1. Bringing words to life Vocabulary Instruction for Grades K-2
Welcome
Bringing words to life
Vocabulary Instruction for Grades K-2
February 6, 2017
Anne Philipson & Christina Giulvezan

2. How were you taught vocabulary?
C: When I was in school, vocabulary instruction consisted of writing down words and copying their definitions from a dictionary. I then had to write a sentence using the word. We know that words are given meaning in context. This vocabulary exercise kept students busy, but it was ineffective. We are lucky because we know that teaching words in complete isolation doesn’t work. Today, we are going to share with you why teaching vocabulary is important, how to teach vocabulary, and give you examples of strategies that you can use in your classrooms.
How were you taught vocabulary?
The Dictionary of Doom

3. C: Why does vocabulary matter
C: Why does vocabulary matter? It is essential for reading comprehension and school success. Research has shown that the strongest reason for teaching vocabulary in the early grades is that it predicts whether students will have adequate reading comprehension later on. The National Research Council and the National Reading Panel and other researchers have found that even though teaching vocabulary in the early grades is imperative, students are usually tested on vocabulary but little time is spent teaching vocabulary to children.
Vocabulary size in kindergarten predicts reading comprehension in the middle grades.
Vocabulary size at the end of first grade predicts comprehension 10 years later.
Deficits in vocabulary in third grade relate to lower comprehension scores in the upper grades.
High school seniors near the top of their class know 4x as many words as their lower performing classmates.
High knowledge third graders had vocabularies about equal to lowest performing 12th graders.
Studies estimate of a hundred unfamiliar words met in reading between 5 and 10 will be learned. Authors don’t always give defintions of words in the paragraphs. They do on STAAR, but that’s not real world text.
Vocabulary Matters

4. Vocabulary is not one size fits all
C: Student A learns 2 new words per day = 750 words per year
Student B learns 8 new words per day= 3,000 words per year
What kinds of deficits in vocabulary might you have in your classroom? Some of your students will be exposed to rich language at home, full of vocabulary. Other students will arrive at school with a grave deficit. As educators, we have an opportunity to provide students who have vocabulary deficits with rich, dynamic vocabulary instruction. Intentionally teaching vocabulary is urgent.
Vocabulary is not one size fits all

5. Three principles of Vocabulary instruction
C: Student need multiple exposures to words. It takes exposures for a child to permanently learn a new vocabulary word. Explain words so that students have a deep understanding. Connect words to what students already know.
A: Emerge example.
Three principles of Vocabulary instruction
Multiple exposures
Explain
Connect

6. When do I teach vocabulary?
C: Before, during, and after reading, embedding it in daily life.
Before: pre-teaching vocabulary they need to understand before it is read.
During: embed definitions quickly while you read.
After: review, play with, and connect further
When do I teach vocabulary?
Before
During
After

7. Which vocabulary words do I choose?
A: In the book Bringing Words to Life (show)
Isabel Beck and her colleagues created a system that uses
3 Tiers to classify words.
Which vocabulary words do I choose?
3 Types of Words

8. Tier 1 Words Basic Frequently used words Words everyone knows
A: Tier 1
These are basic words that students typically know.
Students rarely need instruction with these words.
Ex: baby, clock, happy, walk
These words are typically derived from Anglo-Saxon or Old English.
There are about 7,000 word families in English in this Tier.
(ESL students may not know the words in English, but know the concept in their native language so a simple explanation or picture/label are sufficient to help them understand.)
**Skip Tier 2 for a moment and talk about Tier 3 words.***
Tier 1 Words
Basic
Frequently used words
Words everyone knows

9. Tier 3 words Low frequency Specialized Content specific A: Tier 3
These are low frequency words that are limited to specific domains or content areas like occupational fields, technology, or school subjects.
Ex: isotope, lathe, crepe, asphalt
We learn these when a specific need arises…like learning amino acid or isotope during a chemistry lesson.
There are about 400,000 words that fall in this Tier.
Tier 3 words
Low frequency
Specialized
Content specific

10. Tier 2 words Critical Promote conceptual understanding
A: Tier 2 Words
*words important for reading comprehension
*words that promote conceptual understanding
*words that have multiple meanings
*words that increase descriptive vocabulary
*words that are characteristic of mature language
“Words For Life”
Think “Would students be able to explain these words using a
word or phrase already known to them?” (like a Tier 1 word)
Example: fortunate=lucky
required= have to
comment= something someone has to say
absurd= very silly, (ridiculous)
Tier 2 words
Critical
Promote conceptual understanding
Instructional potential
Words for life

