Transcript Building Vocabulary

Making Words Real
for Young Children
Presented by
Lynn Hoover, M.Ed., CALT-QI
Assistant Director
Rawson-Saunders School
Austin, Texas
[email protected]
Understanding Word Meanings
is Critical to Comprehension
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Vocabulary knowledge is strongly related to
proficient reading comprehension.
A word may be decoded accurately but without
meaning knowledge comprehension is limited.
Knowledge of word meaning facilitates accurate
word recognition.
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Vocabulary is the body of words known by the
speaker of a language.
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Receptive vocabulary is the word meanings
recognized in context.
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Expressive vocabulary is the word meanings
known well enough that they can be used
appropriately.
What we know about research
with younger students
Even in the primary grades the range in vocabulary between
children with smaller and bigger vocabularies is large.
(Biemiller & Slonim, 2001)
Children with weaker vocabularies are less likely to learn new
words from incidental exposure than children with larger
vocabularies.
(Nicholson & Whyte, 1992; Penno et al., 2002; Robbins & Ehri, 1994)
Words in Text
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107 words account for 50% of the words in
running text.
5,000 more words account for an additional 45%
of the words in running text.
Infrequent words (5% of total) carry the most
unique meaning in a passage.
Nagy and Anderson (1984)
How We Learn Words
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Through many exposures to examples in context,
both spoken and written
Through explicit instruction:
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Constructing definitions and using a dictionary
Analyzing word structure
Exploring word relationships
Learning sounds and morphemes of a word
Learning word origins
Learning a word’s usage and multiple meanings.
Using a Dictionary is Not Enough
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Reading a definition does not tell us how a word
is actually used
We need examples in context
Dictionary definitions can be incomplete
Being able to define a word is an end result of
knowing the word very well
3-Tier Model for Choosing
Vocabulary Words from Text
Developed by Isabel Beck
Tier 3
Tier 2
Tier 1
Low-frequency words;
Technical words
Words to Teach
high frequency, high utility
Known, common words
Words to Teach Directly
•Words critical to understanding the text
•Words with that are likely to be encountered many times
•Difficult words that need interpretation
• metaphorical, abstract, nuanced
Beck & McKeown, 2002
Embedded Instruction
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Simple explanation of target words provided
within the context of the story. Provides both
definitional and contextual information.
(Biemiller, 2004)
Explain meanings in everyday language.
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Uses clear sentences and
doesn’t use a lot of big
words to define words.
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Harper Collins Publisher
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Reinforce definitions with:
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Gestures
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Pictures
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Objects
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Examples and Non-examples
Developing Oral Language
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Naming as an oral
activity
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Describing activity
Describing Objects or Pictures
Using a structured hierarchy is helpful.
•Name the object.
•Name the category in which it belongs.
•Name the function, use, or purpose.
•State the color, size, and shape.
•Make a comparison.
•Make a simile or metaphor.
Neuhaus Education Center
Repeated Read-Aloud
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Use literature to maximize children’s vocabulary
growth.
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Pre-reading discussion focused on key vocabulary
and concepts that may be unfamiliar
During first reading allow children to follow the
story thread without frequent interruptions.
Repeated reading sessions stop to discuss
vocabulary and concepts
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Read each story at least 3 times
Provide repeated exposures to new words in the
classroom
Text Talk for Young Children
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Direct instruction in vocabulary occurs after a
story has been read and discussed. (If needed for
comprehension, teacher gives brief explanation
for the word during reading.)
Beck & McKeown, 2001
An Example of Direct Instruction
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Word used in context of story.
Children repeat the word with teacher.
Meaning of the word is explained in a student friendly
way.
Examples given by teacher in contexts other than the one
in the story.
Children interact with examples or provide their own
examples.
Finally, children say the word again to reinforce its
phonological representation. T. “What is the word?”
Activities for Students to
Interact with Words
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Questions, reasons, and examples
Making choices
Relating words
Children creating examples
Sorting Activities
duck
top
hiss
doll
gull
hen
jacks
buzz
honk
peck
yap
bat
Categories
They Have Wings
Toys
Animal Sounds
Sorting Activities
fuzz
kiss
sink
tank
puff
box
well
tub
bit
sip
lick
muff
Word Scales
angry
furious
Mad Words
livid
annoyed
irritated
upset
Really
mad
A little
bit mad
Word Scales
Big Words
Really
big
A little
bit big
Antonym Pairs and Scaling
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dead - alive
hot - cold
fat - skinny
straight - bent
honest - devious
winner - loser
angry - delighted
Take a gradable antonym pair and fill out the scale from one
extreme to the other with words that show degrees of meaning.
hideous
ugly
homely
plain
attractive
beautiful
gorgeous
Engaging students with
word meanings through discussion
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Word Associations
Students associate a new word with a presented
word or phrase.
Example:
Frog and Toad are Friends by Arnold Lobel
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Vocabulary introduced:
shiver, sparrow, envelope
Which word goes with a party invitation?
 Which word goes with a cold, windy day?
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Have you ever…?
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Describe a time when you might shiver.
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When might you envy someone?
Beck, McKeown, 2002
Applause, Applause!
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Students are asked to clap in order to indicate how
much they would like to be described by the
target words:
curious
stingy
delightful
Not at all
A little bit
A lot
Beck, McKeown, 2002
Idea Completions
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The children said that the man was stingy
because…
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The audience thought the play was delightful
because…
Beck, McKeown, 2002
Simple Questions to Engage Learners
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When might you…?
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How might you…?
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Why might you…?
Beck, McKeown, 2002
Maintaining Words
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Post target words and tally when used by
teacher or students.
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Apply learned words to new stories.
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Use words in reading and writing.
References
Baumann, James F. & Kame’enui, Edward J. (2004). Vocabulary
instruction: Research to practice. New York: Guilford Press.
Baker, Scott K., Simmons, Deborah C., Kame’enui, Edward J. (2005).
Vocabulary acquisition: Synthesis of the research. University of
Oregon.
Beck, Isabel. & McKeown, Margaret G. (2002). Bringing words to life:
Robust vocabulary instruction. New York: Guilford Press.
Eberhardt, Nancy & Sorese, Denise. (1999). Language categories:
Phonetically vocabulary to read, classify, and spell. Longmont,
CO: Sopris West.
Lubliner, Shira. (2005). Getting into words: Vocabulary instruction that
strengthens comprehension. Baltimore, Maryland: Brookes
Publishing.
Neuhaus Education Center. Developing metacognitive skills: Vocabulary
and comprehension. (2004). www.neuhaus.org