| To subscribe |
 |
Inspired
Teacher
Blog
|
|
The most powerful thing in the universe...
There are a lot things I got wrong as a teacher, but vocabulary is something I think I got right. I gave the words away for free but I knew I'd achieved something when my students saw that owning these words made them rich.
Read (and respond to) the Blog.
|
Center for Inspired Teaching is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that exists to ensure schools make the most of children's innate desire to learn. We do this by investing in teachers. Please visit our website to learn more about our philosophy, programs, and results.
|
|
|
Is there a better way to teach vocabulary?
|
|
When we think of "vocabulary" in the context of school, we tend to think of the long lists of words we were expected to memorize each week and match to definitions on Friday quizzes. We think of "SAT words" and words in bold on textbook pages. The experience of "learning vocabulary" is usually not remembered with fondness and the words we still recall from those weekly drills are often few.
This is because the way we conventionally teach vocabulary--memorize a list of random words, match them to dictionary definitions on a test or quiz--doesn't fit very well with the best ways our brains process information.
Consider the following bits of brain research gathered from Brain Matters: Translating Research into Classroom Practice by Patricia Wolfe.
The Magical Number Seven (Plus or Minus Two):
Our span of immediate memory tends to be around 7. The number of digits children can recall accurately increases by one every two years until a mental age of 15, at which point the magical number of 7 is reached.
Implications for teaching vocabulary: Consider giving your students only 7 or 8 words to learn a week. It's a less impressive number but they have a better chance of retaining those words over time.
Elaborative Rehearsal:
Elaborative rehearsal involves strategies that encourage the learner to elaborate on the information in a manner that enhances understanding and retention by making the information more meaningful or relevant to the learner. Implications for teaching vocabulary: Consider making "learning vocabulary" a part of your classroom routine every day. Each day create a new "experience" for students in which they practice using the words. (We've listed several examples below.) The more comfortable students become using these words in multiple situations and incorporating them into their daily language, the more likely they are to comprehend their meaning and make them a regular part of their personal vocabulary.
Chunking:
- Working memory is limited but the limitations can be circumvented by our ability to "chunk" information.
- Being able to see how information fits together in chunks is a hallmark of learning, but students need to make the connections themselves for the information to stick.
Implications for teaching vocabulary: Instead of randomly assigning words, consider grouping the words students learn so they relate to the concepts you're learning that week, or at the very least to each other. As one of your "experiences" with the words throughout the week, have students write a cohesive paragraph using all of the words in context so they can see how they fit together.
Rote Rehearsal:
Rote rehearsal is repeating the information over and over, but this strategy for memorizing typically works better with skills or habits than with content.
Implications for teaching vocabulary: Repetitious memorization of vocab words doesn't really work since they are content, not skills. But if you have students practice using the words over and over in daily conversation, you will help them to turn the use of those words into a regular habit.
_______________________________
INSPIRED TEACHER HOMEWORK:
How do you teach vocabulary? Please send Jenna a short description of your strategies. If your idea is selected for inclusion in the next newsletter, we'll send you some great Inspired Teaching gear!
Email: jenna@inspiredteaching.org
Last Week's Inspired Idea:
We asked readers to share a strategy for fostering the skill of self-assessment in students.
"One of my high school teachers required our class to journal about self-reflection. The practice was somewhat "meta," reflecting on self-reflection, but it got me in the habit of noting my own progress or lack thereof, and I think it's one way to let students explore the importance of reflection and self-assessment without being didactic."
Thanks to Des Pipkins of Washington, DC for your feedback!
|
Vocabulary for all learners!
|
|
The following activities can be used for vocabulary of any subject and provide opportunities for students to experience the words in a variety of learning styles.
Word Pizza Wheel (tactile/kinesthetic, visual)
Students write definitions for their vocabulary words on "slices" of a circle, better yet, they write sentences using the words but leave a blank where the word should go. They then write their words on "slices" of another circle and cut these slices out. To study their vocabulary they match the word slices with their definitions or sentences.
Word Acting (auditory, visual, tactile/kinesthetic)
Students create short skits to represent the meaning of each vocabulary word. The skits must include proper usage of the word, and may be performed for the class.
Acrostic Poems (visual)
Students create acrostic poems out of each of their vocabulary words. The acrostics can be made up of synonyms or a series of words that approximate the definition, but they should relate to the word and aid in comprehension of what it means. (For example: CAT - Curious Attentitive Tiger-like)
Picture Dictionary (visual)
Students cut an 8.5 x 11" piece of paper in half, put the pieces on top of each other, fold them down the middle, and staple to create an 8-page "book." On each page of the book, students write a vocabulary word and draw a picture that helps them remember what that word means.
Call and Response (auditory)
As you call out definitions the class responds in unison with the vocabulary word that fills in the blank. You can mix this up by showing pictures, using gestures, or reading sentences where you leave the word blank. Try having your students deliver the prompts!
Word Stretches (kinesthetic)
Students create a full-body stretch (or pantomime movement) to represent each vocabulary word. You can start class or take breaks throughout the day and run through these stretches calling out the words and, as a whole class, moving into the position that represents it.
|
Teacher Resources
|
|
Corcoran Teacher Support Workshops - Fall 2008
Education faculty and staff of the Corcoran offer a range of "to-the-point" workshops each year to help teachers meet specific needs in their classrooms using methods and examples from visual art.
Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2008 4:00-7:15 pm
"Studio Art Critique: Teachers & Students Assessing Student Art Work" (Grades 3-12) and "Critical Strategies: 'I like it' versus 'It's good'" (Grades K-8)
Saturday, Nov. 22, 2008 9:00 am-12:30 pm
"Mod, Modern, Moderne, Modernism, Post-Modern, Contemporary" (Grades 4-12)
CORCORAN Members: $5.00 Public: $8.00
Space is limited; pre-registration is recommended.
Please call 202-639-1807 or email tours@corcoran.org to learn more.
Enrich your teaching as a global learner!
"Fund for Teachers enriches the personal and professional growth of teachers by recognizing and supporting them as they identify and pursue opportunities around the globe that will have the greatest impact on their practice, the academic lives of their students, and their school communities." Submit your application by Jan. 30, 2009.
Mark Your Calendar for Smithsonian Teachers' Night
Friday, Nov. 14
Teachers of all subjects and grade levels can find new classroom-ready resources and attend demonstrations led by Smithsonian educators at the Smithsonian's annual resource expo for educators. Smithsonian Teachers' Night takes place at the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the National Portrait Gallery, whose programs are collectively known as the Donald W. Reynolds Center for American Art and Portraiture, above the Gallery Place-Chinatown Metrorail Station. Entrance to Smithsonian Teachers' Night is free, but you must register on the website. For more information and to register, visit www.teachersnight.org.
| |
|
|
|
