Vocabulary

Keep in mind that vocabulary is much more than names of objects and labels!! When we introduce vocabulary, we can describe, give an example, provide a synonym or antonym, show and more! Think about the following: What do you explicitly need to teach? How do you introduce new words and expressions? What systems do you have in place in your classroom so learners take charge of their own vocabulary learning? And make sure you know your own terms! Do you know the following words and expressions? Do you know any more? Lexis Term Exponent Utterance Word Phrase Sentence Expression

Supporting Vocab Learning

How does your classroom support vocabulary development?

• Is there a word wall (useful for games and for having learners internalize words)?
• Are there different types of dictionaries available online or in print?
• Are there "I'm done now, what next" ideas for vocabulary development, e.g. this vocabulary dice game?
• Do learners have writing notebooks they can note new language in or is there a class glossary?

Are Vocabulary Lists Necessary?

Vocabulary lists or Lexicards are one way of having learners keep track of their learning. But maybe you want to think about:

You might also think about interactive notebooks or computer-based tools for learners to develop some systematicity in their vocabulary learning. 

And in this regard, think about your testing - vocabulary translation tests do not measure useful elements of language knowledge in a communicative setting. They do not measure reading, speaking or listening and only really spelling, so there is no space for these tests on your report cards. If you need to test, small, regular quizzes through gapfilling or matching (and more!) make more sense!

Also, think about homework: Is it really meaningful to have learners "study words" or would you rather they practice a strategy or prepare something more holistic?

In this example sixth-grade learners got to choose what they wanted to learn from the easy reader they themselves chose to read. On the worksheet, they were responsible for noting new vocabulary words and summaries.

On a test, you can have the question: "From your reading, write 3 sentences about your book with at least 3 new words that you learned". Then you can assess writing skills (can also be done for speaking).

Testy about Testing?

Many teachers like to give the infamous "Vokitest" and often what is meant by this is a translation test. Here's an article as to why this is not an idea: [could not resolve link target: il_0_dfile_1674817] (Buechel, L. (2022). But I know the word in English, Just not in German! European Journal of English Language Teaching, 7/1).

If you feel your class NEEDS some sort of regular tests, then why not just little quizzes in the form of:

Below you will see some short quizzes from a fifth grade class.

Reading and writing
In this example, you see that the key vocabulary the learners had worked on in their books is tested through reading and writing skills. Every child (22) got the crossed out statement wrong, thus it was not included in the test. The teacher never used points, but made 3 groups - kids who more or less performed well, those who needed more work but could do it, and those who didn't try or got more or less everything wrong. 

These little tests (takes 5-10 minutes) were given every week and data (not scores, but comments and 1, 2, or 3 for which group) was entered for specific subskills of reading, writing, speaking or listening (depending on the quiz). 

In this example, you see the work before the test. The teacher wanted the learners to use the dictionary and also to learn to use the expression "It means...". What you see here is the TEACHING exercise, but the TESTING was the exact same table to fill in.

In this example, the learners had worked with short texts on different holidays, so both their memory and knowledge of the holiday was tested, but also their vocabulary.