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Vocabulary Building Strategies. ELCE Summer Institute: July, 2013 Facilitator: Sonja Follett. Practice makes perfect…. We need to see learning any particular word as being a cumulative process where knowledge is built up over a series of varied meetings with the word.
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Vocabulary Building Strategies ELCE Summer Institute: July, 2013 Facilitator: Sonja Follett
Practice makes perfect… • We need to see learning any particular word as being a cumulative process where knowledge is built up over a series of varied meetings with the word. • At best, teaching can provide only one or two of these meetings. • The others involve deliberate study, meeting through meaning-focused input and output, and fluency development activities (Paul Nation, “Teaching Vocabulary”, Asian EFL Journal)
“Light” • With a partner, write down the definition of the word “light” • Please also include the part of speech • Now, share with the group…
Difficult? • Explain what you found difficult about the assignment. • What are the problems language learners have when they learn new vocabulary?
The 3 aspects of vocabulary learning… • Meaning • Form • Use
Meaning • Definition • Concept • Associations
Form • Spoken Form • Written Form • Word parts
Use • Grammatical functions • Collocations • Constraints on use
“Save” • What is the meaning? • What is the form? • What is the use?
Meaning • What activities help Ss to learn a word’s meaning? • In pairs, write down one or two activities that you think help Ss learn a word’s meaning.
Meaning activities • Word and meaning matching • Labeling • Sentence completion • Crossword puzzles
Form • What activities help Ss to learn a word’s form? • In pairs, write down one or two activities that you think help Ss learn a word’s form.
Form activities • Following spelling rules • Recognizing word parts • Building word family tables
Use • What activities help Ss to learn a word’s use? • In pairs, write down one or two activities that you think help Ss learn a word’s use.
Use activities • Sentence completion • Collocation matching • Collocation tables • Interpreting dictionary entries
Content Bingo • Have Ss make their own definitions (advanced) • Give descriptions instead of words (intermediate/advanced)
Word Form Fill-in-the-blank Complete each sentence with the correct form of the word. • Large rocks and meteorites crashed into the moon’s surface_________________________ large holes called craters. create creation creator creating 2. One of the _______________________ of the space program was to land a man on the moon. goal goalkeepers goals goal-oriented
Flashcards • Flashcards can be either picture and English definition or • L1 and L2 words • For example: Ekimi Doctor • Have Ss make their own set of flashcards for new vocabulary. • Then, have pairs quiz each other using the flashcards.
Student generated Fill-in-the-blank • Give Ss a list of vocabulary words • Ask pairs to create their own fill-in-the blank sentences for 2 words. • Have pairs exchange papers with another pair and try to complete their sentences. • Have the small group discuss answers.
Fill-in-the-Blank • Words: sun, wind • The ________ was shining brightly yesterday. • The terrible _________ blew down a tree today.
Using 10 words in a story • Give Ss a list of vocabulary words. • Tell them they must use at least 10 of the words in a short story or paragraph. • (Note: this can be done in pairs or small groups) • Collect the story (it is a vocabulary assessment). • (pollution, environment, trash, smoke, plastic bags, cans, recycle, community, laws, throw away)
Categorization • 1. Sort the word cards by category. (e.g., words related to people, words related to things). • 2. Find words that have certain connotations such as positive and negative, good and bad, desirable and undesirable. • 3. Sort words by part of speech (e.g., nouns, verbs, adverbs, adjectives).
Spelling Bee • Small class or small groups • Have Ss stand in a line in front of the board. • Say the first vocabulary word and ask the first student to spell the word. • If the student is correct, she/he stays at the board. • If the student is incorrect, she/he must sit down. • Note: Emphasize that learning is a process and mistakes are a normal and necessary part of that process. Consider if this activity is appropriate for your students.
Fly Swatter • Choose a vocabulary word from your lesson. • Have two Ss come to the front of the class. • Give each Ss a rolled up piece of paper. • Write the word on the board – (one word is spelled correctly, the other word is not) • For example: • Truck Truk • The first student to “hit” the correct word wins a point for their team.
Word Tiles • Have Ss make a set of alphabet cards • Ask Ss to make 2 or 3 cards for each letter. • Ask Ss to work in pairs and spell as many words as possible related to their lesson content. • When Ss complete one word, they must write it on a piece of paper. • At the end of 10 minutes, collect the papers and see which group has won!
Vocabulary charts • See handout provided… • When you teach new content words, give Ss a list of the words as homework. • Ask Ss to fill out at least 4 of the chart boxes for each word. • Have pairs work together in the next lesson to share what information they wrote down. • Collect the charts at the end of the unit and test Ss on their acquired word knowledge.
References • Nation, Paul. “Teaching Vocabulary” Asian EFL Journal. • Nation, P. (2008). Teaching Vocabulary. Online Course offered by Thomson ELT. • Nation, P. (2007). The Four Strands. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 1(1), 2-13.
