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LANGUAGE ARTS :: SECONDARY RESOURCES :: RIGHT DIRECTION 3 :: LEARNING VOCABULARY WORDS

LEARNING VOCABULARY WORDS

Planning Points

Approximate Time Needed: One class period to complete the graphic organizer; extra time if the collage is completed in class.

Lesson Objectives:

Students will use a graphic organizer to learn new vocabulary.

Materials Needed:

  • a piece of text
  • list of vocabulary words from text
  • poster board & markers (optional)
  • magazines (optional)

Description

Before reading a piece of text, the teacher can make a list of target words for the students to learn. Another alternative is to ask students to generate a list of any words they do not know while they are reading. Then break the students into small groups, asking them to compile a master list of all the words the people in their group did not know.

Assign one vocabulary word to one student or a pair of students.

On notebook paper or poster board, have the students complete a *graphic organizer like the one below that centers around the new word.

The word map could also include a box for pronunciation, root words and its meaning, personal application, literary application. For example, eccentric would be ik-sen-trik, comes from Greek word ek (out) and kentron (center); my next door neighbor is eccentric because he wears shorts year round; Boo Radley in To Kill A Mockingbird is an eccentric character because he rarely leaves his house.

After completing the graphic organizer, students could make a collage that shows the meaning of their vocabulary word. To conclude the activity, have students share their mappings and collages with the members of their small group. Each person should write down all the words that are shared and any key information that will help him remember it.

*Buehl, Douglas R., Irvin, Judith L., and Klemp, Ronald M. Reading and the High School Student. Boston: Pearson, 2003, pg. 135.

Assessment:

The teacher can create a rubric, outlining her expectations for the graphic organizer and collages. A quiz can be given on each small group's list of words.

Teacher's Notes:

Teacher's Notes

 

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