Teaching Tipsters: Explicit Vocabulary Instruction

Kids need to know a lot of words to be successful in school. It is estimated that materials that schoolchildren read include a total of 100,000 different words! That's a crazy amount of words. Kids learn about 3,000-4,000 words every year, and they learn these words in a lot of different ways. Students pick up a lot of words without explicit teaching- through read alouds, independent wide reading, building word consciousness (awareness) in the class, through conversations, etc... But explicit teaching is important to build your student's basic reading vocabulary.

What is Explicit Vocabulary Instruction?

Intentional, Explicit Instruction Research indicates that the intentional, explicit teaching of specific words and word-learning strategies can both add words to students’ vocabularies (see Tomeson & Aarnoutse, 1998; White et al., 1990) and improve reading comprehension of texts containing those words (see McKeown, Beck, Omanson, & Pople, 1985; Stahl & Fairbanks, 1986). Whereas intentional instruction can benefit all students, it is especially important for students who have not developed the decoding and comprehension skills necessary for wide reading. For these students in particular, intentional, explicit teaching of specific word meanings and of word-learning strategies is especially important (National Reading Panel, 2000). Specific word instruction refers to vocabulary instruction that enables students to develop in-depth knowledge of important words – that is, to know words well enough to access information about them from memory as they read.

Every year I dabble in vocabulary instruction. But I want to make sure next year there's a specific plan for vocabulary instruction for all my intervention groups and for our classrooms school wide. I know how valuable it is for the kids, especially English Language Learners. This past year I read aloud a book once a week in my intervention groups. I  pre-taught words before the read aloud, and just with that simple forethought I saw my students word interest and knowledge grow. It was very exciting! I want to be even more intentional next year and have use a specific method for teaching pre-selected words weekly.

Michael Graves, vocabulary instruction guru extraordinaire, suggests explicitly teaching 10 words a week, in additional to other vocabulary building activities integrated into the teaching day.



I've gathered some explicit vocabulary methods online:

Method 1

Marzano's Six Steps of Explicit Academic Vocabulary Instruction

(check out the link for more details and awesome vocab lists!)

Dr. Marzano describes a six-step process in the instruction of vocabulary (Building Academic Vocabulary).  The first three steps are to assist the teacher in direct instruction.  The last three steps are to provide the learner practice and reinforcement.

Step 1:  The teacher will give a description, explanation, or example of the new term.

Step 2:  The teacher will ask the learner to give a description, explanation, or example of the new term in his/her own words.

Step 3:  The teacher will ask the learner to draw a picture, symbol, or locate a graphic to represent the new term.

Step 4:  The learner will participate in activities that provide more knowledge of the words in their vocabulary notebooks.

Step 5:  The learner will discuss the term with other learners.

Step 6:  The learner will participate in games that provide more reinforcement of the new term.

Method 2

Early Literacy Instruction for English Language Learners
1. Choose three to five words from a story.
2. Preview the words, using definitions the student can understand.
3. Read the text (as a read aloud, shared or guided reading).
4. Put the words in context.
5. Give an example in a different context.
6. Ask students to provide their own examples.

Method 3
The STAR Model (see more detail here)
1. Select
2. Teach
3. Activate/Analyze/Apply
4. Revisit

Method 4
This is a method by Michael Graves, one of my favorite vocabulary experts in the field of teaching reading:
1. Define the words
2. Use them in context
3. Give students opportunities to contribute what they know about the words
4. Display taught words predominately in classroom
5. Review and rehearse the words in a variety of ways (games, chants, listening activities etc...)

Each one of these methods has its place in the teaching of vocabulary explicitly- and they're all similar to each other. Method 1, Marzano's method, seems a little rigid to me, but I know a lot of people like it for teaching academic vocabulary. I like that in Method 2 the words are taken from a text that the class is reading together. I think this is very powerful. Method 3 is simple, and simple is good. And finally, Method 4 is the general, but I feel like the most practical for me to use on a day-to-day basis.

I know that with a school filled with English Language Learners, vocabulary instruction must come to the forefront of my teaching. I am looking forward to being more systematic next year with my explicit vocabulary instruction- I know is will really benefit my students.

