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BUILDING A ROBUST
VOCABULARY
TRAVILAH ELEMENTARY
MRS. SHENK, MS. SHAPIRO, MRS. RUBENSTEIN
JANUARY 16, 2015
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO HAVE
A ROBUST VOCABULARY?
LET’S EXPLORE
IMPORTANCE OF VOCABULARY
• UNDERSTANDING VOCABULARY ACQUISITION
• WORD POVERTY
• IMPACT ON READING COMPREHENSION
VOCABULARY ACQUISITION
• DEVELOPMENTAL PROGRESSION OF WORDS
• EXPRESSIVE – “VOCABULARY WE USE”
SPEAK AND WRITE
• RECEPTIVE – “VOCABULARY WE UNDERSTAND”
LISTEN AND READ
WORD POVERTY
• WORD KNOWLEDGE AND CAN MAKE OR BREAK ACADEMIC
ACHIEVEMENT
• KINDERGARTEN WORD KNOWLEDGE IS A PREDICTOR OF THIRD
GRADE READING ACHIEVEMENT AND HIGH SCHOOL
GRADUATION
• VOCABULARY STANDARD INCLUDED IN COMMON CORE STATE
STANDARDS
IMPACT ON READING COMPREHENSION
• A LARGE VOCABULARY IS PREDICTIVE AND REFLECTIVE OF HIGH
LEVELS OF READING ACHIEVEMENT
• GROWTH IN READING POWER RELIES ON CONTINUOUS GROWTH
IN WORD KNOWLEDGE.
• CHILDREN WHO READ MORE TEND TO HAVE RICHER
VOCABULARIES
WHAT’S HAPPENING AT TRAVILAH?
EFFECTIVE VOCABULARY INSTRUCTION
• INTEGRATION – CONNECTING NEW VOCABULARY TO PRIOR KNOWLEDGE
• REPETITION – ENCOUNTERING AND OR USING THE WORD MANY TIMES
• MEANINGFUL USE – MULTIPLE OPPORTUNITIES TO USE NEW WORDS IN READING, WRITING
AND DISCUSSION
OUR SCHOOL WIDE PLAN
PART OF THE SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT PLAN (SIP)
STUDENT AND STAKEHOLDER FOCUS
“AS A RESULT OF THE ROOT CAUSE ANALYSIS, IT WAS REVEALED THAT STUDENTS NEED ALL
TEACHERS TO PROVIDE INCREASED OPPORTUNITIES THROUGH SMALL GROUP INSTRUCTION TO
EXPAND AND APPLY CONTENT AND REAL WORLD VOCABULARY. ACQUISITION OF THIS
VOCABULARY WILL BE EVIDENT THROUGH STUDENTS’ IMPROVED READING COMPREHENSION,
PROBLEM SOLVING, AND WRITTEN AND SPOKEN LANGUAGE.”
OUR SCHOOL WIDE PLAN
CONSISTENT ACADEMIC AND DOMAIN SPECIFIC VOCABULARY AND USE OF GRADE LEVEL
CHARACTER TRAIT VOCABULARY
Grade
K
1
Character Traits
Brave, clever, dishonest, foolish, intelligent, impatient, irresponsible, patient, reliable,
wicked
Arrogant, mischievous, dependable, calm, courageous, messy, determined, inconsiderate,
creative, greedy
Bold, careless, envious, independent, irritable, predictable, sensible, stern, supportive, timid
2
3
4
5
Admirable, appreciative, innocent, insensitive, persistent, rambunctious, sensitive,
sympathetic, tolerant, trustworthy
Gullible, assertive, cunning, hesitant, meek, menacing, pompous, submissive, surly,
uncompromising
Apprehensive, compliant, dignified, discreet, ethical, ingenious, lackadaisical, malicious,
rebellious, selfless
SCHOOL WIDE STRATEGIES FOR EFFECTIVE
VOCABULARY INSTRUCTION
• USE OF WORD WALLS
• STRATEGIC QUESTIONING
• WORD STUDY
• USE “INSTRUCTIONAL” READ ALOUDS
• INCREASE THE AMOUNT OF INDEPENDENT AND WIDE READING
• TEACH THE EFFECTIVE, EFFICIENT, REALISTIC USE OF DICTIONARIES, THESAURUSES AND
OTHER REFERENCE WORKS
WHAT YOU CAN DO AT HOME?
TAKE A LOOK AT YOUR HANDOUTS
FOR A FEW IDEAS
A FEW OF OUR FAVORITES
• READ DAILY
READ TO THEM AS OFTEN AS POSSIBLE
GET THEM READING
• MULTIPLE EXPOSURE – SEE IT, SAY IT, WRITE IT
• EXPLORE WORDS WITH MULTIPLE MEANINGS
• PLAY WORD GAMES
ENJOY WORDS TOGETHER
• GET A CONVERSATION GOING!
QUESTIONS
COMMENTS
THOUGHTS
ON LINE RESOURCES AND LINKS
• HTTP://TEACHER.SCHOLASTIC.COM/PRODUCTS/READINGLINE/PDFS/PROFESSIONALPAPER.PDF
• HTTP://LIFEHACKER.COM/EIGHT-WAYS-TO-HELP-IMPROVE-YOUR-CHILDS-VOCABULARY1645796717
• HTTP://WWW.SCHOLASTIC.COM/BROWSE/ARTICLE.JSP?ID=8100
• HTTP://WWW.PARENTTOOLKIT.COM/INDEX.CFM?OBJECTID=97AA2240-F7CE-11E3921A0050569A5318