Transcript What the Brain has to Say!

Elizabeth Jones
What We’ll Go Over
Research Based:
The vocabulary gap
Reading and vocabulary development
Ways to build vocabulary
Incorporating learning modalities
Marzano’s Six-Steps to teaching vocabulary
What vocabulary to teach
Teaching strategies
Computer instruction
The word-knowledge gap begins
before the children enter school.
Hart and Risley (1995) found that 3- year-olds in higher
socioeconomic status (SES) families had vocabularies as
much as five times larger than children in lower SES families.
 Children in higher SES homes engaged in more interactive
discussions with their parents. Their parents helped expand
their child’s language through repetitive and interactive talk,
such as:

Child: “Look! I painted.”
Parent: “You painted the whole picture by yourself?”

By expanding upon and repeating the child’s statement as a
question, the parent prompts the child to tell more. In
contrast children in lower SES families more often heard
imperatives such as,
“Get down!” or “Don’t do that!”
Children of :
professional families heard 2,100 words an hour with
positive feedback an ave. of 30 times an hour
working-class families heard 1,200 an hour with positive
feedback an ave. of 15 times an hour
welfare families heard only 600 words an hour with
positive feedback only 6 times an hour.
This directly correlates with brain development
and vocabulary in later years.
The research of Janellen Huttenlocher in Early Vocabulary Growth: Relation to
Language Input and Gender in “Developmental Psychology” (27), 1991.
Teaching Vocabulary

We’d have to teach about 17 words every school day to
teach students 3,000 words a year. Many believe that no
more than 8 - 10 words can be taught effectively each
week or 400 words a year so students must learn new
words besides those from direct classroom instruction.

According to the 2000 National Reading Panel, students
learn by encountering lots of new words, by listening to
or reading text. This doesn’t mean students will have an
in depth meanings of specific words.
Research shows that the sophistication
of language children hear and participate
in is a stronger predictor of their later
vocabulary knowledge than the number
of words that they hear and speak.
Weizman & Snow, 2001
Frequency of Word Use in Major Sources of Oral and Written Language
(Hayes & Ahrens, 1988)
Rare Words per 1,000
I. Printed texts
Abstracts of scientific articles
128.0
Newspapers
68.3
Popular magazines
65.7
Adult books
52.7
Children’s books
30.9
Preschool books
16.3
II. Television texts
Prime-time adult shows
22.7
Prime-time children’s shows
20.2
III. Adult speech
Expert witness testimony
28.4
College graduates talk to friends/spouses
17.3
“Vocabulary Simplification for Children: A Special Case of ‘Motherese,’” by D. P. Hayes and M. Ahrens, 1988, Journal of
Child Language, 15, p. 401. Copyright 1988 by Cambridge University Press
If you subtract words used only once, most of these works have a working vocabulary
of 3,000 - 5,000 words (ten- and twelve-year-olds can understand them).
Conclusion: adding 1,062 words to your working vocabulary can dramatically add to
your verbal power. So, enjoy the 1062 word vocabulary list on VirtualSalt by
Robert Harris (Dec. 12, 2009).
Author and Work
Total Words in Work
Total Different Words
(Vocabulary or V)
Words Used Only Once
(V1)
Charlotte Bronte
Jane Eyre
186,981
12,662
5,274
Jonathan Swift
Gulliver's Travels
103,803
8,183
3,489
Jane Austen
Pride and Prejudice
123,555
6,928
2,827
Daniel Defoe
Robinson Crusoe
121,632
6,100
2,348
Stephen Crane
Red Badge of Courage
46,472
6,189
3,110
Charles Dickens
Great Expectations
187,123
10,952
4,677
George Eliot
Silas Marner
72,043
7,001
3,333
Henry Fielding
Tom Jones
346,973
12,948
4,866
Brain research suggests that:
A relationship exists between vocabulary and
achievement.
Comprehension improves when students can
connect the word and the meaning.
Some vocabulary is specific to the content and
must be taught in context.
Fluent vocabulary use is critical to
student achievement.
Sylwester, 1995; Caine and Caine, 1997
Vocabulary and Comprehension


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Students’ vocabulary knowledge affects reading
comprehension (Baumann, Kame‘enui & Ash, 2003).
According to The 2000 National Reading Panel vocabulary
knowledge is a critical factor in developing comprehension.
An “extensive vocabulary is the bridge between the wordlevel processes of phonics and the cognitive processes of
comprehension (Kamil & Hiebert).”
Students without enough vocabulary to understand what
they read often avoid reading; and because they avoid
reading, they don’t learn many new words.
Researchers find that students gain approximately 2,000 to
3,500 words yearly in their reading vocabularies (Anderson & Nagy,
1992; Anglin, 1993; Beck & McKeown, 1991;White et al., 1990).

Anderson and Nagy (1992) estimated “that school texts from
grades 3 through 9 contain approximately 88,500 distinct
word families.”
To “Know” a Word

Knowing a word is shown by how quickly we
understand the word, the precision with which we use
the word, and how well we use it in different language
situation (receptive vs. expressive, formal vs. informal
occasions). (Beck & McKeown, 1991; Nagy & Scott, 2000).

