 Wiki creation  Vocabulary information and strategies  Vocabulary work on Text Set Project  EQs- How can a web based resource for content reading support my teaching?  How can vocabulary instruction improve student comprehension of subject matter?

‘Vocabulary is the most important influence on reading comprehension.’ Marlene Asselin (2002)

 Vocabulary development increases when students have visual images of word meaning and when the words are categorized into groups.  In order to understand spoken or written words a student must know 95% of the words.  It takes a minimum of 15 encounters with a new word for a student to understand and apply the word independently.

 Choose words for instruction carefully, focusing on words that are critical for understanding core content.  Access students’ prior knowledge through discussion, comparing/contrasting, examples and non-examples.  Multiple exposures are required before a word enters long-term memory.

Model and teach students word learning strategies that they can use independently. ◦ Teach students to evaluate their understanding of words they read and hear, and to ask questions.  ◦ Teach and model dictionary use using ‘think-alouds’ and discussion of how to choose the most appropriate definition.  ◦ Teach use of contextual cues to predict word meanings.  ◦ Teach students that some common word parts are important to word meanings. ◦ Vocabulary in content subjects is dense in words with Greek or Latin roots, prefixes and suffixes. For example, understanding the meaning of prefixes like pre-, post-, pro-, anti-, bio- can contribute to understanding the large number of words that are built from these prefixes. ◦ Many dictionaries, including the ‘Longman Dictionary of American English’, include lists of prefixes and suffixes and their meanings.

 Students write definitions based on dictionaries or other sources/formats in words they understand.  Generate a sentence using the word.  Word maps (a graphic representation that includes ‘What is it?, What is it like?, What are some examples?’) are an alternative or supplement to traditional dictionary definitions.

 Use contextual information to write the appropriate vocabulary word in a blank in a sentence or paragraph.  This exercise can be even more powerful if students create and exchange the test sentences with the blanks, which their partners must fill in.  Students can be asked to write an alternate word or synonym that would preserve the same meaning in each context.

 Teacher uses and highlights vocabulary often, and students are required to identify and use vocabulary in reading, writing or class discussion.  Teacher selects one or two words from each vocabulary list to lead the class in creating a word web.  The word is placed in the center and boxes for two or three categories (e.g. synonyms, types, attributes) are placed around it.  Students then join in to contribute and discuss category examples.  Students can then be assigned to work in small groups to create a web with another vocabulary word.

 Teacher selects one or two words from each vocabulary list to teach about word parts and their meanings.  Example- root ‘port-‘ (transport, import, export, deport)  If students understand that the meaning of the root is ‘to carry’, they can use this information to understand and infer relationships between other words with this root.  Another example- prefixes ‘anti- and pro’ discuss a web or list of related words that include these prefixes and their meanings.

 Help students understand language and build background…essential to understanding the topic.  How: Picture Dictionaries and Word Walls  And……………

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 How does today’s learning relate to previous learning about content reading instruction?  What did you learn today?