1 Vocabulary Enrichment Exercises for Our Students Ms. Vivian Leon M.S. Reading Resource Teacher

2 “Every Teacher, A Teacher of Reading”: An Overview All teachers, not just language arts teachers are contributors to our students’ literacy Research indicates that the following should be a part of every classroom: oConnectedness is essential to learning oContext is essential to learning oLearning is social

3 Overview Continues… oLearning is best accomplished when the environment for learning is supportive and encouraging of risk- taking oKnowledge is transactional (Wepner, Feeley & Strickland, 1995)

4 Miami High Reads! R= Resources E= Engaging Activities A= Assessment D= Dialogue S= Success School-Wide Goals to Improve Our Students’ Reading Comprehension (Based on the School Performance Excellence Plan -- End of the Year Evaluation): I.Frequently, and Consistently Assess students’ Independent Reading Activities- Reading & Vocabulary Logs (A)

5 Miami High Reads ! Continues… II.Offer Extra Credit for Attending FCAT Tutorial Sessions After School and on Saturdays (especially to those students requiring remediation) (R) III.Design Lessons to include all learning modalities to accommodate all types of learners (S)

6 Miami High Reads! Cont.… IV.Utilize CRISS Strategies and Reciprocal Teaching Frequently (E) V.Encourage Cooperative Activities, for small groups, such as the Socratic Questioning Technique (D) VI.Incorporate more teacher- made/student designed informal testing, rather than standardized testing (A)

7 Vocabulary Enrichment Exercises for Our Students Sometimes More Is Less Exposing Students to Interesting Topics Helps to Develop Helps to Develop Student Vocabulary Student Vocabulary To Master a Content Area, is to Master its Key Concepts; that is To Master a Content Area, is to Master its Key Concepts; that is language Students Need Many Learning Experiences- Real and Vicarious- To Develop Word Meanings 1 2 Utilize “Socratic Questioning” Approach to Small Group Discussions to Enrich Vocabulary 3 5 4

8 Research on Vocabulary Development: The Do’s and Don’ts Don’ts:  Don’t Teach Vocabulary From the Workbooks or In Isolation  Don’t Expect Students to Learn New Words By Simply Testing Them  Don’t Leave Vocabulary Development to the Language Arts Teacher  Do Not Reprimand Students From Completing Assignments in Small Groups *(Nilson & Nilson, 2003)

9 Don’ts Continues… Don’t Give Students Book Work- Dictionary- related Activities to be Completed Individually- “Language is a Social Phenomenon, Which Means That Students Need to Interact With Other Speakers and Hear Pronunciations and Intonations, as well as Words Used in More Variety Than Brief Dictionary Entries” (Nilson & Nilson, 2003)  Don’t Give Students Book Work- Dictionary- related Activities to be Completed Individually- “Language is a Social Phenomenon, Which Means That Students Need to Interact With Other Speakers and Hear Pronunciations and Intonations, as well as Words Used in More Variety Than Brief Dictionary Entries” (Nilson & Nilson, 2003) Don’t Approach Vocabulary as Teaching to the Test- Test Items are not Guaranteed, But Teaching Students About Word Patterns Stands a Better Chance  Don’t Approach Vocabulary as Teaching to the Test- Test Items are not Guaranteed, But Teaching Students About Word Patterns Stands a Better Chance Don’t Believe For One Minute that Reading for Understanding can be Separated From Reading For Pleasure- Thus, Students will not Enhance Their Vocabularies if They Do Not Read!  Don’t Believe For One Minute that Reading for Understanding can be Separated From Reading For Pleasure- Thus, Students will not Enhance Their Vocabularies if They Do Not Read!

10 The Things to Do… Offer Your Students Authentic Learning Opportunities Involving Vocabulary  Offer Your Students Authentic Learning Opportunities Involving Vocabulary Focus More on the Application (Bloom’s Taxonomy) of New Words in the Readings- in the form of Essays, Oral Presentations, Small-Group Discussions, Word Games  Focus More on the Application (Bloom’s Taxonomy) of New Words in the Readings- in the form of Essays, Oral Presentations, Small-Group Discussions, Word Games

11 To Do Continued…  Know This: “If Words Form the Thread on which We String Our Experiences, then Reading Weaves those Threads in Ways that Invite Each of Us to Find Beauty in the Patterns that are Created” (Robinson, 2001)  Five Must Haves For Vocabulary Development in Any Class: 1)Guided Sharing 2)Shared Concept 3)Concept-Based Vocabulary 4)Read Alouds 5)Extensive Classroom Libraries

12  Read a Variety of Current Articles- Related to the Content Area- Students Keep a Reading/Vocabulary Log  Integrate Word Histories/Etymologies into the Lessons  Take A Process Approach to Vocabulary: Ex.: Presidential Election, Sept. 11 th  Provide Students with Meaningful Connections to New Words  Have Students Design Educational Games as a Review of Material and Vocabulary

