a language based activity, is fundamentally and profoundly dependent on vocabulary knowledge. Learners must have access to the meanings of words that teachers, or their surrogates (e.g., other adults, books, films, etc.), use to guide them into contemplating known concepts in novelways (i.e. to learn something new).”

(Baker, Simmons, & Kame'enui, 1998)

BACKGROUND AND RESEARCHVocabulary Acquisition

HOW DOES VOCABULARY DEVELOPMENT SUPPORT READING?

Vocabulary Acquisition

Vocabulary Knowledge is Key

Children in lower socioeconomic groups hear fewer words per hour than children in higher socioeconomic groups.  (Hart & Risley)

Vocabulary is increased by reading.  Students that read less learn fewer words.  (Anderson & Nagy, 1992)

Vocabulary must be taught both in isolation and in context. Inferring contexts in which words fit, instead of teacher-presented contexts may work better for some learners. (Curtis & Longo, 2001)

Why Is Our School In Need?

Students in schools with higher poverty rates have a more limited vocabulary.  

Our school is a Title I School (85% free/reduced lunch - families making less than the federal poverty income for their family size per year)

What problems do learners usually exhibit in this area?

The student may express frustration with reading.  Students with a weak vocabulary may also have trouble expressing their thoughts orally and written.  A lack of connections among words in various texts may also be noted. (Reading Rockets, 2011)

What should teachers know about this area of reading?

Vocabulary is crucial to reading. Four types of vocabulary:

•Listening Vocabulary•Speaking Vocabulary•Reading Vocabulary•Writing Vocabulary

What should teachers know about this area of reading?

“Children learn word meanings indirectly in three ways:”  (National Institute for Literacy: The Partnership for Reading)

•engaging daily in oral language•listening to adults read to them•reading on their own

“Direct instruction of vocabulary relevant to a given text leads to better reading comprehension.” (National Institute for Literacy: The Partnership for Reading)• specific word instruction• word learning strategies

Why is this an area of concern?

Based on research mentioned, a strong vocabulary leads to better reading comprehension.This is particularly important, considering the demographics of our school.

STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIESVocabulary Acquisition

WHAT WAYS DO YOU PROMOTE VOCABULARY DEVELOPMENT IN YOUR CLASSROOM?

Vocabulary Acquisition

Strategies and Activities for Vocabulary Acquisition

ELACCKL5c: Identify real-life connections between words and their use (e.g., note places at school that are colorful).ELACCKL6: Use words and phrases acquired through conversations, reading and being read to, and responding to texts.

Explore: Word Girl Power Words Game with students.  With each new word word, teacher will lead students in discussion of the word and have students determine how the words can be used in a sentence.

Adaptations:  Higher grades can write the words.

Strategies and Activities for Vocabulary AcquisitionELACC2L4d:  Use knowledge of the meaning of individual words to predict the meaning of compound words (e.g., birdhouse, lighthouse, housefly; bookshelf, notebook, bookmark).Students will complete a frayer model to further work on newly taught vocabulary. The teacher will give each student a word, and the students will work through the model by providing a definition, characteristics, an example, and a non-example.http://interactive-notebooks.wikispaces.com/Frayer+model+vocabulary

Adaptations:  Students can draw instead of writing.  

Strategies and Activities for Vocabulary AcquisitionELACCKL5c: Identify real-life connections between words and their use (e.g., note places at school that are colorful).ELACCKL6: Use words and phrases acquired through conversations, reading and being read to, and responding to texts.The teacher will photocopy the cover of the book the vocabulary is from and display it along with the 3-4 complex vocabulary words.  Students will help to develop movements to remember the 3-4 complex vocabulary words as they are read.  Students will practice movements and use movements as they hear the words.  Adaptations:  Students may be reading independently and determine words from reading that they would like to have as vocabulary words.  The students will use dictionaries to determine meanings, create movements, and teach the words to their classmates.

Strategies and Activities for Vocabulary AcquisitionELACC1L4: Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases based on grade 1 reading and content, choosing flexibly from an array of strategies.a. Use sentence-level context as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.Truth or bolognio:  students are provided with dual-sided signs, with “Truth” on one side, and “Bolognio” on the other.  Teacher will read a sentence, with a corresponding picture, from the SmartBoard.  If the vocabulary word is misused, the students will hold up “Bolognio;” if the word is used correctly, the students will hold up “Truth.”

Adaptations:  Students may write the correctly used sentences.

Strategies and Activities for Vocabulary AcquisitionELA5R3c.  Determines the meaning of unfamiliar words using knowledge of common roots, suffixes, and prefixes.Teacher will teach how to use common roots, suffixes, and prefixes to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words.  Teacher will have students practice breaking words into parts to determine the meaning.Adaptations:  For lower grades, teachers may choose to focus on one part such as a prefix (un-).  Students may also build words by being given a root word, a prefix, and a suffix.

RESOURCES AND MATERIALSVocabulary Acquisition

References

Anderson, R. C. (1992). Research foundations for wide reading. Paper commissioned by the World Bank. Urbana, IL: Center for the Study of Reading.

Baker, Simmons, & Kame'enui. (1997). Vocabulary acquisition: Research bases. In Simmons, D. C. & Kame'enui, E. J. (Eds.), What reading research tells us about children with diverse learning needs: Bases and basics. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

Curtis, M.E., & Longo, A.M. (2001, November). Teaching vocabulary to adolescents to improve comprehension. Reading Online, 5(4). Available: http://www.readingonline.org/articles/art_index.asp?HREF=curtis/index.html

Georgia Department of Education.  (2012).  CCSSI ELA Standards.  Available: http://www.corestandards.org/assets/CCSSI_ELA%20Standards.pdf

Hart, B., & Risley, R. T. (1995). Meaningful differences in the everyday experience of young American children. Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes.

National Institute for Literacy The Partnership for Reading.The research building blocks for teaching children to read put reading first kindergarten through grade 3. (3rd ed.).

Reading Rockets. (2011). Reading rockets. Retrieved from http://www.readingrockets.org/helping/target/vocabulary/

University of Oregon: Center on teaching and learning. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://reading.uoregon.edu/big_ideas/voc/voc_what.php