Knowing a word includes
knowing its word schema,
how it relates to other knowledge.
When we know a word’s connotation and subtleties, we
can recognize and use it in jokes, puns, slang and idioms.
(Johnson, Johnson, & Schlicting, 2004).
To “Know” a Word

Nagy and Scott (2000) identify several elements
that describe what it means to “know” a word.
◦ First, word knowledge is incremental, readers need
many exposures to a word in different contexts to
really know the word.
◦ Second, word knowledge is multidimensional because
many words have multiple meanings (e.g., run: jog;
flow; proceed; manage; continue; etc.) and serve
different functions in different sentences, texts, and
even conversations.
◦ Third, word knowledge is interrelated because
knowledge of one word (e.g., migrate) connects to
knowledge of other words (e.g., migration, immigrant,
migrant).
Children’s Books

Reading children’s books aloud can
focus students’ attention on rich
and descriptive vocabulary and
increase the vocabulary of students
in preschool through elementary
school.
Dickinson & Smith, 1994; Elley, 1989; Penno, Wilkinson, & Moore, 2002; Robbins & Ehri, 1994; Stahl,
Richek, & Vandevier, 1991

Reading-aloud alone is not sufficient to build
vocabulary or to increase comprehension -- it is the
talk surrounding read-aloud activities that helps
students gain experience with language representing
ideas and concepts.
Beck and McKeown (2001)
Talking About Books
(McKeown & Beck, 2003)
Using “Text Talk” as part of the introduction to Tim
Egan’s Burnt Toast on Davenport Street to introduce the
word absurd:
In the story, a fly tells Arthur he can have three wishes if he didn’t kill him.
Arthur says that it’s absurd to think a fly can grant wishes.
Teacher:
◦ If I told you that I was going to stand on my head to teach you, that would be absurd. If
someone told you that dogs could fly, that would be absurd.
◦ I’ll say some things, and if you think they are absurd, say: “That’s absurd!” If you think
they are not absurd, say: “That makes sense.”
◦ I have a singing cow for a pet. (absurd)
◦ I saw a tall building that was made of green cheese. (absurd)
◦ Last night I watched a movie on TV. (makes sense)
◦ This morning I saw some birds flying around the sky. (makes sense)
◦ Who can think of an absurd idea? (When a child answers, ask other children if they
think the idea is absurd, and if so, to tell the first child: “That’s absurd!”)
Student Reading

The amount of time students
spend reading is one of the
best predictors of their
vocabulary size.
Herman, Anderson, Pearson, & Nagy, 1987; Miller & Gildea, 1987

Most researchers conclude that students
should read for various purposes and
various levels of difficulty. Students should
read some books for enjoyment and some
that challenge them.
National Reading Panel, 2000
Make Word-Learning
Part of Daily Routines
Researchers suggest creating opportunities for
interactive classroom talk and exposing children to
new (and often intriguing) words throughout the
school day. For example:
◦ Rather than reminding a student that he
didn’t quite close the door, the teacher
might tell the child to close the door because it is ajar.
◦ Rather than asking a student to water a drooping plant,
the teacher might say the plant is becoming dehydrated.
◦ Rather than telling students to line up faster, the teacher
might ask them to stop dawdling.
Dickinson & Tabors, 2001; Graves, Juel, & Graves, 2004; Johnson et al., 2004; Stahl, 1999
How Many Ways Could You Say:
Lunch time
Lunch period
Opportunity to dine
Meal event
Occasion for a repast
Devour a feast
Feast on a spread
Dine at noon
Get ready for home
Get prepared to go to your
dwelling.
Are you equipped to go
homeward?
Prepare to leave for your
residence.
Organized yourselves for going
to your place.
Get set to see your family.
Stand by to go to your domicile.
Arrange to go to your address.
Put thing in order to go to your
house.
Beck and Graves

Words characteristic of mature language users
that appear frequently in a variety of contexts.

Vocabulary that that can be worked with in a
variety of ways so students can develop indepth knowledge of the words and their
connections to other vocabulary and concepts.

Words that are precise and explicitly describe a
concept for which the students already have a
general understanding.
Beck et al., 2002

Synonyms for words that students already
know.

Words that students know at some level but
that have multiple meanings, such as attention,
channel, and practice.

Words that represent concepts that may be
new to students, such as liberty, biome, and
probability.
Graves 2000
Two Major Principles Agreed Upon:

Words important for understanding a specific
reading selection or concept.

Words that students are likely to come across
repeatedly in reading and are generally useful to
know.
(Beck, McKeown, & Kucan, 2002; Biemiller & Slonim, 2001;
Hiebert, in press; Nation, 2001)
Which Words to Teach
Not All Words are Equal
Function words are cues to the structure of a sentence: is,
the, a, this, and, to, on, etc.
 107 English function words account for about 50% of the
words in texts. Zeno, Ivens, Millard, & Duvvuri, 1995
 Function words are not good for intentional instruction.

