VOCABULARY

Premier Skills is the British

Council’s international

partnership with the Premier

League operating in 25

countries across Asia, Africa

and the Americas from

Afghanistan to Zambia.

Premier Skills focuses on developing community

coaches and referees and on supporting

community projects. The programme has also

created a range of materials, including a dedicated

website, using football-based content for teachers

and learners of English.

Rob Lewis

Teacher Trainer

Aims of this workshop

• To look at principles which

can help vocabulary

learning

• To consider practical ways

of implementing those

principles

• To evaluate video material

from the Premier Skills

English website with these

principles in mind

What’s the best

way to learn a

language?

Teaching vocabulary vs learning vocabulary

Learning vocabulary

Four principles:

1. Cognitive depth

2. Retrieval

3. Association

4. Multiple encounters

Adapted from Thornbury, S. (2002) How to Teach Vocabulary, Harlow: Pearson.

Cognitive depth

Association

Retrieval

Multiple

encounters

Putting the four principles into practice

Applying these

principles to

lesson plans

Extending an activity

Personalising an activity

Building vocabulary

Practical tools

Over to you