Vocabulary learning program - Essay Example

Vocabulary learning program Vocabulary learning programs are aimed at helping students especially the young ones on how to improve their vocabulary. Different teachers and educators use different methods to help the students to improve their vocabulary depending on the comprehension of the students. Robert Marzano who is an educator who has done research on how teachers educate their students. He observed how teachers and students interacted in classroom for hours. According to Marzano, vocabulary instruction is important in all content areas. This is because the words are found in all students. Most students especially the age of 5-9years tend to have a low concentration span so it is important for teachers to make the learning process interesting. This paper is going to discuss how design a vocabulary learning program for a class or a student that you are very familiar with. It should describe the overall plan and its key components, the daily implementation of the program and the tasks and activities that are used to be described in detail. Vocabulary learning programs have been embraced by most countries especially the western countries, and they can be defined as a program that is developed to help pupils to master and learn new words with ease and faster. Additionally, vocabulary learning is important because it helps the students to refresh their minds. Most teachers prefer to give the students time to think about the new words before they can correct the meaning. This makes the students to be able to do it on their own hence aiding their comprehension. Different teachers will use different methods to make students understand the words depending on the student’s ability to comprehend (Graves,2006). Vocabulary learning program for grade five students This vocabulary program will focus on grade five students a class of 15 students. I have chosen this particular class since I have taught them since the third grade. The composition of the class consists of eight girls and seven boys. Most students are above average although there are some who have difficulties in comprehension of some concepts. Generally the students are able to comprehend concepts with ease. The concentration span of most students is low but this is expected because most are between the age of nine and ten years. Mostly I prefer to incorporate games while learning to make it interesting. For example, before introducing a new concept I usually read them a story on the same or perform a skit bringing out the same concept. This way I am able to build a desire in them to know more about the new concept. After they have learnt the meaning of the concept or been able to understand what the concept is all about, I give them activities to help them activities to deepen their knowledge on the concept or the word. Vocabularies in young students vary according to how they are brought up. In my class I noticed some students have learnt more vocabularies than others. This is because some are taught new words at home. I am going to outline a detailed program on how I teach the students new words (August, Carlo, Dressler & Snow, 2005). Step one: introduction of the words a Presentation of the words When introducing new words to the students, I am very careful since their first impression of the words is very important. For example, if they view the words to be hard, they end up having difficulties in knowing the meanings and usage. I mostly prefer use of art work to introduce these words. The art work has to be colorful for the students to be interested in learning more about them. Then I ask some of the students to hold them out to the other students. This is very important since the students feel as a part of the learning process. Involving the students in the learning process makes them feel more appreciated. This also helps them to have a sense of responsibility. They feel that they have a part to play in the learning process. b Figuring out the meaning The words are usually written in bold on charts which are held out by some students. After the students have had time to go through the words, I ask anyone to try and pronounce them and try explaining their meaning. This is very important during the learning process since it helps to refresh their minds of the students. While carrying out this process it is important for the teacher to give continuous positive reinforcement so as to build the student’s confidence. Reinforcing the students helps to build their confidence which is very important. Some students might get the meaning correct others may not. As a teacher, I have learnt over time not to be quick to give the students answers. I practice the Do It Yourself policy “DIY” this is to help the students to the more independent (Horst, 2005). Step two: finding out the correct meaning of the words After the students have exhausted their meanings of the words, I step in and give the correct meaning of the words. When doing this I try to build from the student’s meaning. For example, if one of the students had the correct meaning it is important to use words the student had said. This is also another form of reinforcement. When giving the students the correct meaning I try as much as I can to keep the meaning simple and comprehendible to students. When giving the meaning of words you have to give ensure they are understandable to the students. Give the meaning according to the level of the students. For example, in my case my students are between the age of 10 and 11 so the meaning will not be too simple. After giving them the meaning, I will use the words in sentences for the students to understand it better. For example: 1. Ambitious- having a strong determination to achieve something. Use of the word in a sentence: The student’s eyes were