Kamil & Hiebert
Content words communicate the meaning in text.
 Most content words are learned from oral language
development.
 The number of content words is virtually unlimited so the
usefulness (how important to understanding a concept or
reading selection) of a word and how often it is likely to
appear in text is important.

Beck, McKeown, & Kucan, 2002; Biemiller & Slonim, 2001; Hiebert; Nation, 2001
Intentional, Explicit Instruction
Research
indicates that
intentional,
explicit teaching
of specific
words and
utilizing learning strategies can add to
student vocabularies and improve comprehension of texts containing those
words.
Tomeson & Aarnoutse, 1998; White et al., 1990 McKeown, Beck, Omanson, & Pople, 1985;
Stahl & Fairbanks, 1986
220 word = 50%
Edward Dolch wrote Problems in Reading
in 1848, which listed 220 high frequency
words.
Those words make up more than 50% of all
written words students are exposed to
up to the 9th grade.
(Stahl, S. & Fairbanks, M. The Effects of Vocabulary Instruction: A Model-based Meta-analysis. Review of Educational
Research, 56(1), pg. 72-110 Spring 1986.)
What was That?
We need to hear a word 40 – 4000 times
to move it from short term memory into
long term memory.
Instructional Strategies That Affect Student
Achievement
CATEGORY
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AVE. PERCENTILE GAIN
Identifying Similarities and Differences
Summarizing and Note Taking
Reinforcing Effort and Providing Recognition
Homework and Practice
Nonlinguistic Representation
Cooperative Learning
Setting Objectives and Providing Feedback
Generating and Testing Hypotheses
Questions, Cues, and Advance Organizers
45%
34%
29%
28%
27%
27%
23%
23%
22%
Marzano, Pickering, & Pollock, "Classroom Instruction that Works," ASCD Yearbook 2001
Research Results for Nonlinguistic
Representations
AUTHOR OF THE STUDY
% GAIN IN STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT
Mayer, 1989
 Powell, 1980
 Hattie, 1996
 Walberg, 1999
 Fletcher, 1990


34% 40%
34%
32%
34% 21%
20%
Guzzetti, Snyder, & Glass, 1993
20%
Marzano et al. 2001
Continue Research
+27% impact on student performance outcomes
Types of nonlinguistic representation:
 Graphic representations on paper or other medium.

Physical Models: manipulatives or ways to engage
learners in concrete representations.

Mental Pictures: Symbolic ways to help learners
“feel” or consider the topic.

Drawing and Pictographs: Mind mapping & symbolic
drawings representing relationship, meaning, or
importance in relation to other information.

Kinesthetics: The use of physical movement or
position to demonstrate an idea, context or activity.
Learning Modalities

Activating multiple learning modalities
is essential because learners “store”
information in various places in the
brain.

This enables learners to recall the information more readily because they
can “find” it stored in many places.
Educational Leadership: How the Brain Works, 1998; Jensen, 1998
Reading

Phonological & Semantic Processing
Frontal reading system
Activation increases when words are spoken

Patterning (Patterns & Forms of Words)
Ventral posterior processing (occipital & temporal lobes)

Fluency (Visual Spatial Recognition)
Dorsal posterior reading system (parts of pariental
temporal lobes)
Teaching the Brain to Read by Judy Willis, M.D. 2008
Provide multi-sensory teaching experiences rather than
just a visual or auditory approach for optimal learning
(Farkas, 2003; Maal, 2004). Have learners respond using
their visual, auditory, tactile, and emotional preference.
Provide immediate feedback. Emotional support in learning provides more brain connections.
Graphic Representations
http://visual.merriam-webster.com/
Mind Map from wikipedia.org
Vocabulary Word
Synonyms
Antonyms
por
Imagine you see a man POUR a glass of water THROUGH the window.
From “200 Words a Day”
Definition Generator
WORD
CATOGORY
ATTRIBUTES
FUNCTION
DEFINITION
Category + attributes + function)
Bike
Vehicle
2 wheels, person size, seat,
handlebars, pedals
Ride around
A vehicle with 2 wheels and
handlebars that you can pedal and
ride around on.
Brain
Body part
In the skull, grey, nerves are in
Thinking and
it, kind of oval, two hemispheres telling the
body what to
move.
A body part that is in the skull, has
two hemispheres, is grey, has nerves
and is used to tell the body what to
move and for thinking.
Kinesthetic
Teaching “before” and “after”
1.
2.
3.
Line students up.
Take one student outside the line.
Ask that student questions:


4.
Who goes to lunch “before” John?
Who goes to art “after” Mary?
Change students and ask more questions.
NOTE:
“Sequencing is a motor activity that involves
maintaining and organizing the serial order of
information and integrating this information
with previously learned data.”
A User’s Guide to the Brain by John J. Tately, MD 2002 pg. 177
Physical Movement
Rocks
Have students make physical movements to
remind them of words.
 From a list of words, act out one and have
students pick the word from the list that they
think matches.

