5. Evaluate students’ mastery of the words.
This might take the form of a writing activity, a retelling, or artwork (p. 17).
The eventual goal of vocabulary instruction is for all students to become independent readers who automatically separate words into the three levels listed for greater ease of comprehension. That process may make studying easier because often difficult content vocabulary words can be chunked into categories. After dividing words into groups, students may select from several strategies to acquire ownership of the words.
During a recent school visit, one of the authors observed Mrs. Messina as she worked with her 3rd grade students who were struggling with comprehending science concepts because of students’ difficulty in knowing the content vocabulary words. She reflected on how she studied and learned new vocabulary words in education texts and the impression the National Reading Panel’s report made on her own learning as a college student.
Using ideas from Hail et al. (2012), she decided to try a self-sorting strategy with her students. The new science topic was weather and its effects on the coastal region where they lived. She placed her students in groups of four after assigning pages in the science text. Even though the 3rd graders were in groups, Mrs. Messina asked each group member to independently search the chapter for vocabulary words they thought might be important for comprehending the text. In addition to the text, students were to look at charts, graphs, illustrations, and other visuals to discover what they considered critical vocabulary words. Students wrote each individual word on 3x5 index cards. After combining the lists, each group had its own set of targeted words. The next step was for each group to divide its words into the three levels: words they knew well; words they had heard of, but did not know automatically; and words with which they were completely unfamiliar (Reutzel & Cooter, 2008).
During the next several weeks, Mrs. Messina’s instructional plans included intentional in-depth discussion of all the selected words. Her goal was to ensure her students could pronounce and use appropriately all the words, thereby placing them in the category of words they knew well before they took the unit assessment. The 3rd graders were using a type of self-sorting vocabulary strategy prompted by the three levels of learning vocabulary.
Finally, ongoing vocabulary instruction is one of the keys of overall effective literacy instruction. Hail et al. (2012) state, “Comprehension and fluency are both affected by students’ vocabulary knowledge. An important aspect of effective teaching is the support of young readers and writers as they develop strong, self-regulating vocabulary skills” (p. 17). Vocabulary knowledge assists students in becoming more independent in their learning and reading for enjoyment.
Graphic Organizer for Emerging Student Research
Students can begin developing research skills and strengthening their comprehension even in primary grades. Graphic organizers may assist beginning readers and ELL students in making sense of texts they encounter (IARE, 2003). According to the Institute for the Advancement of Research in Education (IARE), research studies “support the use of graphic organizers for improving student learning and
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Vocabulary knowledge assists students in becoming more independent in their learning and reading for enjoyment.