Welcome Literacy Across The Curriculum "Train The Trainer" Workshop

VocabularyPresenters: Shirley Cain, Eustacia Lowry-

Jones, Marilyn Locklear, Kay Pittman, Linda Price, and Mary Kathryn Stone

Vocabulary Facts

"Vocabulary is the most important influence on reading comprehension."

"It takes 17 exposures to a word to learn it."

"The average child enters school knowing 5,000 – 6,000 words. Children learn 2,500 – 3,000 new words per year."

4 Types of Vocabulary

• Listening – Words we understand when

others talk to us.• Speaking – Words we use when we talk to

others.• Reading – Words we know when we see

them in print (sight words and words we

can decode).• Writing – Words we use when we write.

Research on Vocabulary

• Vocabulary knowledge is one of the best indicators of verbal ability, reading achievement and success in school.

• Teaching vocabulary of a selection can improve students’ comprehension of that selection.

• Vocabulary difficulty strongly influences the readability of text.

• The use of lexile ranges will ensure that vocabulary is appropriate.

 (Beck, et al. 1992).

Lexile Measures www.lexile.com   Reminders:• Lexile measures may be found on the EOG

score sheet.• This tool should be used as a guide to

establish a baseline for each student's reading level.

• To increase effectiveness, include ranges that are a little above and a little below the class instructional level.

• Individually - Read the selection.  

• With a partner - • Use the strategy of your choice to define each

of the underlined vocabulary words.  

• Match the words with the definitions from the

envelope.

Activity Time

• Answers to the exercise

• 1. l 4. j 7. a 10. e

• 2. k 5. i 8. d 11. c

• 3. g 6. h 9. b 12. f

• With your group - Discuss the strategies you used and record on chart paper.

Activity Time

Matthew Effect

• The development of strong reading skills is

the most effective word learning strategy

available. However, those students who are

in greatest need of vocabulary acquisition

interventions tend to be the same students

who read poorly and fail to engage in the

amount of reading necessary to learn large

numbers of words.(Beck, et al. 2002).

Websites

• RHL.com

• Superteacher.com

• Discovery

• Cricket

• Spider - avg

• National Geographic

• Click

Research on Vocabulary

• Studies estimate that of 100 unfamiliar words met in reading, only 5-15 words are learned in context.

• Becoming interested and aware of words is not a likely outcome from the way instruction is typically handled, which is to have students look up definitions in a dictionary.

(Scott et al., 1998)

Research on Vocabulary

• Some students learn an average of 8 words per day. Others learn as little as one or two.

• Words can be known at different levels of understanding.

• Directly teaching word meanings does not adequately reduce the gap between students with poor versus rich vocabularies. It is crucial for students to learn strategies for learning word meanings independently.

(Miller, 1978).

Research on Vocabulary

• One study found that out of 4,469 minutes

of reading instruction, only 19 minutes

were devoted to direct vocabulary

instruction.• Another study found that 3rd, 4th and 5th

grade teachers spent an average of 1.67

minutes on vocabulary per reading lesson

and that many teachers spent no time.

What Can We Do?

• Make effective vocabulary instruction a high priority in the educational system.

• Make vocabulary instruction robust, vigorous, strong and powerful to be effective.

• Provide multiple ways to process new words.

Two Types of Acquisition

• Implicit vocabulary acquisitiono When students engage in rich extensive

oral interactions o When students are read too When students read and discuss what

they’ve read

• Explicit vocabulary acquisitiono Vocabulary activities specifically

designed to teach new words

Activity Time!

 SWAT (Vocabulary Review)

•Vocabulary is displayed on chart paper or projected for all to view.

•Students are divided into 2 teams.

•The teacher calls out a definition or clue. Students swat the correct response. 

Activity Time!

SWAT

Talisman

Gingerly

Pedant

Sauntered

Aesthetic

Virile

Emulate

Resplendent

Chaff

Haberdashery

Scintillation

Articulate

Provide Multiple Ways to Process New Words

• Associate new words with known words.• Match definitions to new words.• Use new words in different contexts.• Use new words in a sentence.• At your table, create a sentence using one

of the words from Thoothee. Also, give a

synonym.

When Teaching Vocabulary, DO…

• Introduce new subject matter vocabulary

BEFORE students’ initial reading of the

new material.• Explain words in terms of relationships –

word families, structural analysis, roots

and affixes.• Constantly direct students’ attention to the

power of words and hints of meaning.

When Teaching Vocabulary, DO…

• Help the class foster a respect for

the well-chosen word and the well-

turned phrase.

• Teach your students definite forms

or patterns for succinctly stating

definitions.

When Teaching Vocabulary, DO NOT…

• Rely solely on incidental approaches; but avoid drill.

• Teach roots, affixes in isolation.• Make definitions more difficult than

the words to be defined.• Forget the different ways of

approaching definitions – analogies, synonyms, antonyms, etc.

When Teaching Vocabulary, DO NOT…

• Do not give students lists of words

to look up in a dictionary under the

guise of vocabulary instruction.

• This is only dictionary work, not

vocabulary instruction.

Dictionary Use

• Scott and Nagy (1997) report the results of many research studies that show that students cannot use conventional definitions to learn words.

• Example from dictionary: redress – set right, remedy. “King Arthur tried to redress wrongs in his kingdom”

• Student writes: “The redress for getting well when you’re sick is to stay in bed.”

Other Activities

Activity Time!

• The Same or Different

• Flash Cards with the synonyms or antonyms on one side and S or D on the other.

Activity Time!

Lesson Planning: Preparing Content Area Activities

Activity Time!

Group Presentations

• Collaborate with your group to

demonstrate a vocabulary strategy (that

has not previously been mentioned).

• Be prepared to present in a whole group

setting.

"Websites to Add to Your Favorites"

Questions

14 Most Powerful Words for the EOG

TestsInferAnalyzeSignifyTraceEvaluateFormulateSummarize

ExplainContrastComparePredictSupportConcludeDescribe

Comments

•Remember to train your faculty.

•PPT at: PSRC Website, Depts., Literacy (Scroll down on left side.)

• Literacy Website

•Next Training – April 7

Hosted

by

Kay Pittman

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LANGUAGE Do you speak my language?

You should know…

Language Terms!

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Row 1, Col 1

Selection

What is another name for a reading passage?

1,2

Author

Who is the person that writes the selection?

1,3

Reference

What is to refer to something else like another person or book?

1,4

Phrase

What is a group of words that show a particular thought?

2,1

Paragraph

What is a group of sentences that have a common topic?

2,2

Quotation

What are the exact words said by a person?

2,3

Definition

What is the meaning of a word?

2,4

Strategy

What is a plan for completing a task?

3,1

Skim

What is reading through a selection quickly to find a thought or idea?

3,2

Scan

What is looking through a selection to find a single word?

3,3

Sentence

What is a group of words that are grammatically correct and make a statement or ask a question?

3,4

Adjective

What are words that describe a noun?

4,1

Synonyms

What is words that have the same meaning?

4,2

Antonyms

What are words that have opposite meanings?

4,3

Homophones

What are words that sound the same when you say them?

4,4

Topic

What is the overall subject or a paragraph?

5,1

Vocabulary

What is a list or words?

5,2

Pronunciation Key

What the information that helps to pronounce a word?

5,3

Topic Sentence

What is the sentence that gives the overall idea of a paragraph?

5,4

Summary

What is information written to give you the most important information in a selection?