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Sometimes, there just isn’t enough time for in-depth vocabulary study when reading a text. Additionally, not all texts require an in-depth study of vocabulary for students to successfully read the text. When students do not necessarily need to retain text-specific vocabulary words for the long term, simply defining the words for students prior to reading can still contribute to better comprehension. Furthermore, if students take some time to become familiar with a word by activating prior knowledge, they are more likely to understand the word when they encounter it in a given text.
PREPARATION:
Preview the text and identify words that may be unfamiliar to students reading the text for the first time.
Create a word bank of the identified words and include concise but clear definitions of the words for students (e.g., matter: a physical substance; unicellular: single-celled).
STEPS
PROVIDE WORD BANK: Before reading the text, provide students with the word bank of vocabulary words that they will encounter when reading the text.
RATE FAMILIARITY OF EACH WORD: Read each word and have students give a “fist to five” (fist = never seen or heard the word before; five = very familiar with the word) to convey their prior knowledge of the word.
MODEL "CODE WORDS": Using one of the words with which students are most familiar, model how to invent “code words” to aid in memorizing the word’s meaning. A “code word” is a word with which students are already familiar and that can help them recall the meaning of the new word. “Code words” work as an association with the vocabulary word and use prior knowledge to assist students in learning the meaning of the new word.
EXAMPLE: The “code word” for stalagmite might be mite. Since mites are bugs that crawl, and stalagmites are rock formations that rise from the floor of a cave, this association might prompt students to remember the definition of stalagmite when reading.
EXAMPLE: For the word archipelago (a group of small islands), a “code word” might be pelican. Since a pelican is a type of seabird and a portion of the word archipelago sounds like pelican, this association might help students remember that an archipelago is a group of islands in the sea.
STUDENTS COLLABORATIVELY CREATE CODE WORDS: After modeling the process of creating “code words,” ask students to work in pairs or small groups to invent “code words” for each of the vocabulary words provided in the word bank. They should record these “code words” next to the original words in their notes.
USE CODE WORDS: Finally, tell students that they will encounter these words as they read the provided text. When they do, they should think of their “code words” to help them remember the meaning.
VARIATION:
For younger learners, educators could provide the “code words” as well as the definitions of the words in the word bank.
EXTENSION:
To increase rigor, students could write an explanation of the rationale behind their chosen “code words.”
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