Increasing Reading Vocabulary

Ch. 6

The Essentials of Teaching Children to Read

Students Acquire New Vocabulary through language interactions.

Conversation (oral language) Independent reading Media Vocabulary through conversation (will assist in recognizing and

comprehending) Independent reading Read alouds Shared reading Language-rich backgrounds and reading Limited vocabularies and reading

Research Findings

Use of computers in vocabulary instruction/software programs more effective than traditional methods

Vocabulary learned incidentally through storybook reading or listening to others read

Repeated exposure – encounter words in various forms

Learning words before reading is helpful

Four Types of Vocabulary

Listening vocabulary – largest, words we hear and understand

Speaking vocabulary – words we use when we speak

Reading vocabulary – words we identify and understand when we read

Writing vocabulary – smallest, words we use in writing

All should be nurtured in an effective teacher’s clasroom

Levels of Vocabulary

Unknown – unfamiliar and meaning unknown Acquainted – somewhat familiar; some idea

of its basic meaning Established – very familiar; immediately

understands meaning and uses it correctly Learning words and concepts in content

areas is more challenging.

What Research Tells Us About Teaching Vocabulary

Most learned indirectly through everyday experiences (oral and written language)

Direct teaching of individual words and word-learning strategies

Preteaching new words associated with text assists students with comprehension

Word consciousness – call students attention the way authors use/choose words

Play with words – riddles, puns, raps, research a word’s history

Which Words Should Be Taught?

Words that are key to understanding the text and those the student will encounter in adult life

Limit vocabulary teaching time to 5 to 10 minutes

Limit news words to 8 to 10 per week

Sight Words/High Frequency Words

Occur frequently in most texts Account for the majority of written words Structure words – carry little meaning but

affect the flow of the text Lexical words – less frequent words

(meaning is dependent upon these words) Fry Word Lists – p. 120

Key Vocabulary

Teacher indicates lexical words students need to learn (individually or small group)

Make vocabulary word cards Student shares word with people during the

day Students adds words to their writing folder or

word bank/personal word wall

Most Difficult Words to Learn

Multiple meanings Idiomatic expressions – idioms “apple of my

eye”

Assessing Students’ Vocabulary Knowledge

Word maps 1. Word

2. What is it? 3. What is it like? 4. What are some examples? Before and After Word Knowledge Self

Ratings – (1 do not know the word ,2 have heard the word, 3 can define and us the word)

Teacher Constructed Vocabulary Tests – 1. read and match picture 2. match picture to word 3. read word in isolation and match to its definition 4. read word and find synonym in a list 5. read word and find it opposite (antonym) in a list 6. read word in context of a sentence or paragraph find definition, synonym, or antonym in a list

7. Fill in missing words 8. Categorize words Cloze passages – certain words (targeted

vocabulary) have been deleted (usually every 5th word)

1. Requires child to use background knowledge of a subject 2. Informs teacher of child’s background knowledge and ability to cope with a particular text

Making Words

Excellent word-learning strategy Helps improve phonetic knowledge Similar to Scrabble Steps in a making words lesson (textbook pp.

132-133)

Making Words

Making words activity Take out envelope of letters cut out Make words Start with the small two and three letter

words Build up to one or two big words at the end

Function Words(“Four-Letter” Words)

Abstract meanings rather than concrete Referred to as structure words Most difficult to teach Try to define the word “what”

Drastic Strategy

Step 1: Choose a function word (a word that has little

meaning) Write the word on a card Find a story or create one that uses this word

multiple times Have students hold up their card with the word

on it every time they hear the word read in the story

Step 2: Have volunteers make up a story using the word Classmates hold up the card each time the “function”

word is heard

Step 3 Students study word Cut the letter apart from the word Direct students to arrange the letters into the word

Step 4 Write the word on the board Students are to study the word (take a picture of it) see the word

in their mind Students write the word from memory

Step 5 Write several sentences on the board with a blank where the

“word” should be placed Read sentences aloud Have students come to the board and write the “word” in the

blank

Step 6 Give students real books/text where the word

appears As they read the text, when they come upon

the word, lightly underline it in the text

What is a drawback to using this strategy?

Teaching Word Functions and Changes

Synonyms – similar meanings Antonyms – opposites or near opposites Euphemisms – words/phrases used to soften

language

Ex. dentures (euphemism)

false teeth (real meaning) Onomatopoeia – imitation of a sound

Word-Learning Strategies

Using dictionaries and other reference aids Using word parts (ex. Affixes, root words) Using context clues

Remember….

Students require a generous amount of repetition to learn new words and to integrate them into existing knowledge (schemas)

To know a word well means knowing what it means, how to pronounce it, an how its meaning changes in different contexts.