These ideas are from Teaching the Brain to Read.
SUMMARIZATION ~ NOTE TAKING
Research +34% impact on student performance outcomes
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Explicit guided practice/demonstration help
Use “rule-based" templates  students denote important
information.
Notes = work in progress
◦ review
◦ add to
◦ reorganized

stand for, mean, convey
Notes Strategies
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
Informal Outline: focus major ideas & related details
Cluster, web, mind map  circle main ideas, drawing lines to related infor
Use color
Organize like information/illustrations = stories
Prepared templates support collection/organization:


Infor
main ideas

related details
◦ Include new vocabulary connect  related details.
words, terms, expressions
Managing Time
Spend 15% of the time introducing new material
and 85% of the time reinforcing, expanding and
broadening the material.
Ballard & Tighe 2007
Optimal Learning
Learning increases near the
beginning and end of a
lesson. Most interference,
(daydreaming and student
talking) occurs during
the middle of a
lesson. It’s best to teach
important information
during times that improve
students’ retention.
Suggestion
Teach new information
during the first fifteen
minutes of class. Spend the
middle of the class period
having the students practice
the new skills in small
groups or individually.
Spend the last fifteen
minutes of class
summarizing the main
concepts learned during
the lesson.
http://www.learnnc.org/lp/editions/every-learner/669
WAIT TIME
Strategy

Wait Time
Short pauses in instruction
provide time for learners
to recall, think, process and
integrate new knowledge
and ideas with prior knowledge.

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Research
The average teacher pauses
after a query 0.7 to 1.4
seconds, before starting,
redirecting, prompting,
continuing or redirecting.
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

Researchers: Mary Budd Rowe (1987) ~ First Wait-Time;
Robert J. Stahl (1990) ~ “Think-time”; Kenneth Tobin &
Capie (1987), William W. Wilen (1987) ~ Question
Techniques
Allow 3-5 seconds of silence after a
prompt to allow students to consider and
recall responses.
Provide silence after a prompt to allow
students to consider or recall responses
and allow others to consider whether to
add to the response or offer their own.
This provides an opportunity for the brain
to process, search, connect, and organize
information.
Pause for 3-5 seconds before responding
after a student question.
Pause for 3-5 seconds in the middle of a
statement to allow students to consider
information in smaller “chunks”.
At times extend the pause to 1-2 minutes,
asking students to think & reflect carefully
or to write ideas down, to strengthen long
term memory and understanding.
Robert Marzano’s 6-Step Process for Teaching
The teacher explains & describes the
word.
2. The students put it in their own words.
3. The students create a non-linguistic
representation of the word.
4. The teacher gives activities using it in
other context.
5. The students periodically discuss the
vocabulary with each other.
6. Students periodically play with the terms
to reinforce the vocabulary.
1.
The Presentation’s
Summary
The word-knowledge gap begins before
the children enter school.
The sophistication of language children hear and speak is a stronger
predictor of their later vocabulary than the number of words that they
hear and speak.
Children’s books have more rare words per 1000 words than educated
adult speech.
Reading-aloud alone is not sufficient to build vocabulary or to increase
comprehension -- it is the talk surrounding read-aloud activities that
helps students.
Vocabulary knowledge is a critical factor in developing comprehension.
The amount of time students spend reading is one of the best predictors
of their vocabulary size.
Research indicates that these are effective ways to build
vocabulary:






Identifying Similarities and Differences
Summarizing and Note Taking
Reinforcing Effort and Providing Recognition
Practice
Nonlinguistic Representation
Cooperative Learning
Activating multiple learning modalities is essential because
learners “store” information in various places in the brain.
PAUSE
What We’ll Go Over
Research Based:
What to teach
Teaching strategies
Computer instruction
Anyone Remember the Meaning of the
Spanish Word
Por?
Vocaulary
How?
3000
words
Read
Teach
Brain
Patterns
Motor
Research
Info spread
out
Classify
7 +/- 2
chunks
Nonlinguistic
representations
Similarities &
Differences
TEACH STUDENTS

Word association

Context clues

Concepts

Word parts

Using a Dictionary
Teach
Associations
Context
Clues
Root Words
& Affixes
Word Associations
How are these words related?
1. political
2. car
3. huge
politics politician
bus
bicycle
big
massive
4. male/female
5. kid/child
6. allowed/aloud
hot/cold
food/nosh
been/bean
politically
truck
enormous
Association
Puts learning in long-term memory.
Connection to other word parts helps
students memorize.
CATEGORIZE by
Size:
gigantic, giant, large, little, petit, tiny, tinny
Quantity: scarce, few, some, many, plentiful
Emotion: hopeless, downcast, sad, happy, thrilled,
blissful
Appearance: ugly, plain, cute, pretty, beautiful,
exquisite
Sound:
Time:
whisper, soft, natural, noisy, loud
early, punctual, on-time, late
Patterning
Distinguish between categories & similar meaning

Excited, bored, angry, frightened

Angry, mad, annoyed, furious

Huge, petite, big, small, large

Little, small, tiny, miniature

Blouse/skirt/socks/coat

Coat, jacket, parka

Elephant/zebra/giraffe/monkey

Cold, freezing, chilly, glacial

Snow, rain, hail, rainbow
Change one word

Snow, rain, hail, sleet
This idea is from Teaching the Brain to Read
Use Mnemonics for Patterns
List characters in a story and give
characterizes of each character that begin
with the same letter as their name.
 Silly sarcastic Sarah
 Brawny bully Bob
 Diabolical dishonest Daniel
 Furious fat Fawn
This idea is from Teaching the Brain to Read
Multiple-Meaning
Words
Semantic Maps

