Enhancing Vocabulary Instruction

1. Enhancing Vocabulary Instruction April 21-23, 2011 Lauren Quarles

2. Session 1: The Importance of Word Choice • Knowing the challenge teachers face in choosing important words to teach, aligned with the fact that most students learn between 3,000-4,000 new words each year, Isabel Beck and colleagues developed a three-tier model for selecting words to teach. • Vocabulary instruction is an extremely important task for ALL teachers, not just reading teachers. Students are introduced to challenging vocabulary in all content areas, including math, science, and social studies. • As educators, we must make vocabulary word choice intentional, choosing the words we plan to introduce with care and thoughtfulness.

3. Beck’s 3 Tiers of Vocabulary Words (adapted from http://www.slideshare.net/laurelpollard/effective-vocabulary-instruction-for-all-levels) Low frequency, content specific words, such as morpheme, peninsula, similes, nucleus Tier 3 Academic words to teach that are key to comprehension and used by “mature language learners”. Examples include curious, gaze, mysterious, stingy. Tier 2 Basic words that generally do not require instruction, such as house, mom, car, toy. Tier 1

4. Beck’s 3 Tiers of Vocabulary Words

5. Which Words Do I Teach? • The focus of regular vocabulary instruction should be mostly on Tier 2 words. These words are used by adults everyday in conversation, reading, and writing and are most likely to be encountered by students. • While Tier 3 words are important as well, they should be taught as they are encountered, most commonly during content-area instruction. • Teach words that are • critical to understanding the text • likely to be encountered many times • difficult and need interpretation Beck & McKeown, 2002

6. Let’s give this a try. Get in groups of two please. You will need something to write with. (Use Tier 2 Words handout)

7. Types of Vocabulary Learning • Direct learning and indirect learning are two ways students learn vocabulary. • Direct learning: teacher explains words and meanings • Traditional, direct, explicit teaching • Beginning learners need more direct learning opportunities than advanced learners.

8. Types of Vocabulary Learning • Indirect learning: students “pick up” word meanings through their own experiences. • Incidental, communicative learning • Beginning and advanced learners need indirect learning experiences.

9. Quick Strategies for Vocab. Practice (see handout) • Vocabulary Cards • Dictionary use • Act it out • Students teach it • Use pictures • Grab bag • Disappearing vocabulary list

10. Put it into Practice Get in groups of 4. I will provide each group with a strategy. In your groups, use your handout to study the strategy, and use it. You have 15 minutes. At the end of the time, groups will present strategies to all participants.

11. Thank you for your participation in Session 1. I look forward to being back with you for Session 2: Strategies and Assessment.

12. Session 2: Strategies, Strategies, Strategies!(and a little bit of assessment, too) Materials for Today: • A content passage of text • Pen and highlighter • Laptop with word processing software

13. Word Sort • A word sort is a word study activity where children compare, contrast, and sort words according to specific features. • Word sorts allow children to form hypotheses, explore concepts, and make generalizations about written words. These activities help students link words to the familiar ones they already know (make connections and activate prior knowledge). http://activemindsactivebodies.wikispaces.com/Word+Sorts

14. Video: Calvin Does a Word Sort http://youtu.be/TErmLS3IWpk

15. 2 Types of Word Sorts Closed Sort: The teacher chooses the words to be sorted, and designates the categories in which students will place the words. Open Sort: The students select the categories for sorting words.

16. Participation Activity Now you will get to complete an open word sort. Get in groups of four. I will bring each group a set of cards. Come up with ways to sort the words. Share with all participants.

17. Vocab-O-Gram(a.k.a. Predict-O-Gram) • This strategy allows students to make predictions about how words will be used in the story. • Students organize vocabulary words in relationship to the structure of the text selection, causing them to go beyond the definition to consider application of the word within the text.

18. Classroom Example • Deron McGinnis, third grade teacher, planned to read the selection, Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears. • Prior to reading, he chose a list of vocabulary words for the class to see and discuss. • He then organized students into groups of four to fill out the Vocab-O-Gram handout. (Refer to Vocab-O-Gram handout examples.)

19. Participation Activity Discuss in your groups how you might implement the Vocab-O-Gram strategy in your classrooms. Write down 2 ways you come up with to share with all participants. Do you think this is a strategy that could be used in content areas? How?

20. Vocabulary Self-collection Strategy (VSS) • The VSS strategy places the responsibility for learning words on the students. • First, students listen to a selection, while writing down 2-3 words they believe the group should learn (important words). • Second, students get into groups and share their “important” words with one another. • Then they decide as group which words will be included in their VSS chart. (See handouts.) • Finally, the groups share their words as the teacher makes a list for students to see.

21. It’s Time for Assessment! • Vocabulary cannot be appropriately assessed using traditional measures (multiple choice, matching, fill in the blank), because there are several stages of word knowledge that must be considered. • Knowing a word’s definition does not mean a student truly knows the word.

