Vocabulary

Vocabulary was fun for me during elementary school, but middle and high school it became boring. We only looked up definitions, memorized them, and “A”ced the test on Friday. It was simple and easy, but I did not understand the meaning of the word. The book informs me that there are ways to express vocabulary and we do it everyday. The authors explained general vocabulary consists of primarily words we use everyday, usually with widely upon meaning. Specialized vocabulary is flexible and transportable across curricular disciplines words with more than one meaning and then there is technical vocabulary which is vocabulary words that are used for a certain subject. This broke vocabulary down into broad categories for me and I better understand it. The books also state that all unfamiliar words should not become vocabulary words. Some teachers expect students to be a genius and learn every vocabulary word for one chapter instead of the important and factual words that will actually be used. The chapter also discusses vocabulary instruction and how important it is to follow the four steps: being actively involved in vocabulary, make personal connections, be immersed in vocabulary, and consolidating meaning through multiple information sources. Most teachers skip all of these students and students only do what I did in school which is memorized site words from the definition I looked up and pass the test of Friday not even thinking about the words on Monday. Vocabulary should be made fun, interesting, and challenging to students in order for them to be engaged and actively learn. Memorization and looking up definitions is boring to students. During my tutoring session, m y student has the most trouble with comprehension, but as soon as I relate the vocabulary words to Disney characters something that she is familiar with and is apart of her life, I see an immediate interest and understanding of the term we are studying. Children will love to learn new words if they are given the opportunity to express themselves and not continue the boring routines that already take place in schools.