Use to expand student knowledge of words they
are already familiar but which have multiple
meanings or are part of an extensive network of
related words
Johnson & Pearson, 1984; Pittelman, Heimlich, Berglund, & French, 1991

On the map, related words are clustered around
the target word according to criteria. These
criteria might include such features as similar or
dissimilar attributes, connotative or denotative
meanings, or even shared linguistic components.
Word
Associations
Bringing Words to Life
by Isabel. Beck, Margaret McKeown, Linda Kucan 2002

Present explanations for words.
ex. accomplice, virtuoso, philanthropist, novice

Have students associate a new word with a phrase.
ex. Which word goes with crook? Which word goes with “gift to build a new hospital”?

Play Have You Ever?
ex. What might a philanthropist give money for? Describe a time when you were a
novice.

Play Applause, Applause!
Students clap to indicate how much they would like to be described by the
target word.

Use in writing.
Provide the students with sentence stems that they can use to integrate the
word’s meaning into context.
Ex. “The audience asked the virtuoso to play another piece of music because….”
Sequence Words
then Add Synonyms
Sequence size.
Give examples to show it’s relative to what you are talking about.
tiny --------- small --------- medium ---------- big ----------- huge
little
large
enormous
gigantic
ant ---------- mouse -------- cat -------------- tiger ---------- elephant
ant ---------- lady bug ------ grasshopper --- butterfly ----- bird
mouse ------ fish ------------ shark ------------ elephant ----- dinosaur
Word Usage
&
Synonym
Webs
SPIN
Extrude, Squeeze
out
Interpretation,
Rendition
SPIN
Twist
Invent
Fabricate
Cook up
Identifying And Using Context Clues
Context clues are clues contained in the text and
illustrations.
 They can include definitions, examples, and restatements,
as well as charts, pictures, and type features.
 In one study, middle school students who were taught to
identify and use specific types of both linguistic information
(words, phrases, sentences) and nonlinguistic information
(illustrations, typographic features) were then able to use
this information to unlock the meanings of unfamiliar
words in text. Baumann, Edwards, et al., 2003

Context Clues:
Definition, Description, Contrast or Antonyms,
Comparison or Analogy, Synonyms
“The vociferous crowd caused me to step outside of
the room for a few moments of peace and quiet.” We
know that because of its location in the sentence,
vociferous is being used to describe the crowd. The
author wants to get away from the crowd for a few
moments. The phrase “peace and quiet” is being
used as contrast (or antonym). We can conclude that:
Vociferous probably means noisy and loud.
Definition or Example Clue
Clues
Examples
is/are
My ancestors are my great grandparents, my grandparents, my aunts and
uncles, and my parents.
was/were
The consumer was the one who was buying for his family.
is/are called
means
The word element added to the end of a word is called a suffix.
A prefix means a word element added to the beginning of a word.
is defined as
Genre is defined as is the term for any category of literature.
such as
Contractions, such as: can’t, they’ve, isn’t, and we’ll, are closer to the way we
talk than: cannot, they have, is not, we will.
is/are known as
A myth, legend, or fable are known as folktales.
a term (often in boldface or
italics) explained between
commas
Teachers often say elaborate, add more details and expand, on what you
have written.
Restatement or Synonym Clue
Clues
Examples
in other words
Be sure your paper is legible, in other words, I can read it.
that is
Summarize, that is tell in fewer words what the story was about.
also known as
Put the date your book report is due on your schedule, also known as an
agenda or calendar.
sometimes called
Songs have stanzas, sometimes called verses.
or
The attributes or traits of a chair include: four legs, a back and seat.
Contrast or Antonym Clue
Clues
but
in contrast
Examples
Many animals live on landforms but not fish.
The consumer, in contrast to the seller, can decide if he wants the item.
however
The United States use to have a good economic system; however, in
recent years more people don’t have jobs and more are poor.
instead of
At the grocery store they let the bags of potato chips on the shelf run
out instead of replenishing them so I couldn’t buy any.
unlike
Unlike a diversity, there is only one kind of apple on the shelf.
yet
They like to entertain yet they never have any parties, play games or
watch movies with others at their house.
Using Word Parts
Clues
Examples
employ: employer, employee, employment
im-, re-, dis-
locate: location, relocate
pollute: pollution, pollutant, polluter
-ant, -ing, -er
-tion, -ive, -ment
narrate: narrating, narrative, narrator
observe: observant, inobservant, observer, observing, observation,
Observatory
migrate: migration, migrant, immigration, immigrant, migrating, migratory
Words for New and Complex Concepts
Attributes

Have students identify critical attributes associated with a
word Frayer, Frederick, & Klausmeier, 1969 Compare and contrast
essential features and examples of a concept. For example,
an essential feature of a ball is that it is a sphere not flat.
An example of a ball is a baseball. A circle is not an
example of a ball because circles are flat.

