Explicit Vocabulary Intervention for Language and

Reading

Judy K. Montgomery, Ph.D.Chapman University

Orange, CAEmail: montgome@chapman.edu

Purposes

• To recognize the importance of vocabulary in the development of language and reading

• To review scientifically based research on vocabulary instruction

• To acquire evidence-based practices to support students with limited vocabulary

Vocabulary

• Refers to the words we use to communicate• Plays a critical part in learning to read• Helps children make sense of the words

they see by comparing them to the words they have heard

• Is one of the 5 building blocks of reading• Can be divided into four types

Four types of vocabulary

ListeningSpeakingReadingWriting

Teaching Students to Read

• Phonemic awareness• Phonics• Fluency• Vocabulary• Text comprehension

National Reading Panel, 2001

Vocabulary Demands on Students are Daunting

• 450,000 words in English- largest vocabulary of languages in use today

• Students must learn 3,000 words per year by 3rd grade.

• Only 400 words a year are directly taught by teachers.

• Academic demands are high

• However, everyday speech consists of only 5,000- 7,000 words.

• Conversation cannot make up the difference (Frey & Fisher, 2007).

Vocabulary

• Children begin first grade with a 6,000 word spoken vocabulary

• Learn 36,000 more words by 12 th grade

• Learn 5 words a day• Still need 55,000 words

for printed school English (Chall, 87; Gunning, 04)

In 1980’s vocabulary teaching ...

Moved from lists of words in McGuffey’s Spelling book, Dolch Sight Word lists, Teacher Word Book of 30,000 Words

toSifting through narrative and expository reading selections to find challenging words.

Neither were satisfactory (Frey & Fisher, 2007).

Word Selection

• Labels– Names for items– Limited use– Don’t squander time

on too many of these

• Concepts– Bigger ideas– Focus on these– Improves

comprehension

The Myth of Age or Grade Level Vocabulary

• Students do not learn vocabulary words based on their age or their grade.

• They learn words based on their experiences.

(Beck, et al, 2002)

Some students can use ...

“Fry’s 1,000 Instant Words”

The first 100 account for 50% of the words they will encounter in reading.

The total 1,000 make up 75% of words encountered in reading. (Graves, 2006)

1,000 Instant Words• Will be too easy for

some students• They are readers.• They do not need to be

taught these words.

• Absolutely critical that all children know these words

• Spoken vocabulary• Reading vocabulary• They must be taught

these words.(Fry, 2004)

Fry’s List: Language & Reading

• Fry, Kress, Fountoukidis, (1993). Reading Teacher’s Book of Lists (3rd Ed). Prentice Hall. p. 290

• Google it

• First 100- 1st grade reading words

• Second 100- 2nd grade reading words

• Third 100- 3rd grade reading words

What does research tell us?

• Most vocabulary is learned indirectly

• Some vocabulary must be taught directly

• Poor vocabulary is a hallmark of language, literacy, and cognitive disabilities

Children learn word meanings indirectly in three ways:

• Daily conversations and oral language experience with adults and other children

• Listening to adults read to them

• Reading extensively on their own

Students with special needs, or at risk, often do not learn words indirectly because:

• They don’t engage in conversation as often

• They don’t alert to new or interesting words

• They often don’t listen carefully when read to

• They usually don’t read on their own

Who has difficulty with vocabulary?

• Students with communication disorders

• Students with cognitive challenges

• Students with hearing loss

• Students in special education classrooms

Language and Reading

• Children with communication disorders, and language learning disabilities also experience difficulty learning to read

• About 70% of the children on SLP caseloads also have literacy problems

• Children with communication disorders, and language learning disabilities also experience difficulty learning to read

• About 70% of the children on SLP caseloads also have literacy problems

Language and Reading

Students with moderate to severe

cognitiveimpairments may

get limited reading instruction.

Language and Reading

Students with hearing loss have significant literacy challenges.

Language and Reading

All of the students in self contained

special education classes have serious

literacy needs.

