Vocabulary

Vocabulary refers to all of the words that an individual knows. Sometimes these are the important words that pertain to a specific topic or subject. 

There are three tiers of vocabulary development:

• Tier 1: Basic Words

• Tier 2: High Frequency/Multiple Meanings

• Tier 3: Subject Related

Subject Related:

• In science, the vocabulary may include words such as climate, condensation, precipitation, erosion, tectonic plates, photosynthesis, cellular respiration, and constellations.

• In math, the vocabulary may include words such as add, subtract, multiply, divide, fractions, decimals, parallelograms, and parentheses. 

• In social studies, the vocabulary may include words such as latitude, longitude, president, colony, location, war, and country. 

Generally, a child's vocabulary increases with age. At two years old, children know roughly 300 words. By age three, children will know about 1,000 words. By age four, children know around 2,000 words. At age five, children know roughly 5,000 words or more (VSG Department of Education, 2019). 

Reading to children is important for helping them to build their vocabulary.