Students identify features and examples for a concept after
a teacher-led discussion. Use a four-square concept map.
Eeds & Cockrum, 1985. The example is for a Social Studies lesson
on Citizenship for grades 4 or 5 and might look like:
Four-Square Concept Map for Citizenship
Essential Features

Carrying out actions that
show awareness of how
Yes
Example

Following rules and laws.

Taking care of the
personal actions affect others
environment.
in the community.

Being popular.

Getting other people to think
No
just like you do.

Not letting other people
express their ideas.

Speeding or littering.
Concepts
Key ideas, conceptual vocabulary consists of words
related to the key ideas
Semantic grids show information that is categorized &
related to a central concept
Examples of
Birds
Grackle
Raven
Chickadee
Perching
+
+
Tree Clinging
+
-
Large (>7”)
+
+
-
Remember
Marzano’s 6-Steps
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Teacher:
Students:
Students:
Teacher:
Students:
Students:
Explain & describe the word.
Own words.
Representation.
Activities in other context.
Discuss with each other.
Play with the terms.
Teacher’s description, explanation,
examples
Student’s description, explanation,
examples

Students construct their own descriptions,
explanations or examples. The constructions
do not need to be through, but they need to
be free of major errors





Examples from direct experiences (field
trip, guest speaker)
Tell a story integrating the term
Video or computer images as the
stimulus
Use current events to help make the
term applicable to something familiar
Describe your own mental pictures of the
term
Find or create pictures that exemplify the
term
Introduce them to a new word in the same
way you would explain a new word to a friend.
(From Building Academic Vocabulary, Marzano, Robert and
Debra J. Pickering 2005)
Their initial understanding can be
rudimentary because they will have
numerous opportunities in the next few
weeks to practice with repeated exposures.
If they are struggling: provide them more
from Step 1; allow them to work with
partners; if they understand the concept, but
they are struggling putting it in words, have
them do Step 3 then come back to provide a
verbal description.
Colorado Springs School District 11 “Closing the Achievement Gap” PLC April 17, 2009
Dopamine Release
The teacher sketches or pantamines from a list of
vocabulary words and the students guess which word.
Morphology
Explicit teaching of morphological
patterns is useful to all readers
 12 Latin roots, 2 Greek roots that along
with 20 most frequently used prefixes
generate an estimated 100,000 words

(Brown 1947)
Using
Morphology
Meaningful Word Parts
Knowledge of morphemes and morphology, word structure, is important for
understanding words in context (Carlisle, 2004). Students can identify and use word
parts to ascertain the meaning of an unfamiliar word.
 It is estimated that more than 60% of new words have easily identifiable
morphological structure and can be broken into parts (Nagy, Anderson, Schommer, Scott, &

Stallman, 1989).




Nine prefixes account for 75% of words with prefixes (White, Sowell, & Yanigihara, 1989).
Prefixes tend to be spelled consistently and have a clear lexical meaning.
The most frequently occurring suffixes in printed school English are inflectional
endings such as -s, -es, -ed, -ing, -en, -er, and -est. Most students use these in oral
language and should have few problems learning and using them.
Derivational suffixes such as -y, -ly, -ial, and -ic appear in fewer than 25% of all
words with suffixes, but can be useful to teach. For example, knowing the
meanings of the -ial (“relating to”) and -y (“being” or “having”) suffixes can aid in
figuring out rare words such as exponential and unwieldy (White et al., 1989).”
Successful instruction involves students reading texts with words that use word
parts and include opportunities to learn about word origins, derivations, and
usage (Baumann, Edwards, et al., 2003).
Presenting Affixes
Which do you teach?
Focus on the root words and affixes are
found across curricular so there is an
opportunity to practice and generalize
during more of the school day.
◦ Teach common prefixes and suffixes and discuss their
meaning in curricular context.
◦ It is better for students to learn 10 affixes well rather
than only be introduced to 100.
“When you find a new word in English, what
do you do? Look it up in a
monolingual or a bilingual
dictionary? Ask a teacher or
another student? Try to
predict the meaning from the
rest of the sentence or paragraph
– the context? There is another way to try to
simplify difficult words. Often, long words are
made from shorter words you know …..”
Oxford Dictionary of American English Oxford University Press, pg. A6
75% of Affixed Words
Prefixes and Suffixes
That Account for Approximately 75% of Affixed Words
Prefixes
% of All Suffixed
Suffixes
Words (Cumulative)
% of All Prefixed
Words (Cumulative)
un- (not)
26
-s, -es
31
re- (again)
40
-ed
51
in-, im-, il-, ir- (not)
51
-ing
65
dis-
58
-ly
72
en-, em-
62
-er. -or
76
non-
66
in-, im- (in)
69
over-
72
mis-
75
From “Teaching Elementary Students to Use Word-Part Clues,” by T. G. White, J. Sowell, and A. Yanagihara, 1989, The Reading Teacher, 42, pp. 303-304 Table 1 and Table 2.
Copyright 1989 by the International Reading Association.
Root Words
Port map.pdf
Prefixes
by Category
Numbers
 mono bi tri multi oct cent kiloTime
 post pre ex re-
monosyllable
bicycle
tricycle
multinational
octagon
centimeters
kilogram
postwar
prearranged
ex-president
rewrite
Size and Degree
 mini sub micro over-
miniskirt
subsonic
microscope
overeat
Negatives
 non un im il ir-
nonsmoker
unhappy
impolite
illegible
irregular
Position
 sub extra trans inter-
subway
extracurricular
transatlantic
interstate
Oxford Dictionary of American English
Oxford University Press, pg. A6 – A7
Suffixes and
Parts of Speech
Use suffixes to show changes in parts of speech
Nouns
 -ance, -ence = act or state
 -er = one who
 -ion, -tion = act or condition
 -ism = belief or practice
 -ment = act or state of
 -ness = act or quality of
Examples
 Verb depend to dependence
 Verb paint to noun painter
 Verb connect to noun connection
 Adjective real to noun realism
 Verb employ to noun employment
 Adjective happy to noun happiness

