Research Based Vocabulary Acquisition Activities Friday, February 12, 2016 Research Based Vocabulary Acquisition Activities Slide notes: Let’s review a few of the research based vocabulary activities that enable students to add new words to their vocabulary. Page 1 of 15 Research Based Vocabulary Acquisition Activities Friday, February 12, 2016 Instructional Strategies/Activities Slide notes: Here are a few that we are going to discuss though many more are available for your review in this session. We will begin by discussing what to consider when pre-teaching unfamilar vocabulary, then move to Semantic Maps, Semantic Impressions, Four Square Vocabulary Map and end with the LINCS strategy. Page 2 of 15 Research Based Vocabulary Acquisition Activities Friday, February 12, 2016 Pre-teaching Unfamiliar Vocabulary has… Slide notes: Pre-teaching selected vocabulary words is a widely used vocabulary development strategy. As mentioned several times already, the National Reading Panel concluded that teaching vocabulary before reading has significant effects on comprehension. At least it guarantees that there will be fewer unfamiliar concepts in the material to be read. It also helps in making the translation of print to speech meaningful by trying to guarantee that the vocabulary items are in the oral language of the reader. Early reading skill is heavily based on oral language, and a critical strategy for building vocabulary is through discussion that familiarizes students with concepts and words before they encounter them in print. The first challenge in using this strategy is in deciding which words need to be pre-taught. Page 3 of 15 Research Based Vocabulary Acquisition Activities Friday, February 12, 2016 How to Pre-teach Unfamiliar Vocabulary Slide notes: Under Supplemental Readings is a one page article on planning to pre-teach vocabulary. The next couple of slides review the process. However, the one page article contains all of this information and can be downloaded. Before instruction, here are some general guidelines to follow when selecting words to pre-teach. • Preview the passage to identify vocabulary you think your students will find unfamiliar, even when using texts that have pre-selected vocabulary. • Read the passage and ask yourself: “How difficult is this passage to understand?” • Select words that are related to the main ideas and crucial to understanding of the text. • List words that you predict will be challenging for your students. • Select words that are most critical to understanding the text. • Prioritize these words by their importance. Remember, focus on three types of words: important words, useful words and difficult words. Adapted from Planning for Vocabulary Instruction (Effective Instruction for Secondary Struggling Readers: Research-Based Practices, UT system/TEA, 2002) which was used in the Special Education Institute 2005 professional development. Page 4 of 15 Research Based Vocabulary Acquisition Activities Friday, February 12, 2016 How to Pre-teach Unfamiliar Vocabulary Slide notes: Which words are critical? Consider these questions: If the word is likely to be in the student’s prior knowledge, it may not require direct teaching. Words like this can be discussed as you activate and build prior knowledge before reading or expanded after reading. For some struggling readers, artifacts, audio-visual materials, and hands-on activities can be used to activate background knowledge related to new words. If the word is defined within the body of the text, it may not need to be pre-taught. However, the students will most likely need some experience in using context clues in order to be successful in getting at meaning. Keep in mind: While students may have a basic understanding of many words, to build a more complete understanding of a word may require multiple exposures through various experiences with the word and an understanding that many vocabulary words have layers of meaning. Adapted from Planning for Vocabulary Instruction (Effective Instruction for Secondary Struggling Readers: Research-Based Practices, UT system/TEA, 2002) which was used in the Special Education Institute 2005 professional development. Page 5 of 15 Research Based Vocabulary Acquisition Activities Friday, February 12, 2016 Semantic Mapping Slide notes: Word maps are a type of graphic organizer. Semantic mapping, like a geographical map, is a way to visually illustrate relationships between words. Page 6 of 15 Research Based Vocabulary Acquisition Activities Friday, February 12, 2016 Slide 7 Slide notes: This is an example of a word map. After identifying the concept to be taught, place the concept or “big idea” in the center circle (on chalkboard, overhead transparency, or chart paper). Some groups decide how smaller “ideas” (e.g., physical characteristics, population control, habitat, etc.) are related to or associated with the “big idea” (e.g., white tail deer). Many struggling readers may have difficulty getting to the categorization level initially. They may begin to list more specific thoughts such as…long ears, white tail, hooves, etc… Page 7 of 15 Research Based Vocabulary Acquisition Activities Friday, February 12, 2016 Semantic Impressions: Story Design Slide notes: Another finding of the National Reading Panel is that repetition and multiple exposures to vocabulary items are important. One way for students to interact with words is through a strategy called Semantic Impressions. In this strategy, students have multiple opportunities to make sense and meaning of words. Students compose their own stories by using a list of ordered words chosen by the teacher before they read the published story. In this sense, the strategy serves as a pre-reading activity. However, it can also serve as a reading/writing connection. Furthermore, if teachers select words from content-specific reading selections, it also serves as a content-reading strategy. Page 8 of 15 Research Based Vocabulary Acquisition Activities Friday, February 12, 2016 Semantic Impressions: Story Design Slide notes: Depending on the ability of students, have them work first work through the activity as a whole group or in smaller groups. For students who may need even more opportunities to interact with words, you may want to do both. Page 9 of 15 Research Based Vocabulary Acquisition Activities Friday, February 12, 2016 Semantic Impressions: Story Design Slide notes: As you write down the students’ contributions to the story, help them with the flow of the narrative so that it is cohesive. When the story is complete, some students might choose to do the editing of the piece. The finished product can then be used as part of a fluency activity. Page 10 of 15 Research Based Vocabulary Acquisition Activities Friday, February 12, 2016 Slide 11 Slide notes: The four-square map is another graphic organizer used for semantic mapping. The four categories listed in black can vary based on your purpose and the text you are using. This strategy requires students to relate this word to their environment by listing examples and non-examples of the word. Page 11 of 15 Research Based Vocabulary Acquisition Activities Friday, February 12, 2016 The LINCing Routine Slide notes: This routine is one of the Content Enhancement Routines from the University of Kansas Center for Research on Learning. It was developed by Ed Ellis (1995). Page 12 of 15 Research Based Vocabulary Acquisition Activities Friday, February 12, 2016 The LINCS Table Slide notes: This example is from the University of Kansas Center for Research on Learning (The Vocabulary LINCing Routine). Page 13 of 15 Research Based Vocabulary Acquisition Activities Friday, February 12, 2016 What Does Effective Vocabulary Instruction Include? Slide notes: As a review, here are some key ideas to consider when planning your weekly vocabulary instruction. In this session, you will find a list of many other vocabulary activities to use in your classroom. Page 14 of 15 Research Based Vocabulary Acquisition Activities Bibliography Slide notes: Here are the resources used in this presentation. 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