a new view on academic vocabulary in middle school sheleen delockery, curriculum coordinator lori...
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A New View on Academic Vocabulary in Middle
School
Sheleen DeLockery, Curriculum CoordinatorLori Ann Greidanus, Literacy Coach
ILLINOIS READING COUNCILSPRINGFIELD, ILMARCH 19, 2011
Goals for Today
•Increase knowledge of research supporting explicit vocabulary instruction.
•Increase knowledge of best practices for vocabulary instruction.
•Provide a variety of vocabulary activities.
District 62• 4,749 students in
eight elementary buildings, two middle schools, and one year-round K-8 school
• Five Title I Schools• 40% Low-Income
district-wide• 7 Schools meeting
AYP
White45%
Black3%
Hispanic37%
Asian11%
Multiracial4%
Our District’s Journey
Why Academic Vocabulary?
020406080
50
83
Percentile Rank on Test
• Student before and after explicit content area vocabulary instruction
-Marzano, 2005
Skiing and Math
• The more terms a person knows about a given subject, the easier it is to understand – and learn – new information related to that subject.
• Children with limited vocabulary knowledge grow much more discrepant over time from their peers who have rich vocabulary knowledge.
• An average student in grades 3 through 12 learn approximately 3,000 new words per year, assuming he/she reads between 500,000 to a million words of text.
-Hart and Risley, 1995
In a typical hour, the average child hears:
Family Status Actual Differences in Quantity of Words
Welfare 616 words
Working Class 1,251 words
Professional 2,153 words
Marzano’s Six Steps to Academic Vocabulary
1. Provide a description, explanation, or example of the new term to students.
2. Ask students to restate the description, explanation, or example in their own words.
3. Ask students to construct a picture, symbol, or graphic representing the term or phrase.
4. Engage students periodically in structured vocabulary discussions.
5. Periodically ask students to discuss the terms with one another.
6. Involve students in games that allow them to play with terms.
Step 1: Provide students with a description, explanation or example.
•Personal Story or Anecdote•Notebook Page
Step 2: Ask students to restate in their own words or provide an explanation of their own.
•Notebook Page•Motivational Posters
Step 3: Ask students to construct a picture, symbol, or graphic representing the term or phrase.
•Picture Cube•Trading Cards
Step 4: Engage students periodically in structured vocabulary discussions.
•Creating Metaphors•Word Walls Learning
New Words* Say them* See them* Use themMultiple Times!
Step 5: Periodically ask students to discuss the terms with one another.
•Skits•Word Walls
Step 6: Involve students in games that allow them to play with terms.
•Bingo•Rivit
Sheleen DeLockery – [email protected] Ann Greidanus – [email protected]