Verbs
 -ify, ize = to produce a state or
quality
Examples
 Noun example to verb exemplify
 Adjective critical to verb criticize
Adverbs
 -ly = in the manner of
Example
 Adjective slow to adverb slowly
Adjectives
 -able, -ible = able or capable
 -ful = filled with
 -ive = related to or tending to
 -y = full of or like
Examples
 Verb understand to adjective
understandable
 Noun truth to adjective truthful
 Noun sense to adjective sensitive
 Noun dirt to adjective dirty
Practice
◦ Spread out practice is more effective than a extensive practice at one
time. Reinforce a prefix or suffix by practice for 5 minutes at the
beginning of a lesson or assignment. Example: given a word students
give as many prefixes and suffixes as they can for that word.
◦ Have students write a short paragraph
using words that contain the same affix.
◦ Use collaborative learning and positive emotional states to help
students learn
 Play card games such as “Go Fish” and “Memory” with cords containing affixes
to match with cards having the meanings.
 Play games where students make words from word rectangles with prefixes,
suffixes, and root words.
 Play hangman using words with affixes.
Ballard & Tighe 2007
Root Words & Affix Shuffle
1.
These three words have a common root word, unscramble
them to find it:
 mmeeltypon
 relpoyem
 yoluemdenp
______________
______________
______________
The root word is _________.
2.
These three words have a common prefix, unscramble
them to find it:
 iieossblpm
 beilmimo
 tammerui
______________
______________
______________
The prefix is ____________.
3.
These three words have a common suffix, unscramble
them to find it:
 henmoonipcres
 ttteaoinn
 netteondi
______________
______________
______________
The suffix is ___________.
Patterning
Use graphic organizer to organize in
categories:
example inaudible
Similar suffixes
Similar roots
Similar prefixes
Similar meanings
Students use dictionaries and the internet
to find other items to add.
Take the Prefix Challenge! from Visual Thesaurus
Contrasting images associated with active v. inactive:

On a projected screen display the Visual Thesaurus word map for the word active
and then right-click on the word to "Search for Images." Students will see
various images, ranging from exercise programs created for the Wii to a diagram
of an active muscle.

Repeat this exercise with the word inactive, to display images of people on
couches, inactive volcanoes, etc.

Briefly discuss this contrast in image displays. What do students think the
prefix "in" does to a word? How did adding "in" to active change its meaning?

Establish that the prefix in, meaning not, negates the original adjective
active—transforming its meaning to its opposite. Explain that there are other
similar prefixes that perform the same function (im as in impossible; ir as in
irrational; il as in illegal).
Use Vocabulary as a Story Generator
Requirements
My teacher requests me to read and review.
I respond that I’ve done it – reviewed it.
I’m through.
My teacher requests I remain in my seat.
No recess until
I rewrite and it’s neat.
At last, I’m released.
School’s done for the day.
I pack up my things.
I’m relieved – I can play!
But Mom has requests:
I must remake my bed.
And rehang my clothes.
And rethink what I’ve said.
So many requests and requirements to do.
Someday I’ll be old –
and retired –
and be . . . Through?
Heidi Roemer More Phonics Through Poetry
For review and reinforce skills frequently
use short activities
while students are
walking to lunch or
lining up for recess or
at the end of the day.
Something to do instead of fighting for place in line.
Short Cut
15 = 15,000 words
Word
Consciousness
Word associations such as antonyms and synonyms
 Learning the histories of words as words have come into English
from many different languages







Hindi (e.g., dungaree, lacquer, ginger)
Russian (e.g., sable, sputnik)
Chinese (e.g., typhoon, ketchup)
French (e.g., ballet, exploit, banquet)
Latin and Greek.
Words used figuratively such as idioms
 “get out of the wrong side of the bed”
 “he put his foot in his mouth”