11. RUN Multi-meaning words
A: Activity: On a piece of paper, write the word “run.” I’m going to give you three minutes at your table to brainstorm all of the meanings you can think of for the word run. Give participants 3 meetings. Tell the participants that there are X different meanings for the word run. Ask them to share. Add some that they missed. Say “Can you see why sometimes a word can technically be a Tier I word, but could really trip up young readers if it has many meanings?” Many words in the English language have more than one meaning. It’s important that students have flexible word knowledge so that can understand the word and apply the to a variety of contexts. We don’t want a student’s understanding of a word to be narrow, or students will be limited in their ability to comprehend.
*Show multiple meaning deck.
RUN
Multi-meaning words

12. Now it’s your turn! Choosing Vocabulary Words for Instruction
A: Now It’s Your Turn (need a children’s book)
Take out 3 sticky notes
Using your children’s book, select 3 Tier 2 words and write one on each sticky note.
(7 min)
Share the words you chose at your table.
4. (Chart them?) **Save for later activity C. will chart them. (1 per person)
Now it’s your turn!
Choosing Vocabulary Words for Instruction

13. Explicit vocabulary instruction routine
A: We have talked about why to teach vocabulary, when to teach it, and which words to teach.
Now we will talk about HOW.
On your tables, you will see a handout on blue cardstock.
This is an Explicit Vocabulary Routine you can use to teach vocabulary words.
I am going to model this using two different words.
Explicit vocabulary instruction routine
Before or After Reading

14. The routine in action https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OW4eduynQ1E
Anne
The routine in action
Anita Archer

15. Now it’s your turn! The Vocabulary Routine
A: Working with a partner at your table, choose one of the Tier 2 words from the earlier activity. Use that word as you go through use the Vocabulary Routine to teach the word to your partner. 7 minutes.
Now it’s your turn!
The Vocabulary Routine

16. Wolf! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fr7yRYegjb8 During Reading
C: Now we’re going to talk about teaching vocabulary during reading using the read aloud. This is a powerful way to teach and reinforce vocabulary every time you do a read aloud. Anita Archer conducting a read aloud. She’s modeling this for educators, so you will see her doing a little bit more embedding that you might want to actually do with your students. You have to find a good balance between embedding vocabulary instruction and maintaining the flow of the story. Give them a few minutes to debrief. Stop video at 7:10.
Anne has the book and will bring it, in case they want to know how it ends.
Wolf!
During Reading

17. C:
activities

18. Word association Which one these words goes with… C: Word Associations
Which word goes with…..
Which word goes with crook? accomplice
Which word goes with piano? virtuoso
Which word goes with Kindergartener? novice
Which word goes with absurd? silly
Word association
Which one these words goes with…

19. Have you ever? Describe a time when you would urge someone.
C: Have you ever?
This activity helps students associate newly learned words with contexts and activities from their own experiences.
Describe a time you might urge someone?
When might you commend someone?
Have you ever wailed? (tell about it)
Have you ever?
Describe a time when you would urge someone.

20. IDEA completion Sentence Stems
C: Idea Completion
When we ask students to use a word in a sentence, it can result in meaningless sentences, especially when the knowledge of the word is limited. Ex: I saw a virtuoso.
Instead, provide students with a sentence stem that require them to use a word meaning in order to explain.
The audience asked the virtuoso to play another piece of music because…..
The skiing teacher said that Maria was a novice because….
IDEA completion
Sentence Stems
The skiiing teacher said that Maria was a novice on the ski slopes because….

21. Children create examples
C: Children Create Examples
Showing an example helps the child think through how the word fits with the question in order to express the relationship between the example and the word.
If there was an emergency at an amusement park, what might have happened?
If you had a friend who watched TV all the time, how might you coax him into getting some exercise?
Children create examples
If there was an emergency at an amusement park, what would you see happen?

