Educators frequently ask us, “What kinds of words should I teach English learners?” What instructional methods facilitate this type of word learning?
Research demonstrates that vocabulary instructionexplicit teaching and guided practice to develop students’ knowledge of word meaningsneeds to be done consistently across all instructional forms for emerging bilinguals, often known as English language learners (ELL). Different instructional approaches, on the other hand, are beneficial for teaching various types of words.
- Academic Vocabulary Words: Research suggests that many ELL students and considerable percentage of monolingual students find academic vocabulary words problematic. Content area teachers frequently teach the entire class discipline-specific terminology, such as “hypotenuse” or “renaissance.” These difficult topics must be taught by modeling, rich-print exposure, conversation, and writing, and must be linked to prior knowledge. Academic language that is cross-disciplinary and all-purpose also has to be taught. These are high-utility words that appear frequently in texts across content areas, such as “process,” “interpret,” “although,” and “therefore.” These words are frequently unfamiliar to students, but most teachers do not regard them as difficult or as important targets of instruction. Academic phrases that can be used in a variety of situations should be clearly taught through discussions of academic texts.
- Small-Group Instruction: Small groups allow for a more in-depth examination of vocabulary. Small-group literacy interventions should focus on specific content-area language requirements identified through English proficiency exams (for example, the ACCESS for ELLS by WIDA). Basic vocabulary words must also be addressed in small-group education. Because English learners’ lives outside of school are generally dominated by their native tongue, they frequently require assistance with fundamental terminology, such as household goods and kinship phrases. This teaching differs significantly from that given around words that refer to abstract notions in terms of appearance and feel. Students frequently require labels in English for concepts they already know in their native language when learning basic vocabulary. Instead of focusing primarily on daily words, we advocate for a strategy that teaches both everyday and academic vocabulary at the same time.
- One-on-One Instruction: Students who have been recognized as requiring personalised interventions may also require individualized attention to their word recognition and reading fluency skills. It’s important to remember that even though word recognition abilities (such as sounding out words) are still developing, the importance of teaching word meanings cannot be overstated. Expanding your vocabulary helps you recognize words more quickly and understand what you’re reading better.
The following elements are critical in all instructional formats:
- Explicit instruction: Teachers must provide easy-to-understand definitions of unfamiliar words, as well as introduce new meanings in context through vocabulary lessons that promote text comprehension and/or content learning. Students’ prior knowledge is also activated, incorporated, and extended through this explicit instruction.
- Production and recycling: Students must practice newly learnt words orally and in writing on a regular basis. By recycling previously learned terms, instructional activities should reinforce and increase learning. Keep in mind that learning takes time, so children may use words in unusual ways at first. This is all part of the learning process.
- Multiple opportunities to learn about the meanings of words: The accumulation of word knowledge is a process. Learners build up their understanding of a new term over time by finding and applying it in a growing number of contexts. Understanding nuances and idiomatic idioms takes time. Throughout this process, teachers can serve as a scaffold by modeling the usage of new and recycled terms.
This response was created in collaboration with Harvard Graduate School of Education’s Usable Knowledge.
What are some examples of high frequency words?
High frequency words, such as “and,” “the,” “as,” and “it,” are one of the most common forms of sight words that appear frequently in written text. They are frequently words that have little meaning on their own but play an important role in the overall meaning of a statement.
What is the difference between the three layers of vocabulary?
Tier 1Basic Vocabulary, Tier 2High Frequency/Multiple Meaning, and Tier 3Subject Related are the three tiers of vocabulary discussed in this handout. Tier one is made up of the most fundamental terms. These terms don’t usually need to be taught and don’t usually have many meanings.
What is the definition of a Tier 2 word?
Consider that different words in the language have varied levels of utility as a starting point for deciding which words to teach. In this regard, we’ve discovered that our tiers concept, which we explored in Chapter 1, is one useful lens through which to examine words for instructional attention. Remember that Tier One consists of the most basic phrases such as clock, baby, and cheerful, which are rarely taught in school. Tier Three terms are those with a low frequency of use, frequently limited to specific domainsisotope, lathe, peninsula, and are probably best taught when needed in a specific content area. Tier Two terms are high-frequency words for senior language users (coincidence, ludicrous, industrious), therefore learning them can help an individual improve their language skills.
What is the definition of a utility word?
1: suitability for a specific purpose or value to a specific objective. 2: anything practical or functional. 3a: a public service. b(1): a service provided by a public utility (such as light, power, or water). (2): device or a piece of equipment that is used to deliver such or a similar service.
What is the difference between high and low frequency words?
The word frequency effect is a psychological phenomena in which words that are encountered more frequently have faster recognition speeds than words that are seen less frequently. Individual awareness of the tested language influences word frequency. In non-alphabetic languages like Chinese, the phenomena can be extended to other characters of the word.
A word is called high frequency if it is often used in everyday conversation, such as “the.” If a word is not often used, such as the word “strait,” it is deemed low frequency. Some languages, such as Chinese, have numerous levels of daily speech, which affects word frequency. Frequency can be found at the character or word level. At the orthographic level, there is also a frequency effect. Those with a lower frequency benefit more from a single repetition than words with a higher frequency.
What is the difference between sight words and words that occur frequently?
The most often appearing words in print are those with a high frequency. High frequency words include Fry’s Instant Words and Dolch Words (the, of, and, to, in, etc). Words that are recognized “at first sight” are known as sight words. Once a pupil can read a word quickly, it can become a sight word.
How do you remember terms with a high frequency of occurrence?
Students should read aloud brief phrases or sentences containing high-frequency words. Say the word and have the learner repeat it while glancing at the card if the student hesitates. The pupil should then repeat the phrase or sentence loudly.
What are the four different kinds of vocabularies?
The words we need to know in order to communicate successfully are referred to as vocabulary. Listening, speaking, reading, and writing are four sorts of language that educators commonly consider. The words we need to know to understand what we hear are referred to as listening vocabulary. The words we use when we speak make up our spoken vocabulary. The words we need to know to understand what we read are referred to as reading vocabulary. The words we employ in writing make up our writing vocabulary.
Vocabulary is an important part of the reading process that helps a reader understand what they’re reading. A reader cannot comprehend a work unless they are familiar with the meanings of the majority of the words. The majority of words are learned indirectly by students via their daily interactions with oral and written language. Other terms are picked up through attentive instruction.