Vocabulary through

Morphology

Amy Moreland, Julia Fossati, Janell Cooke, Christy Shaver, & Shyla

Middelton

Welcome!AGENDA:

Overview/Research Layers of Language Lesson Design

Break (5 min) Model Lesson (I do, We

do) Collaboration Time (You

do) Additional

Resources/ConclusionGOAL: Give you a framework for how to integrate 10 min a day of morphological practice into your reading block to support students’ vocabulary acquisition.

Raise your hand if you can think of a student who decodes like the wind but does not understand a bit of what they have read ????(aka – the dreaded

Word Caller!)

Scarborough’s Reading Rope (2001)

The 4th grade SLUMP…(Chall, J. & Jacobs, V. , 2003)

Students from low income backgrounds often succeed in achieving strong decoding fluency, but suddenly “slump” on academic

tasks of reading in about 4th grade. WHY?

Because students don’t have the vocabulary and

background knowledge to make sense of what they

decode.

But we teach vocabulary…

The Importance of Vocabulary

Students need to learn at least 2,000 to 3,000 words per year (Graves, M.)

350-400 words

Few more…

Unknown…

BUT, perhaps when paired with…

AMAZI

NG!!!

Teaching Word Learning Strategies:

MORPHOLOGY Morpheme = smallest piece of

meaning within words.

Morphological awareness (MA)= awareness that words are made up of meaningful parts and that we can manipulate those parts to make new words.

If we teach MA and teach what these parts mean – we give students keys (along with context clues) that will help them unlock words as they read independently.

Why focus on MORPHOLOGY?

“When it comes to teaching vocabulary, a little knowledge of root words, prefixes, and suffixes goes a long way.” For both Spanish-speaking ELLs and English speaking

students.

“Students’ understanding of morphology was a better predictor of reading comprehension than their vocabulary level.”

RESEARCH Says… (Kieffer & Lessaux, 2007):

Why focus on MORPHOLOGY?

About 50% of the words in a basic 3rd grade DIBELS passage are multisyllabic.

The CCSS specifically dictate the teaching of morphology: 1st = inflected endings 2nd = compound words and more prefixes and suffixes 3rd = Latin root words 4th/5th = Latin & Greet root words

IMPACT on Real Life:

Layers of Language

S. Hall VIDEO CLIP

Some Definitions: BASE word – used in Anglo Saxon words, can stand alone

i.e. – branch/branches, pop/popcorn, brotherhood

Affixes – refers to the full family of prefixes, suffixes, & inflected endings (something that can be added to a word) i.e. – re, un, ion

ROOT word – used in Latin words, that often cannot stand alone – must have 1 or more affixes attached. i.e - contradiction, dictate, description

Greek Words – made of two or more meaningful parts that often cannot stand alone. I.e. – microbiology, photograph, aquarium

5 minute BREAK

Lesson Design PREPARING TO TEACH:1. Select 2 vocabulary (or spelling words) from

Journeys to teach via morphology each week.2. Identify the origin of these 2 words and

break it into it’s morphological units.

Teach the words using a 5 day lesson plan, about 10 min a day,

that incorporates the use of manipulatives

5 Day Lesson Plan

Day 1 = Uncover the Meaning: Create a chart = clues from context, working

definition, & certified definition Provide the target words in context-based

sentences

Day 2 = Deepening the Meaning: Model how adding/changing affixes changes

the meaning of a word Students record words on a Vocabulary Tree

5 Day Lesson PlanDay 3 = Word Multiplier:

Have students work in pairs using manipulatives (the two root or base words and 6-8 affixes)

Have students record words that check out against a dictionary.

Day 4 = Demonstrate Meaning: Select 2 or 3 words from list generated on Day

3 and as a class use morphology to help determine the meaning of the word (can add branches to the Vocabulary Tree.

5 Day Lesson Plan

Day 5 = Review & Practice:Jeopardy!

Morpho-BingoPictoscrips

Model Lesson:

4th Grade L. 21

Blaring

Combination

Time to Collaborate

Additional Resources: Vocabulary Surge program by 95% Group Inc.:

http://www.95percentgroup.com/index.aspx

Flocabulary – educational hip-hop songs/vocab videos http://www.flocabulary.com/

Powerpoint & Handouts available to download: misscookesclass.weebly.com

Thank you!

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