Developing Vocabulary &Enhancing Reading

Comprehension

SPC ED 587

October 25, 2006

Note: We won’t go over all of these slides in class. Many of them are FYI as resources; if you would like more info on any of the slides/ideas we don’t discuss, let me know.

Vocabulary Development

• Children typically learn approximately 3,000 words per year! (that’s 7-10 words a day!!!)

• Gain new vocabulary through school (instruction) and through family activities, trips, hobbies, reading independently, etc.

Tompkins, 2007

Vocabulary: words a child understands and uses in listening, speaking, reading,

and writing• Listening vocabulary - words a child

understands when s/he hears them spoken; includes words that the child understands but may not use in his or her everyday conversation

• Speaking vocabulary - words students understand and routinely uses when speaking

• Reading vocabulary - words a child can read and understand

• Writing vocabulary words child understands and can use when composing text.

Stages of Word Learning(adapted from Dade & O’Rourke, 1971)

• I never saw it before!

• I’ve heard of it or I can pronounce it, but I don’t know what it means.

• I recognize it in context - It has something to do with. . .; I know one of its meanings

• I know it. I know what it means and can use it in several ways or contexts.

Teaching Vocabulary • Indirectly

– Conversations– Teacher read-alouds*– Reading independently

• Directly– Direct instruction on a small number of meaningful

words at a time, across time– Instruction that requires active participation– Learning to use resources (e.g., dictionaries)

* “Researchers report that children learn as many words incidentally while listening to teachers read aloud as they do by reading themselves.” (Stahl et al., 1991 as cited in Tompkins, 2007)

What the Student Knows Instruction Needed

Knows word when hears it but doesn’t recognize printed form.

Teach printed form.

Knows word’s oral and written form but doesn’t use it in speech or writing.

Promote generative knowledge. Give examples of its use; clarify word; encourage its use in a safe environment.

Knows the concept but not the label.

Teach the label and relate it to the concept.

Has partial knowledge of the word. Knows definition but doesn’t have contextual knowledge.

Develop a deeper meaning of the word; examine the word in multiple contexts.

Recognizes the label but has no real conceptual knowledge of the concept. Or knows the word’s “everyday” meaning but not how it might be used in a technical sense.

Develop the concept.  

Does not know either concept or the label.

Develop the concept and the label.

Teaching Vocabulary• Build on what students know and relate new

words to students’ lives/experiences– E.g., Word Watch

– Look up words that have entered English via students’ own linguistic background (e.g., tornado: Spanish: tornar [to turn])

• Teach for depth and breadth– E.g., What it Is and What it Isn’t

• Use engaging activities to create interest– E.g., Word Posters

Teaching Vocabulary: More ideas• Word Study

– Concepts and meanings– Multiple meanings– Compound words– Synonyms, antonyms, homonyms, figurative

meanings

• Word Walls, Word Maps• Word Sorts – adapt for meaning or use• Quiz Me Cards & Definition Cards (see

Keefe chapter [in press])

Teaching Vocabulary

• Provide repetition and systematic review– “children need to read, write, and/or use

words 8-10 times or more before they can automatically recognize them and remember their meanings”

• Teach for independence– Teach use of resources (e.g., how to use a

dictionary; how to ask for help)

Comprehension is “The Point”

“. . . reader’s process of using prior experiences and the author’s text to construct meaning that is useful to that reader for a specific purpose.” (p. 252)

Theories of Comprehension

• Schema Theory

• Mental/Situation Models

Factors Affecting Comprehension

• Decoding and fluency skills • Vocabulary • Background knowledge • Academic vs. conversational vocabulary• Understanding structure of written

language • Processing abilities• Understanding the purpose for a reading• Cognitive abilities/skills

Assessing Reading Comprehension• Graded passage with comprehension

questions (e.g., Brigance, IRI)

• Story re-telling or acting out

• Think-alouds (to see how student is attempting comprehension

• Assessing background knowledge (e.g., webbing, graphic organizers such as KWL)

• Maze:Jim took a trip to see his grandmother. He had

to ride in a (car/book/hat) to get to her house. Jim ate lots of good (it/mud/food) at his grandmother’s house. He likes going to see his (cat/grandmother/bus).

• Picture Cards: story re-tellings; answering comprehension questions

Assessing Reading Comprehension

The bus driver walked to his bus. He opened the door and walked up the steps. policeman Juan bus driver

The bus radio made a loud noise. The driver picked it up. He radio key cupsaid, “Hello. This is Mike. What do you need?”The radio operator said, “There is some road work on Main Street. You will need to leave soon, cab driver Mike Steve

Building Comprehension: Anaphoric Cuing

Teachers who were excellent at facilitating comprehension:

• Built language at every opportunity • Activated/built students’ background

knowledge (schema)• Provided a purpose for reading

• think-alouds

• Followed up on that purpose after reading• Taught prediction• Continuously motivated students to read

for meaning• Taught strategies to identify the main idea

Comprehension Repair Strategies

• Click – Clunk– Read on.– Reread sentence.– Reread paragraph or section.– Look for information from a resource such as

a dictionary or glossary.– Ask someone else for help.

Content through reading guides

• Teacher can develop guide questions or student or small group can develop questions.

• Students can work with guides independently or in small groups.

Example of reading guide for expository text.

This chapter was about _____________.Eyelashes keep ________ out of our eyes. The__________ is a black circle in our eyes. It lets ______________ into our eyes.

We blink about ______ times a minute. The eyeball is like clear jelly. It keeps our eyes _______and __________________.

Content through strategy use

RAP Graphic Organizers

Directed Reading-Thinking Activity (DR-TA)

K-W-L

Say-Something Paired Reading

Question-Answer-Relationship Guide

Admit-Exit Strategy

Example of a Reading Comprehension Strategy:

Read -- Ask -- Paraphrase (RAP)• Read paragraph to yourself.

• Ask yourself what is the main idea.

• Put the paragraph into your own words and tell it to your partner.

• Switch roles.

Enhance Content learning through modifications to text

Increased font size

Braille

Highlighted texts

Enhance Content learning through varying mediums

Tape-recorded books

Books on CD

Buddy-reading

E-books

www.academicmaterials.com/ entrance.htm

Content through Read-Alouds

• Teacher reads a selection aloud to entire class– Good as ‘grabbers’/hooks– Allow students to focus on content vs.

decoding– May aid in memory b/c of multiple avenues of

input– Model fluent oral reading (support language

acquisition for ELL students)

Content through Shared Reading

• Teacher reads aloud while students are looking at text– Be explicit about the purpose of the reading

– Model and teach a specific strategy (e.g., inference, text features, map reading)

• Provide a follow-up activity that allows students to practice the modeled strategy