These students need direct instruction in vocabulary

• Direct instruction/intervention includes:

• Specific word instruction• Word learning strategies• Intensive work• Repetitions• Active engagement

Number of Exposures Needed to Learn a New Word

Level of Intelligence IQ Required Exposures

Signif. above average 120-129 20Above average 110-119 30Average 90-109 35Slow learner 80-89 40Mild cognitive impairment 70-79 45Moderate cog impairment 60-69 55

(Gates, 1931; McCormick, 1999)

What is scientifically-based research in vocabulary interventions for students with

special education needs?1. Literature, theory, position

statements, policy2. High quality, repeatable

research with effect size reported

3. Promising practice, professional wisdom, action research in classrooms

Vocabulary research shows:

• It is more effective to support all four types of vocabulary for struggling students (NRP, 2001).

• Directly teaching word parts- affixes, base words, roots - greatly enhance vocabulary because 60% of English words have Latin or Greek origins (Armbruster & Osborn, 2001).

• Challenging students to create original sentences with target words increases personal interest and word learning (Beck, et al, 2002).

Vocabulary research also shows:• Word learning depends on the other sounds and words the

child already knows. How a new word relates to these existing words (neighborhood density) positively influences the speed of learning (Hoover & Storkel, 2005).

• The use of opposition (antonyms) in defining terms helps to establish extremes of a word’s meaning. Synonym production is improved by antonym production, although the reverse has not been shown to be true (Powell, 1986).

A few more...

• Vocabulary knowledge, story comprehension, and story sequencing are the language skills with the strongest relationship to improved reading outcomes (Snow, Tabors, Nicholson & Kurland, 1994).

• Twenty common prefixes account for 97% of the prefixed words in printed school English (White, Sowell & Yanagihara, 1989).

• Words are used to think. The more words we know, the finer our understanding of the world (Stahl, 1999).

Prefixes Number of words with Prefix

un (not) 782re (again) 401in, im, ir, il, (all mean " not") 313dis (opposite) 216en, em (make) 132non (not) 126in, im (all mean "into") 105over (too much) 98 (75% of words)mis 83sub 80

pre 79inter 77fore 76de 71trans 47super 43

semi 39anti 33mid 33under 25Total 2,859 Words

Adapted from: Graves, 2006; Wh ite, Sowell & Yanagihara, 1989.

Direct Instruction in Vocabulary

The Bridge of Vocabulary: Evidence-Based Activities for Academic Success(Montgomery, J. K. Pearson/AGS, 2006)

(General & special educators provide direct instruction in vocabulary, collaboratively)

The Bridge of Vocabulary• Pre-school- high school

• 101 activities• One per page, plus another 200 student worksheets on CD for follow-up or independent work

• General & special education

• Evidence-based statements

• Vocabulary Standards

Vocabulary Strategy

• Evidence-based statement• Grade level standards link• Upper elementary• Students have small cards

with 5 most common prefixes

• SLP reads word, definition, asks for opposite

• “Proper- Proper means that everything is correct and just the way it should be. What is the opposite of proper?”

• Student holds up card. Says word. “Improper”

• “What does improper mean?”

• “It is not proper- not the right way.”

Uses EB Strategies

• Active engagement• Repetitions of small

number of words• Oral to written

language• Give definition in

student friendly terms• Ask for antonym• Repeat

Students can increase their vocabulary if they have:

• wide ranging experiences

• sufficient number of exposures

• active engagement• consistent direct

instruction• useful word learning

strategies

Vocabulary Interventions• Reading Aloud• Cinquains• Colorful Letter Scramble• English Idioms• Hink Pinks (Terse Verse)• Beck’s Word Tiers

These interventions will:

• Include all four vocabulary types

• Combine print and speech supports

• Need to be modified for all grades and ages

• Require many repetitions to be successful

Authors add delightful words!!

• Meddled• Winked• Familiar• Bleating• Whiff• Rumbled• Old-fashioned

Cinquain

• A cinquain is a five line, non rhyming shape poem with a structure that develops vocabulary.

• Children can composethem orally or write them, or do both.

