Every week for six weeks I introduce five new academic vocabulary words that connect to the material we are studying for the quarter. I first present the new words through a PowerPoint presentation in which I provide the words, parts-of-speech, and definitions of the words. I want all of the students using the same definitions and definitions that actually define the word so I provide all of that. On the PowerPoint slide I include a visual to help explain or illustrate what the words mean in context and I use the word in a sentence for the class. The students have a handout with all six word lists stapled together with places for them to write down the information on the slide, including the sample sentence. The visual and the model sentences help support my special education students and my language learners in understanding what the words means and how to use them properly. If they do not have any prior knowledge with the word, the visual and the sample sentence can begin to provide them with a background on which to build a new understanding of the word. I try to use visuals and sentences that have very common meanings that students can connect to personally.
I realized early on that some of my students needed to have a copy of the power point notes directly in front of them because looking up at the power point and back to their paper caused them to lose their place. I noticed that a small number of my students were not taking down all of the notes and I figured out that this was the cause. Once the students had the notes right there in front of them, they were able to stay on track and keep up with the class. This is something I offer all of my special education students at the beginning of the quarter and some of them take advantage of this accommodation, while others don't need it and don't ask for the handout.
Once everyone in the class has all of the information from the slides on their paper, we discuss what the words mean in A/B partners. With their table partners, the students talk about whatever personal connection they have with the word. My students are specifically placed next to a student who I feel can help them or who needs the support of a stronger student during partner work. Allowing the students to discuss the meanings of the words (and we discuss one at a time) they begin to have more interactions with the words and start to become more familiar with the words and how to use them correctly in context. For added support, I will write a sentence frame on the board for students to use to get the conversation started. I feel it is important for them to say the word and the partner discussions helps them relate personally to the word. The personal connection to the word can help the students remember what the word means long term. Once the pairs have discussed, I will ask for volunteers to share what was discussed in the pairs so the entire class can benefit from the experiences of their peers.
The next step is to generate a synonym and antonym list for the weekly words. At this point, it is very easy for the class to come up with these words and I ask my students who are initially fluent in another language to share or write down on their papers synonyms and antonyms from their first language to help them relate to the words. The entire class benefits from hearing the words spoken in other languages and this process also helps my language learners acquire new words in English.
Once the class and I have repeated that process and reviewed all five words for the week, the students begin the learning activity that goes with the presentation. I have two options available and multiple modifications for the assignments as well. One option designed for my more advanced students is a mini-story. Students have the option to write a short story that has a minimum of two characters, a setting, and a conflict. They have to use all five of the words in their story in a cohesive manner. Some students provide a resolution each week, and others leave me with a cliff hanger and I have to wait until the 6th assignment to find out how the conflict ultimately gets resolved. Many of my students have an app on their phones that allow them to speak into the phone and it will write out the story like a paragraph. I find many of my special education students prefer to "type" their work this way and and this technology helps them in completing the higher level homework option if that is what they chose to do. A very similar app to this one is a translator app that will do the same thing, but change what is spoken, or typed, from whatever language into English. From that point, there is always some minor editing required; but that support aids the language learners in the class in completing this learning activity.
The second option for a learning activity is a four square. This is a classic activity to aid in vocabulary development. I have a handout already created for students with four boxes for five words and all they have to do is fill in the four boxes for each word. In one box students write down the word, definition, and part-of-speech, which I provide for them. In the second box, they write the synonyms and antonyms we discussed in a word web with the word synonym in the center of one web and the word antonym in the center of the second web. In the third box, the students write a sentence demonstrating that they understand what the word means and how to use it in context. One way to make this assignment more challenging is to ask the students to relate ALL of their sentences to the material we are studying. For my students who struggle with writing original sentences, they have my sample sentence to help them. They write a sentence following my model, but with their own words inserted. Using the model sentence helps students who lack confidence with writing feel more assured that their sentence is written correctly. Another way to accommodate a student who is having a difficult time writing his/her own sentence is to ask them to write a sentence or two about what the word means to them; rather than asking them to use the word correctly in a sentence. I want them to demonstrate that they understand the word, and the word doesn't need to be in the sentence for a student to communicate that they understand what it means. The fourth box of the activity is for a visual. Just like I showed them a cartoon, or a visual to make the meaning of the word more clear, they students needs to do this as well. As stated above, I can challenge students by asking that their sentence and their visual connect. Some of my students draw very well and can communicate what the word means through a hand drawn picture. Other students prefer to use google images in order to show what the word means. Some of my students draw their images using graphic design software because they are very interested in computers.
In today's classroom, students enter at all different levels of readiness and with many different learning needs. The supports in this vocabulary assignment don't really require me to have three different lessons running at any given time, but they allow for the students to get the support they need to complete the assignment at a very high level. That is what differentiation really is, helping all students achieve and learn at the very highest level possible. This assignment models all the pieces the students are asked to do beforehand. This assignment supports students in building background knowledge around five words a week before asking them to do anything with it individually. This assignment offers options to be creative through a written mini-story and utilizes technology to support language learners or students who do not type very well to access the mini-story option. This assignment offers students different ways to write their sentences based on their personal needs as learners, and a variety of different ways to create their visuals.
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