bright with ambition when he saw the play station in the toy store. This means at the student was filled with determination on seeing the particular play station and was willing to do anything to have it. The usage of the words in sentence helps the students to understand (Schmitt, 2000). Step two is important because the teacher has to ensure that all the students have understood the word and are able to use it in a sentence. Before the teacher can continue to the next step, he/she has to ensure that the students are able to construct a sentence using the same word. I try to make this step more interesting by giving a story and incorporating the new words as much as possible. At the end of the story I ask the students to give the new words that they heard in the story. I do this to help increase the concentration span of the students since they will be keen to look out for the words in the story (Chinnery, 2006). Step three: making it more fun Since the students tend to lose interest very fast, I prefer to incorporate many activities to keep them occupied in the learning process. For example, when learning new words I prefer use of art work and quick fire challenge. Quick fire challenge is whereby I write down sentences on the white board leaving out the new words then the students are expected to pick out the appropriate words to fill in the spaces in the sentences in a certain amount of time. I divide the students into groups and the group that wins always gets a reward. This particular activity has proven to be of help to the students since after some time the students use the words in their conversations. It is also helpful as it helps to break the monotony of sitting in class the whole period (Nation, 2013). Step four: giving assignments Giving students assignments is highly recommended since it helps the teacher to gauge the comprehension of the students in that particular area covered. Through assessment the teacher is able to tell which students are having problems comprehending the concept. As a teacher, I have noted that most students do not like assignments. So it is important to give assignments that students friendly and at the same time test their understanding. The assignments can vary depending on the concept being taught. In this case where the concept is about learning new words I prefer to text books. In the text books there are stories and exercises testing on the same (Ma, 2009). Sample of the vocabulary learning program Vocabulary: ambitious, symphony, scramble, cradle Step one: 1. Cutting out charts and writing the new words and incorporating picture related to the words. 2. Asking the students if they have heard about the words before. If so, where and who was using the words 3. Asking the students to try and give the meaning of the words. Step two: 1. Giving the meaning of the words Ambitious- having a strong determination to achieve something. Use of the word in a sentence. Symphony- a musical composition usually found in orchestra Scramble- to try and find way through a rough ground by use of hands and feet Cradle- a bed of a young one or toddler 2. Using the vocabularies in sentences Step three: 1. Grouping the students into three groups each having five students 2. Reading out the rules of the quick fire challenge 3. Playing the quick fire challenge 4. Reading out the scores 5. Rewarding the winners of the challenge by giving of incentives Step four: 1. Giving out assignments from the text book for instance, choosing an exercise as homework for the students. Conclusion In conclusion, the vocabulary learning program is very important for students especially ones in the lower grades since it helps to build their vocabulary and be in a position to hold conversations. Different schools use different vocabulary learning programs depending on the type of students that the teacher is dealing with. It is important for the teachers to keep to choose the appropriate learning program that is suited for the students. A vocabulary learning program needs to be in a position to help the students acquire more vocabulary with ease. The above learning program as been designed for my students and has proven to work well. I designed the program to be as simple as possible in a way that anyone can use it without experiencing any diffculites. References August, D., Carlo, M., Dressler, C., & Snow, C. (2005). The critical role of vocabulary development for English language learners. Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 20(1), 50-57. Carlo, M. S., August, D., McLaughlin, B., Snow, C. E., Dressler, C., Lippman, D. N., ... & White, C. E. (2004). Closing the gap: Addressing the vocabulary needs of English‐language learners in bilingual and mainstream classrooms. Reading Research Quarterly, 39(2), 188-215. Chinnery, G. M. (2006). archive. today. Language learning & technology, 10(1), 9-16. Graves, M. F. (2006). The vocabulary book: Learning & instruction. New York: Teacher's College Press. Horst, M. (2005). Learning L2 vocabulary through extensive reading: A measurement study. Canadian Modern Language Review, 61(3), 355-382. Lu, M. (2008). Effectiveness of vocabulary learning via mobile phone. Journal of computer assisted learning, 24(6), 515-525. Ma, Q. (2009). Second language vocabulary acquisition. Bern: Peter Lang. Nation, I. S. P. (2013). Teaching & learning vocabulary. Nation, P., & Chung, T. (2009). 28 Teaching and Testing Vocabulary. The handbook of language teaching, 543. Nation, I. (2006). How large a vocabulary is needed for reading and listening?. Canadian Modern Language Review, 63(1), 59-82. Schmitt, N. (2000). Vocabulary in language teaching. Cambridge [u.a.: Cambridge Univ. Press. Schmitt, N. (2008). Review article: Instructed second language vocabulary learning. Language teaching research, 12(3), 329-363. Read More