VocabularyVocabulary

New Lynn SchoolNew Lynn School

4 May 20094 May 2009Jane van der ZeydenJane van der Zeyden

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“In order to make progress in both oral and written language, a learner needs to learn new works. Vocabulary needs to be taught explicitly…”

English Language Learning Progressions Ministry of Education, 2008

Learning IntentionWe are learning to provide meaningful tasks in our

classroom programmes which will help students to build their vocabulary knowledge.

Success CriteriaWe will be able to identify lexical items which will need to be explicitly taught.We will be able to effectively use tasks to develop vocabulary.We will be able to describe different facets to “knowing” a

word.

What does knowing a word involve?

How many aspects can you identify?

Teachers and students need to understand that ‘learning” or “knowing” a word involves:

• Knowing how the word sounds• Saying the word with correct pronunciation• Spelling it accurately• Recognising it in print• Understanding what it means in context• Knowing its most commonly used meaning• Understanding other meanings in different

contexts e.g. bank,

• Knowing what part of speech it is

• Knowing whether the word is technical or general vocabulary

• Knowing whether it is being used literally, metaphorically or idiomatically

• Understanding whether the word should be used in informal or formal contexts

Learners can extend this knowledge through:• Learning how to form other words in the same

family• Learning what other words collocate with the

word• Learning that some words are “joined” to make

a lexical item e.g a bank robbery, a retirement village

• Building a bank of words with similar meanings• Learning where a word fits on a cline

• Finding out about the origin of the wordReference:English Language Learning Progressions

Different types of vocabularies

• Expressive vocabulary - the words we use to speak and write

• Receptive vocabulary - the words we use to listen and read

• Meaning and oral vocabularies - combination of listening and speaking vocabularies

• Literate vocabulary - combination of reading and writing vocabularies

• Very young children have meaning vocabularies that are much larger than literate vocabularies

• Adults probably have literate vocabularies larger than meaning vocabularies.

• Some researchers e.g Ehri (1994,1998) suggest that high frequency words should be introduced without written context so that students focus on their visual composition

• Native speakers will add roughly 1000 word families a year to their vocabulary

• Some studies suggest that ELL’s vocabulary grows at the same rate as native speakers but the initial gap is not closed.

• Significant vocabulary growth can occur if learning is done in the L2 environment (Milton and Meara, 1995)

• Approximately 100 words make up about 50% of most English texts

• First 1000 words make up 72% of texts• First 2000 words make up 79.7% of texts• First 4000 words make up 86.8% of texts• Although there are approx. 54,000 word

families in English, 3,000 to 5,000 word families provide a basis for comprehension

Processes for remembering words:• Learners need to notice the word or be

aware of it• Retrieval - if a word is retrieved either

receptively or productively in a familiar task then the memory of that word will be strengthened.

• Generation - may be either receptive or productive. Involves using the vocabulary in new contexts

Implications for teachers• Identify the key words and

phrases. Think about how frequently the words are

used, how important they are for concept learning, how important they are for general academic use.

Introducing key words• Plan appropriate activities and tasks to teach

and test these key words• Simple explanation may be all that is required• Teach other related forms and words e.g.

digestion leads to digest, ingest, digestive, food, nutrient

• Limit the number of new words• Get students to predict possible meanings• Avoid introducing pairs of words that have

similar meanings or are opposite in meaning.

In the classroom:• Word maps• Clustering activities• Use visuals where possible• Teach pronunciation• Clines• Cloze activities• Definition-matching activities• Dominoes, crosswords, word- guessing

games, word bingo• Vocabulary quizzes

Metacognitive strategies for students:

• Keeping their own vocabulary lists• Highlighting key words• Drawing word maps or using other

visual activities• Bilingual cards or other word cards with

meanings on the back• “words of the week” or a “word wall”

brainstorms…

cat, kitten, tomcat, mice, birds, play, flick,

hunt, stalk, catch, whiskers, sensitive, ears,

saucers, milk, fur, lick, clean, wash, trees,

sleep, curl, tail, flick, anger, seven lives, fall,

land, lap, stroke, purr…

classifying…

EATseedsnutsfishberriescarrioninsects

LIVEoffshore islandssandspitsmountainsforestgrasslandbeachat seatownsswamps

BODIESfeatherswingsbeaklegsfeeteyeshollow bonesdownbrush-tongue

PEOPLEornithologistszoologistsnaturalistsconservationists

STATUSat riskendangeredextinctcommon

Feels like…

Looks like..

Sounds like…

Makes me think of ...

sensory webs…

softsmoothfurrystiff whiskersprickly clawstwitchy tailscratchy

miaowingcryingscratchingtalkingyowling

stripeyshort fur on its body

tufts of long hair in its earswhite, grey and black

fluffy tailstaring blue eyes

climbing treeslicking milk from a saucer

catching birdsstalking and hunting

sleeping, curled up in my lap

classifying…

kinds of..catkittentomcattabby

breeds…PersianSiamese

behaviour..playflickhuntstalkcatchlickwashsleepcurlfallland

bodies..whiskersearsfurpadsclawseyesnose

food/play..micebirdssaucersmilkmeatchewlickswallowbatpounce

semantic web…

Category

Composition

UseAppearance / qualities

Environment

Associations

Parts of the whole

Name of object

e.g. cate.g. animals / mammals

e.g. living things – bones, blood, fur …

e.g. pet, friend, catches mice …

e.g. claws, whiskers, tail, fur, teeth, pads, raspy tongue…

e.g. mouse, cat food, milk, comfort, fleas, nine lives …

e.g. house, garden, native forest (feral) …

e.g. small, furry, one-coloured or many-coloured, camouflaged for hunting, large eyes, good night-sight …

Opposites / difference / similarities

e.g. similar to a tiger because … different to a dog because …

cat-o’-nine tails, to play cat and mouse,

raining cats and dogs, no room to swing a

cat, something the cat brought in, big cat,

domestic cat, cat on hot bricks, fight like

Kilkenny cats, let the cat out of the bag,

fight like cat and dog, set the cat among

the pigeons…

sayings…

cat, cats, cat-like, tomcat, catfish

Developing vocabulary 4:Effective Literacy Strategies, MoE, 2004

explore words, e.g. ‘line’

• wire/pipe -telegraph line, oil, sewage..• connection - phone line, hotline..• row of text - insert a line ..• queue - line up here …• a mark - rule a line ..• note - drop someone a line ..• cord - fishing line, throw a line …• division - cross the line, colourline ..• alignment - in/out of line …• boundary - tree line, snowline …

Developing vocabulary 5: Effective Literacy Strategies, MoE, 2004

askedbarkedbawledcriedenquiredholleredmurmuredqueriedquestionedranted

roaredsaidscreamedscreechedshoutedsighedsnarledthoughtwhisperedyelled

Words to use instead of ‘SAID’

develop vocab piles with students

Last, but by no means least!!

• Much vocabulary acquisition occurs during the experience of listening to stories read aloud to the class. Teacher explanations add substantially to the level of acquisition. Lower ability children learn as many words (or more) than the bright and learning is long term. (Elley, 1987)