22. Vocabulary Wall & Pinch Papers
Word practice
Checking for understanding

23. A: When I worked as a first grade teacher, I had a principal who was also a writer. She loved words and understood how important it was for students to play with words to understand them.
She used to have a school wide program where she introduced three words per week.
-announcements
(Kids acting out, using in sentences, books where one of the words were found were shared)
-In my first grade classroom we had sight words every week that we added to our sight word boxes. When we made up our sentences on Fridays using the sight words, I would challenge my students to also use one of the words of the week in the sentence. They LOVED it.
-Using words conversationally was the goal.
Word of the week

24. Anne
Thumbs up, Thumbs DOwn
Would you like to be described as vain?

25. What, When, How, and Why? When would you be stern?
A: What, When, Why and How
When might you be stern?
Why might you be stern?
How would your face look if you are stern?
What would an immense plate of spaghetti look like?
Why might you feel miserable after eating an immense plate of spaghetti?
What is something you could do to impress your mother? Why?
Which thing would be extraordinary? A shirt that is comfortable or a shirt that washed itself? Why?
What is something you would do cautiously? Why?
How would you treat something that is fragile? Why?
*You might also do this as a choice between two words:
If you get your clothes ready for school before you go to bed, would that be sensible or ferocious?
What, When, How, and Why?
When would you be stern?
How would you be stern?
Why would you be stern?
What would an immense plate of spaghetti look like?

26. A: Show Me
After you have taught the words insisted, reluctant and drowsy using the book A Pocket For Corduroy by Don Freeman:
Show me how your mother might look if she insisted you go to bed.
Show me how you would look if you felt reluctant about taking your little sister to the park.
Show me how you would look if you sat down in a comfortable chair and started to feel drowsy.
Show me
Show us what your mother would look like if she insisted you go to bed?

27. Making choices If anything I say has anything to do with clutching?
A: Making Choices
If anything I say might be an example of clutching say clutching. If not, don’t say anything.
Holding on tightly to a purse.
Petting a cat’s fur.
Holding a fistful of money.
If anything I say might make someone look radiant, say radiant If not, don’t say anything.
Winning a million dollars.
Getting a hug from your favorite movie star.
Cleaning your room.
Slide 29: Children Create Examples
Showing an example helps the child think through how the word fits with the question in order to express the relationship between the example and the word.
If there was an emergency at an amusement park, what might have happened?
If you had a friend who watched TV all the time, how might you coax him into getting some exercise?
Making choices
If anything I say has anything to do with clutching?
Holding a purse
Flying a kite

28. Most to least A: Most to Least:
Students each have a sentence strip that represents a continuum from most to least and use it to indicate answers to vocabulary questions like…
How much energy would it take to:
Meander down the hall?
Vault over a car?
Be a spectator at a concert?
How happy would you be if:
A herd of sheep meandered into your living room?
Your mother urged you to have a second piece of cake?
The President commended you for being brave?
*The neat thing is that there is no wrong answer. Students can explain why they chose the part of the continuum for their answer.
Most to least

29. C:
Vocabulary dress up

30. C: In order to help motivate students to maintain words, consider this idea.
A student that can explain the meaning of three words under the display of learned vocabulary words get to take the three words on cards and wear a Wizard Hat as they walk through school. Any adult can then read one of the words on the card and ask the child to explain the meaning.
Word wizard
Wear a wizard hat with one or two words and anyone can ask them to explain what the words mean.

31. Consider diversity English Language Learners C: Consider Diversity
Vocabulary is a major source of difficulty for ESL students. It is essential that these students have explicit and contextualized instruction beyond their ESL classes. Take advantage of concepts ELL’s known in their native language. When students learn words, they learn both the label for a word and the concepts behind the label. ELLs might understand the concepts of words such as war and peace, but lack the English labels. If so, you just need to teach them the English label for the familiar concepts. Explicitly teach how to identify cognates. There are many shared root words in Spanish and English. Teach multiple meaning words. Synonyms, antonyms, idioms, similes, metaphors. Even simple words such as bug, ring, light, and pen have several meanings that will be unfamiliar for ELLs. Provide multiple exposures in varied written and oral contexts. Students typically need exposures to the word and its meaning across multiple contexts. Some of your ELLs only hear English at school, so you want to maximize their exposure to the English language as much as possible. Contextualize vocabulary instruction by using artifacts, audio-visual materials, hands-on experiences, graphic organizers, and semantic mapping. Be sure to teach function words such as highlight, follow, point out, caption, etc.
Consider diversity
English Language Learners

32. Bringing words to life by isabel beck
Anne
Bringing words to life by isabel beck
Bibliography

33. Got questions? Anne Philipson, SRP Teacher at Reed Elementary School
Both
Got questions?
Anne Philipson, SRP Teacher at Reed Elementary School
Christina Giulvezan, Intervention Specialist at Bagdad Elementary School