22. Adapted from Stahl, K.D. & Bravo, M.A. (2010). Contemporary classroom vocabulary assessment for content areas. The Reading Teacher, 63(7), 566-578. Dale’s 4 Stages of Word Knowledge Taken from: Stahl, K.A.D & Bravo, M.A. (2010). Contemporary classroom vocabulary assessment for content areas. The Reading Teacher, 63(7), 566-578.

23. Vocabulary Knowledge Scale(a.k.a. Knowledge Rating Chart) • Using Dale’s 4 stages of word knowledge, the Vocabulary Knowledge Scale (VKS) was created so students can self-report their word knowledge. • This strategy can be applied to any grade level in any content area. See handouts for examples. • This is the strategy I am using for your PD pre and post tests! (See handouts)

24. Vocabulary Recognition Task (VRT) • The VRT combines self-report with demonstrated knowledge and can be used as a pretest and a posttest. • For the pretest, the teacher provides students with 25 words: 18 relating to the text, 7 foils or false alarms. Students circle words they are able to read and know relate to the topic. • As a posttest, students are required to categorize the words under separate headings. • See VRT handouts.

25. Participation Activity! • Using the content text you brought and your laptop, create a VRT pretest and posttest you can use with your students. Refer to your handouts if needed. • When everyone is finished, a few participants can share with the group.

26. Thank You! This is the end of Session 2. I appreciate your participation and look forward to seeing you back for Session 3: eVoc Strategies.

27. Session 3: eVoc Strategies Materials needed for this session: -Laptop -Vocabulary list from a unit you teach

28. What is an eVoc Strategy? • An eVoc strategy is an electronic, or technology-based strategy that teachers can use to develop students’ vocabulary learning and interest in words. • “Improving students’ vocabulary is an area of urgent need if we are to develop the advanced literacy levels required for success in [21st century life] school and beyond.” Dalton & Grisham, 2011

29. eVoc Strategy 1: Word Clouds • Word clouds are free web applications that allow you to create a collage of words based on the frequency of words in a text. • They can be used to stimulate student’s thinking about word meaning, importance of words, and the relationship between the words in the word cloud.

30. Word Cloud Examples

31. Where to Create Word Clouds • www.wordle.net • www.tagxedo.com • http://www.makeuseof.com/dir/worditout-word-cloud-creator/ • www.wordsift.com

32. Participation Activity • Use your unit vocabulary to create a word cloud to be used as a pre-unit “hook” to engage students in what is to come. • Explore the word cloud generators to find the one that best fits your needs.

33. Video: How to save a Wordle word cloud as a .pdf file http://www1.teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=225393&title=Wordle

34. Some Questions to Ask When Presenting a Word Cloud • What does the word cloud suggest the text is about? • What seem to be the most important words? • How do these words go together? • Why do you think the word cloud is a certain shape?

35. eVoc Strategy 2: Media • Using different types of media to focus on vocabulary engages students on many levels. • Students can insert pictures into Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, or other programs and create dialogue or captions using targeted vocabulary.

36. Example: • Target vocabulary word: contribute Student written dialogue: Kate: Look at the birds. They look like the need a place to nest. Bob: Maybe I will build them a bird house. Look, there’s Joe! Joe: What are you doing? Kate: building a birdhouse. Do you want to help? Bob: We can all contribute. Student written caption: “The children are contributing their skills and working together to build a birdhouse.

37. Participation Activity • Use your laptops to find a picture you can use with one of your target vocabulary words. • Prepare this strategy to implement with your students.

38. eVoc Strategy 3: Vocabulary Learning + Social Service • www.freerice.com is a free online vocabulary game. • This game offers students the chance to engage with words while helping others. • For each correct answer, United Nations World Food Programme donates 10 grains of rice to countries in need.

39. Screen Shot of Freerice.com

40. Support for Using Freerice.com http://www1.teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=30610&title=Free_Rice_and_SciVee

41. Participation Activity • Get on your laptops and play on www.freerice.com. • Share with a neighbor how you could use this program in your classroom. (Think social studies!!)

42. The End! Thank you for participating in this professional development. I have enjoyed you! I hope you can take the strategies you learned to immediately implement in your classroom. Please take a few moments to complete the PD posttest.

43. Sources Brassell, D. (2009). Dare to differentiate: Vocabulary strategies for all students. The NERA Journal, 44(2), 1-6. Dale, E. (1965) Vocabulary measurement: Techniques and major findings. Elementary English, 42, 895-901, 948. Dalton, B. & Grisham, D.L. (2011). eVoc strategies: 10 ways to use technology to build vocabulary. The Reading Teacher, 64(5), 306-317. Stahl, K.A.D. (2008). The effects of three instructional methods on the reading comprehension and content acquisition of novice readers. Journal of Literacy Research, 40(3), 359-393. Stahl, K.A.D. & Bravo, M.A. (2010). Contemporary classroom vocabulary assessment for content areas. The Reading Teacher, 63(7), 566-578.