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Robust Vocabulary Instruction

COMPARE:

Traditional Vocabulary Instruction

• Vocabulary words are listed in the teacher’s guide

• Students look up words in dictionary or glossary and copy definitions

• Students use words in sentences

• Students are tested on word meanings with multiple-choice or matching items

Robust Vocabulary Instruction

• Teacher selects 7-10 Tier 2 words

Instructional sequence:

Day 1:

• Introduce selected Tier 2 words with student-friendly explanations

Day 2:

• Review words

• Engage students in using the words in a variety of activities

• Choose from pages 3-7 in the Menu of Instructional Activities for

Vocabulary

Day 3: Review words

• Choose activities from pages 8-12 in the Menu of Instructional Activities for

Vocabulary

• Administer a Speed Round

Day 4:

• Review words

• Choose activities from pages 13-15 in the Menu of Instructional Activities

for Vocabulary

Day 5:

• Assess vocabulary knowledge

Robust Vocabulary Instruction

Introducing Vocabulary

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Collins COBUILD Dictionaries, published by HarperCollins, are extremely useful resources. Designed for English Language Learners, the COBUILD dictionaries provide student-friendly explanations for words using formats like these:

absorbed: If you are absorbed in a person, activity, or subject, they get all your attention. She was totally absorbed in her book.

evident: If something is evident, you notice it easily and clearly. His footprints were clearly evident in the heavy dust.

indignant: If you are indignant, you are shocked and angry, because you think that something is unjust or unfair.

pre-empt: If you pre-empt an action, you prevent it from happening by doing something before it can happen. You can pre-empt pain by taking a painkiller at the first warning sign.

Multiple copies of COBUILD dictionaries are on reserve in Hillman Library.

EXAMPLE 1

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Tier 2 words from a unit on penguins

frigid sleek companions miserable calm resist

|Tier 2 words |Student friendly explanations |

|frigid |very cold |

| |Frigid water is so cold that if you stayed in it too long you would start to shake and shiver. |

|sleek |smooth or shiny |

| |You can use water and a comb to make your hair sleek. |

|companions |people who are often together |

| |If you belong to a scout troop, then the scouts are your companions. |

|miserable |very unhappy or uncomfortable |

| |If you had poison ivy, you would probably be miserable. |

|calm |quiet, peaceful, still |

| |If water is calm, then it does not have lots of waves. It is peaceful and quiet. |

|resist |to be strong enough not to do something; to not give in |

| |Even if you really want to do something, you can still resist and not do it. |

EXAMPLE 2

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Tier 2 words

hostile intimidate emulate haphazardly

pervasive seniority discriminate segregate

|Tier 2 words |Student friendly explanations |

|hostile |unfriendly; aggressive; acting like an enemy |

| |A hostile remark can hurt a person’s feelings. |

|intimidate |to frighten; to terrify; to bully |

| |If you intimidate someone, you frighten them. A bully intimidates others. |

|emulate |to try to equal; to imitate |

| |If you emulate someone, you try to be like that person. |

|haphazardly |in a disorganized way; carelessly |

| |If you are haphazard, you are not careful about how you do things. |

|pervasive |widespread; spread throughout an area |

| |A disease can be pervasive if it is widespread. |

|Tier 2 words |Student friendly explanations |

|seniority |status or privileges earned because of a person’s length of service |

| |If someone has seniority in a company, then he or she has usually been working there for more than a few |

| |years. |

|discriminate |If you discriminate, you make a distinction for or against a person based on the group to which the person|

| |belongs rather than on the person’s qualities. To discriminate is to show partiality, or to favor one |

| |person or group over another. |

| |One form of discrimination is not allowing people who practice a certain religion to join a club. |

|segregate |to separate or set apart from others |

| |Laws in the United States used to segregate students who attended school. These laws separated students |

| |by race, so African American students did not attend schools with white students. |

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