by Janice Cate |
Vocabulary Expansion
The purpose of the activity is to learn synonyms and antonyms for frequently used words from stories and books. After participating in the activity, the students may revisit the chart whenever they need words for writing assignments.
Resource Type: Activities
Audience: Elementary
Audience Language Proficiency: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced
Duration: 45 minutes of instruction, 10-15 minutes each day for a week
Materials And Technology:
- Magnetic whiteboard
- Whiteboard markers
- Magnetic vocabulary cards made by the teacher
- Sample Vocabulary Expansion Graphic Organizer
Objective:
- Reading: understand vocabulary in grade-level texts
- Listening: understand vocabulary in read aloud texts
NCTE Standard 3: TSW use their knowledge of word meaning to comprehend, interpret, and appreciate texts.
Activity Description: Draw the boxes from the handout on the white board. Write the focus word in the center box. Brainstorm with students words that are synonyms and antonyms of the focus word. Write those in the appropriate boxes. Find words in dictionary or thesaurus if students have trouble thinking of words. Discuss each word as a review. Look for photos of the focus word in magazines or newspapers or ask students to draw an example showing the focus word. Do the same for a non-example of the focus word. If possible act out the example and non-example.
Revisit the chart all week. Choose different synonyms and antonyms to discuss, find, draw, act out, or write in sentences. Teacher may write all of the words on card stock, attach small magnet to the back of each card then let students move the words to the correct boxes on the chart.
In another session take all the words and put them in order from the most extreme synonym to the most extreme antonym. Teacher thinks aloud as s/he decides where to place the words. (There may be more than one ‘right’ way to order the words.)
The ‘happy’ list may look like this:
Joyous, elated, glad, pleased, contented, fortunate, happy, sad, downcast, depressed, grieved, morose
Each week choose another focus word, while keeping charts of earlier weeks’ words on the wall. Start with words found in grade level reading books that have many synonyms and antonyms. In exploring one word in this depth, students connect to many more words that have similar meanings and can expand their comprehension through this connection.
Revisit the chart all week. Choose different synonyms and antonyms to discuss, find, draw, act out, or write in sentences. Teacher may write all of the words on card stock, attach small magnet to the back of each card then let students move the words to the correct boxes on the chart.
In another session take all the words and put them in order from the most extreme synonym to the most extreme antonym. Teacher thinks aloud as s/he decides where to place the words. (There may be more than one ‘right’ way to order the words.)
The ‘happy’ list may look like this:
Joyous, elated, glad, pleased, contented, fortunate, happy, sad, downcast, depressed, grieved, morose
Each week choose another focus word, while keeping charts of earlier weeks’ words on the wall. Start with words found in grade level reading books that have many synonyms and antonyms. In exploring one word in this depth, students connect to many more words that have similar meanings and can expand their comprehension through this connection.
References: Bringing Words to Life: Robust Vocabulary Instruction by Beck, McKeown, Kucan,
ISBN 9781572307537.
ISBN 9781572307537.
References:
Bringing Words to Life: Robust Vocabulary Instruction by Beck, McKeown, Kucan,
ISBN 9781572307537.
Supporting Files:
Vocabulary Expansion.pdf
TESOL Interest Section: Teacher Education, Elementary Education