Cinquain

• Line 1 - one noun• Line 2 - 2 adjectives• Line 3- 3 verbs• Line 4- a 4 word

feeling or observation• Line 5- a synonym for

line one

Make a Cinquain Template

1 one word title _____________________

2 words describing ________ __________3 words with action ____ ______ ______4 words of feeling ____ _____ ______ _____

5 Repeat title in 1 word __________

Colorful Letter Scramble The first word in each expression below is a color. The second word, when unscrambled, completes a common term associated with the color. Discuss the meaning of each expression.

For example, WHITE + ESLA = WHITE SALE.

1. BLUE + DOBOL 2. ORANGE + WOBL 3. BLACK + TREAMK 4. GRAY + TAMTER 5. PURPLE + THREA 6. WHITE + GASPE 7. RED + TARCEP 8. YELLOW +REFEV 9. GREEN + BMUTH

10.BROWN + DBAER

English Idioms

• Adds imagery & impact to oral and written language

• Provides meaning and “thrust” (Collis, 1987).

• Cannot discern meaning from words

• Difficult for students with CD and ELs

Thrust Meaning

• Bend over backwards

• In stitches

• Scratch someone’s back

• Horse of a different color

Hink Pinks!!

A hink

pink is a pair of one syllable words that rhyme. Example: an overweight feline fat cat

Below are clues for some hink

pinks. Read the clues and try to figure out how to say it in two rhyming words.

What is ...1. a nice number ?2. a colorful mattress?3. a tidy road ?4. a politician who has died ?5. a nice law ?6. a huge truck ?7. a meat burglar ?

More Hink

Pinks8. a fast mop ?9. a spicy place ?10. a fat sandwich ?11. a rodent's cap ?12. a tiny sphere ?13. a cooked reptile ?14. a naked rabbit ?15 a hard to find trap?16 a mysterious mustache?17 a plastic pond?

A few more...18. A naughty boy?19. A drenched dog?20. A spell bag?21. An angry boy?22. A bad attitude?23. A dark period?24. A sweet potato preserve?

• These were all written by students.

• You can find them on the internet

• Make up your own.• Do the rhyme first, then the

definition• Give students one of the words• Have students make them up

A Step Further with Hink Pinks

• Hinkie Pinkies- two syllable words– A cave slogan– Grotto motto

• Hinkity Pinkities- three syllable words– The White House– President’s residence

Why Vocabulary Problems Actually Increase As Students Grow Older

– They also have word finding problems– They often use low information words – This has a negative impact on their discourse

skills– They rarely expand the meanings of the words

they do know– They read less than their peers

“Given the critical role that reading plays in vocabulary development, poor readers’ deficits in word knowledge may be compounded with time, leaving them with a smaller data base from which to select words for speaking and writing.”

(Nippold, ‘92, p. 5)

Isabel Beck’s Word Tiers

What does it mean to “know” a word?

Vocabulary: Four Steps to knowing

1. Never heard the word before2. Heard it, but don’t know what it means3. In context, I know it has something to do

with_____4. Know it and use it

(Beck, McKeown & Kucan, 2002; Carey, 1978)

How shall we select the words for intervention ????

Three Word Tiers (oral or written vocabulary)

• Tier 1- basic words (happy, clean, fast)

• Tier 2- high frequency words for mature language users

(cluster, sympathy, estimate)

• Tier 3- low frequency, specific words (lathe, chasm, warp)

(Beck, McKeowen & Kucan, 2002)

How to Select Vocabulary Words to Teach- the Big Q!

• About 7,000 words in Tier 2

• Teach 400 per year• Research shows this

will have impact• Which 400 words?• Instruction vs.

intervention (Beck, et al, 2002)

Intervene Using Tier 2 Words

1. Choose fiction or non-fiction being read in class

2. Read one page3. Highlight all the

Tier 2 words4. Select 3 of the most

useful ones

5. Student definitions from context

6. Provide student friendly definitions

7. Practice repeatedly8. Use in oral

communication9. Reinforce in reading

and writing.(Beck et al, 2002)

Selecting words for students reading 1-2 years below peers

• SLP reads a page of current book.• Selects Tier 2 words• Decides on 3 useful words• Proceeds to instruct/intervene

Let’s say you chose these words

• Mask• Vague• Clarification• Augment• Brand• Crystal

Now, select only 3 of these words for intervention

• Mask• Clarification• Brand

Let’s Practice Writing Student Friendly Definitions

(Mask Clarification Brand)

• Mask –

• Clarification –

• Brand-

Selecting Vocabulary in a Clinically Relevant Way

• Let’s practice selecting Tier 2 words.

