VOCABULARY

Vocabulary is the ability to understand and use words to acquire or gain use of and to communicate meaning. A reader acquires vocabulary when he/she associates a specific meaning with a given word when reading or listening. Vocabulary is communicated or expressed when a speaker or writer can produce a specific word for a certain meaning.

Vocabulary knowledge is having the ability to understand the meanings of words that teachers, parents, books, films, and other adults use when communicating.

"Research has shown that children who read even ten minutes a day outside of school experience substantially higher rates of vocabulary growth between second and fifth grade than children who do little or no reading." (Anderson & Nagy, 1992)

Home Ideas to use with your child:

When Reading:

• Choose classic stories or books on recommended reading lists

• Focus on story elements (characters, setting, plot or the problem in the story, and the resolution)

• Target 3 new words per story

• Pause for target vocabulary words

• Relate new vocabulary to child's prior experiences

• Repeated readings of stories

Four Ways of Teaching Oral Vocabulary:

• Modeling: If you cannot use language to explain the meaning of a word, then model or demonstrate its meaning.
   

• Synonyms: If your child knows another word that has the same meaning, then use it to explain the new word. For example: if the unknown word is fact, you could use true or real to teach it.
   

• Definitions: a longer explanation can be used to explain the meaning of a word if the child has the essential language to understand the explanation. Use definitions if a synonym cannot be used and it is too difficult to model. For example: an association is an organized group of people who meet for specific reasons. (PTA, Boy Scouts, etc)

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