Link to these AMAZING online resources:

• Scholastic's Lesson Plan for Explicit Vocabulary Instruction
• A Good Overview on the Research of Vocabulary Instruction
• Vocabulary Instruction for English Language Learners
• How Systematic Vocabulary Instruction Can Close the Literacy Gap
• Reading Rocket's Developing Academic Vocabulary
• Integrated Vocabulary Instruction- Complete Packet of Ideas

I was inspire to write this post after reading Five-Day Plan for Developing Breadth of Vocabulary via Storybook Reading on Vocabulogic. A wonderful post, and an equally lovely blog!!

If you're a teacher, how do you explicit teach vocabulary in the classroom? Do you prefer any one of these four methods, or do you favor another method altogether? How else to you integrate vocabulary instruction into your day?

If you're an interventionist/reading specialist, how do you weave vocabulary learning into intervention?

If you're a parent, how do you find yourself teaching new words to your kids? I'd love to know!

Reading Comprehension with Ease: The Click/Clunk Strategy

Teaching comprehension can be daunting. It requires that students have a toolbox of reading skills in place, and that these skills function seamlessly. When one of these skills lacks (vocabulary, fluency ability, conceptual reasoning), understanding the text can be challenging for the student/child.

Many poor readers struggle with monitoring their comprehension while they're reading. Good readers, like you and me, do this naturally. When we're confused- we question the text, reread the paragraph, or even go to a second source to find more information. Poor readers are not always aware when they need to reread for clarification, and they may be unsure when or how to ask a question when they're confused.

I came across a brilliant comprehension strategy on Intervention Central earlier this year called Click or Clunk. I've been using this strategy all year (with great success), and many teachers at my school have also started using it.

When the child has read a page/paragraph/chapter (or when I have read a portion of text out loud) we stop and I ask them to Click or Clunk. Students say Click when they understand what they read, and Clunk if they're confused. If they say Click, they retell what was read. If they say Clunk, they ask a question that will help them to clarify the text.

This is so simple, yet so empowering for kids.

Here's why it works so well:

• The kids that understand the text synthesize the material for the other students- which is good for the "clickers" and the "clunkers".
• Students that think they understand the text (but don't), are pushed to explain their thinking. Usually this process helps them to realize their misconceptions- which, in turn, helps them to more fully understand the text.
• All students are eager to help each other understand the text and usually answer each others questions really well.
• "Clunkers" learn how and when to ask questions while they read. They learn how to explain their thinking.
• Students pay better attention to the text when they are asked to share so specifically.
• It's easy! Kids can easily do it independently!
• Kids like it! My students ask to do Click or Clunk, even when I don't have it scheduled into the lesson.
• It gets students talking A LOT more (and the teacher talking a lot less). When students are truly interacting with text in a lively discussion- they comprehend a whole lot more!
• Did I mention that it gets the kids talk A LOT more??!

How I use Click/Clunk:

• I use this in small group (3-5 students) discussion in reading sessions with my students. But you could easily use it whole class.
• Some days I have students get into pairs. Students switch off reading. At the end of every page, each student Click or Clunks.
• I use it as an exit ticket at the end of my reading session with the students.
• I made comprehension cards with different comprehension strategies- one is labeled for monitoring with Click/Clunk. It reminds the students to retell for Click and ask a clarifying question for Clunk. Despite the simplicity of the activity, my student really like have the card in their hands to help remind them how to Click/Clunk.
• I try not to do any talking. I choose the first student to talk, and then they call on each other. This takes me out of the conversation (for the most part), and helps the kids to have a healthy discussion on their own.

Teachers, I hope you get a chance to try this with your students! Parents, I think you could easily try this at home with your elementary aged kids. The more you get your student/child to talk about what they're reading, the better. This interactive and simple way of comprehending text is a little less daunting- for both the student and the teacher!

Read On!

Tips for Reading Tutors

My aunt and uncle are literacy heroes (woot, woot) as they have been investing a great deal of their personal time tutoring reading to kids and adults in their local community. I thought it may be helpful for them (and to any other reading tutors out there) to share some tips and links on reading tutoring.

The tutoring experience can be really rewarding to both parties involved. And to make the most it, here some of my ideas:


1) Learn about your student's background. This will help to motivate your student to be engaged in your time together. It may be fairly obvious- but knowing your students interests will help you to know what type of books or reading material to expose them to. Get your student excited about reading and help them find the books that are just right for them!!


2) Learn your student's reading needs. This will help you target your tutoring support to meet your student's needs. While you probably won't give a formal reading assessment on your student, you can tell a lot about someones reading just by having them read to you. Have this checklist in your head as you read with your student (some of this list has been taken from Hopelink) and take stock of his/her biggest areas of need: