After years of writing, blogging, and training schools in the area of vocabulary development, I've decided to make my work more accessible by building a free, 45-page vocabulary instruction playbook that consists of two types of resources. Each strategy (16 in all) has a one-page explanation followed by a checklist of observable actions that the teacher and students can take to put the strategy into action.
The strategies are split into four large sections.
Choosing the right words to teach (and which ones to ignore)
Teaching new words with a variety of techniques beyond simple definitions
Connecting words to known concepts and semantic webs of knowledge
Processing words with a plethora of activities and learning tasks
The final section, processing, contains the largest number of strategies and is subdivided based on the recommended grouping for each task (i.e., individual, partner, small group, or class).
To begin, consider whether you have a solid, achievable list of words for your students to study. If the list is too large or might contain superfluous terms, start with strategies that help you choose the right word.
In all circumstances you will need to utilize the ABCs of vocabulary instruction to teach new words in robust ways.
After words are explained using the ABCs of vocabulary instruction, students would benefit from connecting words to prior knowledge. These tasks are light-hearted and not taken for a grade.
Ultimately, you’ll want to choose a processing task (or three) to help your students chew on their new vocabulary words. There are many strategies to choose from so mix things up and use different strategies for each unit of study.
To access this free resource, simply fill in your name and email address here.
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