Steven Donohue EMTAS steven donohuewiltshire gov uk 01225

Steven Donohue EMTAS steven. donohue@wiltshire. gov. uk 01225 757903 The Importance of Vocabulary

By the end of this session you will have: • A reinforced understanding of the importance of vocabulary and vocabulary teaching in school; • An overview of the STAR system; • Some practical ideas to try.

I adore blueberry flavour yoghurt.

I’ve devoured every one of your novels.

I’m not sure what current thinking is on this issue.

The grass really wants cutting.

She’s brought to school every morning by her big sister.

large big older

Effect of poverty on vocabulary learning: Hart and Risley (1995) found: • Children in poor households knew on average one fifth of the vocabulary of children from wealthier homes at entry to school; • They had fewer words spoken to them; • They had a greater percentage of imperative sentences spoken to them. Importance of reading: Hayer and Ahrens (1988) found a higher density of low-frequency words in children’s literature than either TV or conversation between collegeeducated adults.

“Narrowing the word gap” - Jean Gross

“Narrowing the word gap” - Jean Gross

BRYN BUDS CARTONS CLARE DOUGH FLOUR GERMS GROWN-UP JO LOAVES LUNCHBOX MASHES ORCHARD PEEP PIPS RIPE SORTERS STALK TRACTORS WHEAT YEAST BOBBING CHESS COBWEBS CROAKED CROAKING FAIRGROUND FROGS GHANA GRUMBLING GRUMPY GURGLE INSECTS JIGSAW JOLTED KANGAROO LACE NEECH OONCH PAKISTAN PILOLO PLAYGROUND PRECIOUS REEDS ROAR RUMBLING RUSTLED SEAGULLS SKIPPYROO SPARKLED SPIDERS SQUAWKED STATUES THREADS VEILS WEBS

“Narrowing the word gap” - Jean Gross

Best predictors of a wide vocabulary: • Quality of speech heard by learner; • Exposure to a wide variety of words; • Encountering words in semantically rich and recurring contexts; (Snow and Kim 2007)

What’s the scale of the task? 10 new words a day 50% 20% 3 years Stahl and Nagy, 2005

Is it doable? 50% Marzano and Pickering, 2005 Specific vocabulary teaching 83%

“Vocabulary knowledge is knowledge. ” (Stahl, 2005)

“Unfortunately, several studies* suggest that at present, primary school attendance is not a major source of vocabulary acquisition” Biemiller and Boote (2006) * in the U. S.

9 features of successful specific vocab teaching 1. Make words a priority (fun, “many small actions”, enthralling not overwhelming); 2. Make a sustained effort; 3. Link oral and written vocabulary (reading vs. being read to); 4. Analyse components (phonology – what it sounds like, semantics – what it means, grammar); 5. Use a range of methods;

9 features of successful specific vocab teaching 6. “Go with the child” (pace, level, one concept at a time); 7. Multiple exposure (Stahl and Nagy – at least 12); 8. Teach words in context; 9. Teach strategies for acquiring new words.

STAR (Blachowicz and Fisher 2010) S T A R elect each ctivate eview

castle

battlements

crenellation

crenel merlon

Selecting

Arriving at the port seemed to take for ever; the excitement was overwhelming and everyone began to get very anxious. Lester was convinced the land was an iceberg which we were about to crash into. Apparently someone in Trinidad had told him England was as cold as an iceberg, so the nearer and colder it got, the more convinced he became that this was true. Sandra and I did our best to comfort him but secretly we both felt anxious and nervous about what was ahead of us. We stood on deck trembling with cold but also with a little fear. The anxiety grew greater as we travelled cautiously into dock, passing dozens of terminal sheds. In front of some sheds cargo and passenger ships were moored close to each other along the quayside. The docks were a hive of activity, nothing like the small shallow one we had departed from in Trinidad. There were cranes, cargo boxes and people everywhere. The terminal sheds were big barn-like buildings with long corrugated-iron roofs, which seemed to squat on the concrete wharf. In a few of the buildings we could see passengers who had arrived before us on other ships. Over and over I kept asking myself when was this floating vessel going to come to a rest? Surely it wouldn’t take the whole day to dock. We seemed so close but yet so far.

Teaching

Concept questions Questioning designed to test where the limits of a word’s “footprint” are. Where would you see ______? Would you see ______ in a _______? What causes it? What effects does it have? Can ____ happen to a person? An animal? A plant? A rock? When is _____ a problem? Is ______ an example of _____?

Activating Enable the child to connect their understanding of the word to their understanding of the world. Which is more x: I like/don’t like a ballerina or a this word zombie? because… Where might you see this word? Completion: Mum described the kitchen as x because… What objects might you need to do this action? Act out a situation that exemplifies the word.

Review Go back to the word, at the end of the lesson and in subsequent lessons: • Use it yourself; • Use texts containing it; • Ask the students to take a word off the word wall to use in independent writing; • Point out and praise when students use it; • Award points for using it; • Pull a word out the word pot and revisit; • Play games; • Send home “fridge words” and set homework for parents!

crenel merlon

Adding 2 reviews of each word meaning taught 22% 41% Percentage of new words learned Biemiller and Boote, 2006

Review Go back to the word, at the end of the lesson and in subsequent lessons: • Use it yourself; • Use texts containing it; • Ask the students to take a word off the word wall to use in independent writing; • Point out and praise when students use it; • Award points for using it; • Pull a word out the word pot and revisit; • Play games; • Send home “fridge words” and set homework for parents!

Let’s play a game…

STAR (Blachowicz and Fisher 2010) S T A R elect each ctivate eview By the end of this session you will have: • A reinforced understanding of the importance of vocabulary and vocabulary teaching in school; • An overview of the STAR system; • Some practical ideas to try.