Vocabulary Seminar

          Studies have shown that a major factor in reading difficulties is simply not knowing enough words.  The traditional approaches using workbooks, worksheets, and weekly quizzes don’t work well enough.  This final round of regional seminars in the WIN/ELA “Assessing for Learning” series focused on the “how to” and “how come” of vocabulary instruction.

          Hannah Baker got the seminar off to a pleasing beginning by reading aloud “Foolish Questions,” a poem from WALKING THE BRIDGE OF YOUR NOSE.  The poem asked questions such as “Can the calf on his leg eat the corn on his toe?”  Those questions are only foolish when the reader doesn’t understand multiple meanings of words.

          Next I led an hour-long debriefing on the assigned readings from Kyleen Beer’s WHEN KIDS CAN’T READ WHAT TEACHERS AND DO and Ruth Culham’s SIX PLUS ONE TRAITS OF WRITING, the two professional books used throughout the project this year.  First I offered some examples of terms misunderstood by kids, such as “eclipse” for “ellipsis;” “va-goo” for “vague;” and “series” (as in television shows) for “series” as in a list requiring commas.  While young learners must be taught the correct terms for things like the SC 15-point rubric for scoring writing, terms for grammar, and terms for literary analysis, it is critical for us to be sure they clearly understand them and to address those terms at age-appropriate stages.  For example, a second-grader can get by with the term “ing word” until around fifth grade, when “gerund” should be introduced. 

          I divided the participants into six teams, each with ten minutes in which to answer “Key Questions” from the assigned readings.  Next was a report from each team on their responses. 
A seventh team, tagged the “Bingo” group, had been assigned to record ideas they heard that “clicked” with them.  Each person read their best idea aloud to the group.  Finally, we completed a “Waterfall” in which everyone selected a phrase or sentence from either of the two professional books to read aloud in turn.  The room was filled with beautiful notions from Beers and Culham, and the exercise was a reminder of the value of the continuous professional growth possible through finding resource books that speak to us.

          Hannah then reminded us of some best practices and common sense notions.  First, those education experts are a great help, but we shouldn’t let them take over our personal styles.  We should avoid using worksheets unless we can justify them, as when small groups need additional practice after the lesson has been presented.  When we display words on a “Word Wall” or post lists of SAT Words, etc.,  we should refer to them often over time to keep the knowledge fresh.  Teaching vocabulary through authentic texts across contents and genres is superior to only using isolated lists of words.  Finally, we must value the “reading/writing connection” by teaching students to read like writers (and write for readers.)

          She then displayed an overhead of ELA standards dealing with vocabulary and noted how the skills build from kindergarten through the upper grades.  The skills and concepts remain the same; the texts are what grow in difficulty.  She shared powerful quotes about words including an elegant passage from ALICE IN WONDERLAND.

To illustrate the importance of using context to understand unfamiliar words, she told the true story of the “rebabbit” truck. 

          When driving to a site visit, she and Angela Whetstone stopped for lunch and noticed a truck in the parking lot with the word “rebabbit” painted on the sides.  No ELA expert can let such an opportunity pass, so the two guessed at the meaning using clues such as the style of the truck, other words on the truck, and even structural analysis:  What happens when you “babbit” something and then have to do it again?”

          When the owner of the truck came out, they asked him to please explain the term.  He enlightened them in two ways.  First, they now know that ball bearings used in heavy industries (such as power plants) have a coating to make them move smoothly.  When this coating, the “babbit’” wears thin, his company has to be contracted to rebabbit them.  Second, they learned once more that sometimes context clues just aren’t enough information and that you have to go to the source.

          The next segment of the day was spent in hands-on vocabulary strategies based on cooperative learning techniques: “Word Wizard,” “Show you Know,” “Nine Patch,” and “Genre Identification.” Another team studied the CATIONARY and DOGTIONARY picture books to design lessons using the formats in the books. 

          As the teams debriefed afterwards, several important ideas surfaced.  One idea is to always read texts first for the joy of the story and then return to focus on puzzling words.  Having students design graphic organizers or use drawings to illustrate words is a powerful methods to engage all learners, especially visual ones.  As said earlier, you can’t assume students clearly understand ideas such as the differences among genre, so be sure to provide frontloading as needed.  Expect students to defend choices, not just report them.  Words that show up often can be called “popcorn words” since they “pop up” all over the place.

          After lunch, I brought the group back together with a demonstration of the fun you can have using environmental texts for vocabulary lessons.  I showed four newspaper comic strips, such as “Zits” and “BC” on overheads; the strips were funny but also used sophisticated diction: “oxymoron,” “ubiquitous,” “extant,” and “booty.”  (You had to be there.)  I ended with a serious admonition about how important providing “SSR” (sustained silent reading of self-selected texts) is to exposing students to lots of words.  {See the document attached to these notes.}

          Betsy Smith and Hannah then administered an assessment modeled on PACT to give participants a look at the format and jargon students must be familiar with to succeed on those tests.  They concluded by advising teachers to use the State Department of Education’s web site as a resource, as released test items available there can serve as a model for developing classroom assessments.  The best possible test preparation is providing best practice ELA instruction every day, but as testing days near, students should not be caught by surprise.  Using PACT-like stems on objective test items throughout the year is a valuable strategy.  Further, spending an appropriate block of time familiarizing students with the test format just before test time is far better than “drilling and killing” all year.

          One of the most enjoyable parts of the day followed as participants shared results of their “Try Its.”  After each regional, teachers had been assigned to experiment with at least one strategy they learned about and to record and reflect on the results.  As the teachers’ confidence levels grew throughout the year, the “Try Its” reports took longer and got better.  We heard success stories about lessons on multiple perspectives (including a mock trial for Goldilocks conceived and implemented by students at Fairfield Intermediate, filmed by the principal), anticipation guides, energizers, sentence strips, role-playing, and analyzing movie clips.  After the last idea was shared, Hannah reminded the participants to use their allotted visit from Frank Baker, media literacy guru and WIN Consultant.

          To wrap up the day, WIN Director Ellen James presented a profound powerpoint to share reflections on the project from the consultants involved and the schools participating.  Some of the insights were that change takes time, that administrative support and involvement is essential, and that collaboration is a must.  The lynchpins of the project: professional readings, staff development over time, focus on solutions instead of failures, teacher-to-teacher support, and meaningful incentives such as the “LIA Award” are powerful examples of best practices in staff development.

          Last, I led the participants in a ten-minute written reflection on how their own teaching practices have been changed as the result of the project.  To share their best thinking, we held a “Quaker meeting” in which individuals could stand and read aloud their favorite sentence, simply as the spirit moved them.  In this way, I believe I succeeded in ending the day with aplomb.

In the sentence above, the word “aplomb” best can be defined as

          a.  confusion         
          b.  disgust
          c.  poise         
          d.  gratitude

The Reading-Vocabulary Connection

Excerpted from

Camille L.A. Blachowicz and Peter Fisher: “Vocabulary Lessons” EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP (March 2004)