• Here is a good book to read aloud.

I went to the kitchen drawer and took out a lump of beeswax, a candle, a small funnel with a wooden handle, and some packets of yellow, red, and black dye.

Focus on Selected Words

1. Teach the words explicitly for 5 sessions.2. Use student-friendly definitions3. Search for the words in other places4. “Over-use” in both oral and written language

activities5. Say them and read them.6. Review words one month later

IEP Goals• By March 2006, Jason will learn 45 Tier Two

words (3 per week for 15 weeks) with 85% accuracy, as measured by his ability to say or write a student-friendly definition for each.

• Christy will read, write and correctly use 45 new Tier Two words in an essay on a topic of her choice in class.

Vocabulary Intervention

• Use research based strategies• Select words in clinically relevant way• Provide explicit instruction• Tie to life experiences of students• Increase number of repetitions• Engage students and have fun

(Beck, et al, 2002; Nelson & Van Meter,2005)

Reference

Beck, I., McKeowen, M., & Kucan, L. (2002). Bringing Words to Life.

NY: Guilford Press

Finale: What does it mean to know a word?

“Knowing” a Word

• Students do not either know or not know words. Instead, they know words to varying degrees. There are 3 levels:

– Unknown– Acquainted– Established (Put Reading First, 2001, p. 43)

Move students from one level of knowing to the next

– Unknown word– Acquainted with this word– Established a meaning for this word

(Put Reading First, 2001, p. 43)

Four Kinds of Word Learning

• Learn a new meaning for a known word

• Learn meaning for a new word with a known concept

• Learn meaning of new word and new concept

• Enriching meaning of a known word

Examples

• Learn a new meaning for a known word

Cake is also a verb.I don’t want the mud to

cake on my shoes.

• Learn the meaning for a new word with a known concept

SphereI know the concept of

balls and globes, but not the word sphere.

Two more examples

• Learn meaning of a new word and a new concept

PhotosynthesisHow plants convert

carbon dioxide and water into carbohydrates

• Enrich meaning of a known word

ConfederationA loose connection of

self governing bodies, countries, agencies.

Take home messageYou can provide explicit, systematic,

intensive language and reading vocabulary intervention

Vocabulary is increased:

• Indirectly by encouraging conversation, oral language practice, reading to students, and having them read often

• Directly by teaching words explicitly, word learning strategies, and becoming word conscious.

ReferencesBeck, I. McKeown & Kucan, L., (2002). Bringing words to life. NY: Guilford. Frey, N. & Fisher, D. (2007). Reading for information in elementary school. Upper

Saddle River New Jersey: Pearson.Fry, E. (2004). The vocabulary teacher’s book of lists. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.Ganske, K. (2000). Word journeys. NY: Guilford Press.Graves, M. F. (2006) The vocabulary book. NY: Teachers College Columbia.McCormick, S. (1999). Instructing students who have literacy problems. Upper

Saddle River, NJ: Merrill.Montgomery, J.K. (2004). Funnel Toward Phonics. Greenville, SC: Super Duper

PublicationsMontgomery, J.K.& Kahn, N. (2005). What’s Your Story? Eau Claire, WI: Thinking

Publications.Montgomery, J.K. & Moreau, M. R. (2004). East Meets West: Using Children’s

Books as Clinical Intervention for Language and Reading Disabilities. Vol. 1 and 2. Springfield, MA: Mindwing Concepts

National Reading Panel, (2000). Put Reading First. Washington DC: National Institute for Literacy. www.nifl.org

Nippold, M. (1992). The nature of normal and disordered word finding in children and adolescents. Topics in Language Disorders, 13 (1), 1-14.