Developing Your Child’s Word Meaning Inventory
Article by John Zwolinski, 2001
Needless to say, developing vocabulary can have a positive impact on your child's reading comprehension. There are many ways you can help your child master new words.
One of the most helpful things you can do to help your child - particularly your younger child - develop a robust vocabulary is to purposefully "boost" your vocabulary when you speak with him or her. Be conscious of the words you use, and try to introduce new words in your everyday conversations. For example, if you are driving down the street and see a truck, point out the "flatbed" or "semi" or "eighteen - wheeler."
Studies indicate that children learn about ten percent of their vocabulary through vocabulary building exercises in school. The rest they learn from exposure to speech and - most significantly - from reading. Regularly reading books to your child that are a level above what they can read independently is probably the single most important thing you can do to help your child learn new words.
The Word Bank. One effective (and fun!) way is to create and use a "word bank." A "Word Bank" is essentially a collection of unfamiliar words that you and your child assemble while reading together and work on to master through a variety of games and activities (described below). You'll need index cards, cut in half or quarters if you like (to write the words on) and a box or an envelope (for the "bank"). As you read with your child, keep an eye out for words he or she has difficulty with. There are various reasons why a child might struggle with a particular word when reading. For example, he or she might know a word and understand it perfectly when it is spoken, but might struggle to sound it out when encountering it in print. However, since we're concerned with word meaning here, you'll want to focus on words your child is unfamiliar with (both in speech and in print).
When you and your child run across such a word while reading, take a moment to consider adding it to the Word Bank. Keep in mind that the word ought to be one the child is likely to encounter fairly often in print (in other words, it ought to be a particularly useful word to know). After you've discussed the word's meaning, decide together if it's one that ought to go into the word bank. If so, write the word out on a strip of index card and drop it into the word bank box / envelope. Limit the number of "deposits" you make to three or five words per reading session (if you find that there are many words that could be going into the bank, you might want to consider finding a somewhat less challenging book to work with).
Once you've assembled ten or so cards, you can begin working on mastering new words!
Meaning-matching: Spread the cards out on a table between you and your child. Ask you child to "find the card that means "X" (and provide a definition)" Once your child is accustomed to the activity, switch roles. Place a "check" on the card each time your child successfully identifies it.
CLOZE exercises. Before working with your child, prepare a sentence for each of the words in the bank which clearly demonstrate the meaning. For example, if the word were "amiable" you might write, "I enjoy working with her because she is such a friendly, easy-going, amiable person." Avoid general sentences which don't provide supportive context (e.g., "She is amiable"). Next, cover the target word in each of the sentence (a Post-it trimmed to fit works nicely for this). Spread the words out on a table and have your child select the word that fits best in each sentence; he or she can check each guess by removing the Post-its. Put a "check" on each card that your child successfully identifies.
Semantic Sorts. If the words in your bank lend themselves grouping by meaning, you may want to consider having your child do "semantic sorts." Basically, this means grouping words that "go together." You can provide the criteria (e.g., "Find all the words that are colors") or have your child sort using his or her own categories. The important thing her is to create a situation in which you and your child can explore the meanings of the words in your bank. Again, put a check on card whenever your child has demonstrated understanding of the word's meaning.
Making sentences. Another approach is the old tried and true "use this word in a sentence." You'll want to provide a lot of support and modeling for this activity, because it can be challenging and even frustrating for many children. For example, you might spread all the words in the bank out and have your child select two or three to make sentences with. You might want to do a sentence yourself to demonstrate how a sentence can demonstrate the meaning of a word (i.e., avoiding "She is amiable"). When you child can make a sentence for a word which reflects meaning and correct grammatical usage, you'll want to "withdraw" the word from the bank. (See below.)
Mnemonic Devices. One fun activity which can be done by itself or in conjunction with those listed above is to create and use "mnemonic devices" to help remember word meanings. A "mnemonic device" is simply a way of remembering something by linking it in one's mind to something familiar. It might involve word play. For example, if your child knows a friendly person named "Amy," then keeping in mind that "Amy is amiable" might help him or her remember the meaning of "amiable." Another approach is to have your child draw pictures to help him or her remember the words. Drawing a smiling face inside of an "a" in "amiable," for example, might help him or her connect the word to its meaning.
When your child has demonstrated knowledge of a word six times or so (keep track of those "checks"), it's time to "withdraw" the word. Don't be shy about congratulating your child when you present him or her with each word he or she has earned!
John Zwolinski currently works as a reading specialist in Oakland, California. His experience extends to children of all ages in countries all over the world. He has worked with a variety of students including English as a Second Language (ESL) students to improve vocabulary.
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