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What results did you see from implementing new vocabulary instruction? 

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What results did you see from implementing new vocabulary instruction? 

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When students choose the vocabulary words, they are more motivated in the process of figuring out word meaning to build their understanding of a text. Students can choose this through the words they read during independent reading, or words they hear and are exposed to at home.

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What activities can I incorporate in the classroom?
See the link above to discover research based vocabulary activities!

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Create a new document and edit with others at the same time -- from your computer, phone or tablet. Get stuff done with or without an internet connection. Use Docs to edit Word files. Free from Google.

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How many words should I select?
No more than 3-5 in one day and 10 per week.

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What should be included in direct vocabulary instruction?

Review the story context and sentence.

Explain the meaning in a child-friendly way.

Students repeat the word out loud.

Discuss other contexts where the word might be used. Teacher provides stems as necessary, i.e. "I would be reluctant to _________."

Activity

Extension - Find ways to incorporate the words throughout the week in your own speech and writing.

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When should we incorporate vocab instruction during reading? Contrary to popular practice of previewing words, Beck, McKeown, and Kucan found that research supports vocabulary instruction taking place after a story has been read, unless not knowing the word will significantly break down comprehension.

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Word Wheel - A fun way to review vocabulary words when you have a free minute or are transitioning! You can customize and add words as needed.

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Word of the Day (dictionary.com) - A fun way to incorporate vocabulary into your morning meeting!

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How do students find the meaning of the words?
"Learners' dictionaries" are great for elementary students. These dictionaries were developed for ESL students, but are useful to all students discovering new words. They give much more accessible definitions and many times include explanations so students can connect how the word might be used. One example is the COBUILD English Language Dictionary.

Link to physical copy

Link to online version (not for ESL learners, but does provide good explanations)

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What books can I use to get students excited about collecting words?

The Word Collector (Peter Reynolds)

Lexie the Word Wrangler (Rebecca van Slyke)

Stegothesaurus (Bridget Heos)

Ruth Heller picture book series

Brian P. Cleary part of speech picture book series

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Myth: Context clues are a sufficient strategy for independent readers to discover the meaning of an unknown word.

Fact: While context clues can often be used in texts written by curriculum writers, this is unfortunately not always the case in naturally-occurring texts. Most texts (especially older) students are reading independently and outside school were not developed with context clues in mind. Students need so much more to sufficiently develop initial vocabulary acquisition.

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What resources are out there for me to learn more?

Bringing Words to Life: Robust Vocabulary Instruction (Beck, McKwoen, & Kucan)

Vocabulary Games for the Classroom (Carleton & Marzano)

30 Meaningful Vocabulary Activities

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How do I know what words to choose? When selecting vocabulary words, it is important to choose words that are "general, but sophisticated." These are referred to as Tier 2 words that tend to be more precise forms of words students already know.

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What if the text for the day doesn't include any good options? Bring in words whose concepts fit with the story. For example, instead of referring to a "problem" in the story, call it a "dilemma" or "conflict". When students describe events or characters, you can strengthen their vocabulary by commenting, "Yes, another way to say that is ____."