13 Effective Reading Strategies  Break Down Long Words into More Manageable Parts- Morphemic Analysis- PNEUMONOULTRAMICROSCOPICSILICO- VOLCANOCONIOSIS Sentence: Because of its proximity to Mount St. Helens, he contracted pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis Pneumono- related to the lungs Coni (konis)- dust Ultra- transcending; super Osis- referring to a Micro- small diseased condition. Scopic- related to a viewing instrument Silico- the mineral silicon Volcano- eruption in the earth

14  Provide Students With Opportunities to use their new words. (Vacca, 109).  Reinforce New Vocabulary After Reading: Contextual Redefinition: Example: Step 1- Define each of the following words using only your prior knowledge- 1.Carapace_______________ 2.Nonsectarian____________ 3.Insipid_________________

15 Step 2 - Provide Your Students With Sentences, Utilizing the New Words 1)Without its carapace, the turtle would be subject to certain death from its enemies or the elements. 2) Although he was a believer in God, he had a nonsectarian attitude toward religion. 3) His teaching lacked spirit. He had presented his lesson in a dull manner, failing to challenge or stimulate his students. The teacher knew he had made an insipid presentation.

16 Step 3 - Have A Student Volunteer to Look Up the Words in the Dictionary to Verify the Guesses Offered in the Class  Graphic Organizers Ex: Science Unit (Terms)- Step 1-Present Terms Structure of Matter Physical Combination Chemical Combi- Elements Positive Electrical Charge nations Compounds Negative Electrical Charge Electrons Metals Nucleus Protons Non-Metals Orbits Neutrons Atomic Theory of Matter Electron Shell Atoms Energy Levels Mixtures Molecule Law of Definite or Constant Electrolysis Proportions Inert Gases Particles

17 Step 2- Prune the List for Your students- Limit the Vocabulary to Only the Most Essential Terms Step 3- Have Students Work with Partners to Sub classify the Terms in an Informal Outline Step 4- Have the Students Then Arrange the Terms in a Tree Diagram

18 Examples of Steps 2 & 3 Step 2- Sub-classification of Words Structure of Matter Chemical Combinations Natural Elements Physical Combos Compounds Metals Mixtures Molecules Nonmetals Compounds Elements Elements Step 3- Tree Diagram Structure of Matter Chemical Combinations CompoundsMoleculesElements Natural Elements MetalsNon-Metals Physical Combinations Mixtures Compounds Elements

19  Word Origins: (Word Etymology Approach) The word Manager- Root Word- (Latin)- Manus= Hand Have students think of words that contain root word- manus/ mana/ mani/ man Ex.- Manuals- (handbooks) Emancipate- Being freed from the hands of someone else Manacle- A prisoner who is handcuffed Manicurist- takes care of people’s hands Manager- someone who handles the affairs of a business

20  Provide Students With Historical Background on Words- and Their Evolution Ex.= The word Manufacture came into being in the 1500’s. It meant made by hand. Meaning Today?? The word Chauvinisme was a French word- Original Meaning- soldier of excessive patriotism and devotion to Napoleon In recent years… the meaning today??

21  Semantic Mapping It combines the grouping activity of the list- group-label lesson with the structure of the Graphic Organizer Ex.- Step 1- Write the word “volcano” on the board Step 2- Assign students to write down as many related words as they can think of from their own experiences or from their reading of the text-

22  Ex. Of Word List- Vesuvius Vulcanian Pompeii Mount St. Helens cataclysm lava Ash Magma plate tectonics Earthquake ring of fire vent Conduit volcanic bombs gas Blocks tsunami explosions Shield volcano plug Krakatoa Pressure hell terrifying Step 3- Organize the words into a semantic map on the board- as students share words with the class Step 4- Follow up with a discussion and questioning activity- Ex.- Tell what it would have been like to be on the Island of Krakatoa in 1883.

23 More Worthy Vocabulary Strategies Analogies Scrambled Words Matching Puzzles Word Competitions- Family Feud/ Bingo Capsule Vocabulary (CRISS) “Said is Dead” List

24 Let’s Practice The Etymology Approach 1)Latin Root word ver (veri)- means true Can you think of a few words that contain this root word? ** very- truly verity- truth- most often used in plural verity- truth- most often used in plural veracity- truthfulness veracity- truthfulness veracious- truthful veracious- truthful verdict- a true saying verdict- a true saying verisimilitude- likeness to truth or reality verisimilitude- likeness to truth or reality

25 Root Word Phobe (Phobia) Phobia- morbid dislike or an unreasonable fear Examples- Phobes – people who have phobias RussophobesAnglophobesXenophobiaAcrophobiaAilurophobia Phobophobia “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself” (President Roosevelt).

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