Curated OER
Word Choice
Use vocabulary in context by choosing the correct word to complete the sentence. Briefly and accurately develop higher-level verbage. Can be used as a quiz, test, or quick exercise.
Reading Rockets
Reading Rockets: Reading Basics: Vocabulary
Vocabulary is key to reading comprehension. Readers cannot understand what they are reading without knowing what most of the words mean. As children learn to read more advanced texts, they must learn the meaning of new words that are not...
AdLit
Ad lit.org: Teach Vocabulary by Building Background Knowledge
Students need to develop an extensive vocabulary to read with fluency. In turn, fluency in reading leads to increased comprehension. Fluency also comes from the written language of the reader since the student writes words he or she...
AdLit
Ad lit.org: The Clarifying Routine: Elaborating Vocabulary Instruction
The more a new vocabulary word is associated with ideas from students' own experience, the more likely the word will become well 'networked' and a permanent part of memory. Making these links involves elaborating definitions of new...
ReadWriteThink
Read Write Think: Using a Word Journal to Create a Dictionary
This lesson enables students to track unfamiliar words as they read, link these words to their background knowledge, create new sentences for their words, and develop a final project that displays their new vocabulary. Great resource for...
ReadWriteThink
Read Write Think: Vocabulary Self Collection Strategy
Contains plans for two lessons that ask students to compose their own vocabulary lists by selecting words that are unfamiliar to them. In addition to objectives and standards, this instructional plan contains links to sites used in the...
ReadWriteThink
Read Write Think: Vocabulary Instruction Lesson Plan
This lesson plan uses a virtual trip to the moon to teach vocabulary practice. Included in the lesson plan is an overview, practice, objectives, resources, preparation, and more.
AdLit
Ad lit.org: Teaching Word Meanings as Concepts
The most effective vocabulary instruction teaches word meanings as concepts; it connects the words being taught with their context and with the students' prior knowledge. Six techniques have proven especially effective: Concept...
Other
Washington and Jefferson College: Culturally Authentic Pictorial Lexicon
Images aid vocabulary acquisition and are essential to instruction. At the Culturally Authentic Pictorial Lexicon (CAPL) project site, find a browsable and searchable collection of photographs arranged by language and context.
Austin Independent School District
Austin Independent Schools: Six Steps to Effective Vocabulary Instruction [Pdf]
Help students build vocabulary by following these six steps based on a book Building Background Knowledge by Robert Marzao. Requires Adobe Reader. [PDF]