Word play such as jokes, puns, riddles, and tongue twisters
 Hink Pinks usingrhyming words (e.g., an impertinent young man is a rude dude)
 Homophones (e.g., define a flower flour or a brake break)
10 Common English Words
With Latin and Spanish Equivalents
English
common
word
English literary/academic
words
Spanish
Latin root
common
word
brave
valiant, valorous, valor
valere (to be strong)
valiente
bug
insect, insecticide, insectivore
insectum
insecto
dig
cavern(ous), cave, cavity, excavate
cavus (hollow)
excava
empty
vacant, vacate, vacancy
vacare (to be empty)
enough
sufficient, suffice, sufficiency
sufficiere (to provide)
First
prime, primate, primal, primacy,
primus (first)
primary, primer, primitive
vacía
suficiente
Primero
mean
significance, significant
significans (meaning)
moon
lunar, lunacy, lunatic, lunation
luna (moon)
sell
vendor, vend, venal
venus (sale)
wash
lather, lavatory
lavare (to wash)
significar
luna
vender
lavar
“The Teaching and Learning of Vocabulary: Perspectives and Persistent issues,” by M. L. Kamil and E. H. Hiebert, in press.
In E. H. Hiebert and M. L. Kamil (Eds.), Bringing Scientific Research to Practice: Vocabulary, Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Ms. Hempel says when she talks to a student and uses new vocabulary
about that student, he remembers it.

“Your dad has a very benevolent
presence.”

Your “spelling was irreproachable.”

“You looked positively beatific during
the exam.”

Your behavior is brash.

You appear enormously relieved.

That homework is woefully
inadequate.

Are you courting calamity?

I see you are showing solicitous
gentlemanly concern.

You have a ferocious intellect.

Did I see you just waft into the
room.

She “waved glamorously, and smiled
radiantly.”

You are a conscientious student.

That was a glamorous performance.

That was chivalrous of you.

You appear languid today.

I see you are waiting expectantly for
the end of the book.

Are you being belligerent?

The impact of your book report is
immeasurable.

You leave me bewildered.
In Ms. Hempel Chronicles by Sarah Sun-Lien Bynum, 2008
Computer
Instruction
A few studies (Davidson, Elcock, & Noyes, 1996; Heller, Sturner, Funk, & Feezor, 1993;
Reinking & Rickman, 1990) suggest some ways computers
could assist in vocabulary learning. Wood (2001)
suggests that the greatest promise for
computer technology is in those capabilities
that are not found in print, such as:
Computer Instruction

Listening to stories http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/

Game-like formats
http://www.freerice.com/ http://www.jacobslessons.com
http://www.harcourtschool.com/activity_collections_preview/wordworks/3_endings3.html
http://www.dltk-cards.com/bingo/bingo1.asp

Hyperlinks
http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/UEET/StudentSite/dynamicsofflight.html Visual dictionary
http://English-Zone.com
Topics including idioms
http://dorchester2.k12.sc.us/modules/cms/pages.phtml?pageid=131553
Lots of topics
http://www.virtualsalt.com/roots.htm
Word roots and prefixes
http://www.d11.org/doi/vocabulary
Content area word lists
http://www.easytestmaker.com/
Make your own tests

Online dictionaries and reference materials
http://visual.merriam-webster.com/
Try “Water Cycle” under “Earth”
http://www.visuaaurus.com/cm/wordshop/2275/ Put in a word under “search” (benevolent)
http://www.wordsift.comlthes/
Scroll down for a visual map, roll over words for meaning
http://www.visualthesaurus.com/cm/lessons/2536/
Lessons on affixes

Animations Animations of how the human heart works or what life was like in Ancient Rome could keep student

Access to content-area-related websites There are websites, such as those operated by NASA, the
interested, and when there is narration or captions and labels, they provide the opportunity to learn vocabulary.
Smithsonian, and some museums and libraries, that give students access to photographs, maps, and voice-over narration
and text. This could reinforce content-area vocabulary and link new words to existing concepts.
http://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/index.html
NASA site
The Presentation’s
Summary
The word-knowledge gap begins before
the children enter school.
The sophistication of language children hear and speak is a stronger
predictor of their later vocabulary than the number of words that they
hear and speak.
Children’s books have more rare words per 1000 words than educated
adult speech.
Reading-aloud alone is not sufficient to build vocabulary or to increase
comprehension -- it is the talk surrounding read-aloud activities that
helps students.
Vocabulary knowledge is a critical factor in developing comprehension.
The amount of time students spend reading is one of the best predictors
of their vocabulary size.
Research indicates that these are effective ways to build vocabulary:






Identifying Similarities and Differences
Summarizing and Note Taking
Reinforcing Effort and Providing Recognition
Practice
Nonlinguistic Representation
Cooperative Learning
Activating multiple learning modalities is essential because learners
“store” information in various places in the brain.
Teach:





Word association
Context clues
Concepts
Word parts
Using a Dictionary
Instruction that supports independent word-learning strategies (how to
identify and use specific types of linguistic and nonlinguistic
information) guides students in how to go about determining the
meanings of un-known words.
Marzano’s Six Steps






Teacher:
Students:
Students:
Teacher:
Students:
Students:
Explain & describe the word.
Own words.
Representation.
Activities in other context.
Discuss with each other.
Play with the terms.
The End