Vocabulary Activities

Workbooks and activities for teaching English vocabulary

Conquering the “End of the School Year” Blahs

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We can all relate!

The end of the school year is upon us once again. You know it’s really close when everyone, teachers included, is suffering with a bad case of the blahs. Ennui has set in. We can all relate.

The question is, what can we do about it? How do we make it those last two weeks to the bitter end and still retain our sanity? It’s hard enough to deal with our own torpor, let alone the students’.

I find that two things help me overcome the end of the school year blahs: humor, and mixing up my usual classroom routine. That’s how the last two vocabulary lessons in What’s That Word? came about.

“Boring!” pokes fun at all the tedious lectures, mundane routines, and trite cliches students have experienced at some point during their schooling, while acknowledging the fact that the end of the school year is just that. It even comes with an “Itty Bitty Boring Quizzy!” to cap off an interminable case of the blahs. As an added bonus, there are three French words in the lesson: cliché, ennui, and passé.

“Couch Potato,” on the other hand, turns the idea of the old theme, “What I Did on My Summer Vacation” on its head, and focuses on all of the hebetudinous ways to spend an indolent summer break. Enthrall your students with a parting vocabulary word (or ten) before atrophy sets in.

And just to mix things up a little, I’ve started posting the individual lessons from What’s That Word? on the website Teachers Pay Teachers. If you’d like to have a little fun with the end of the school year blahs, you’ll find the “Boring!” vocabulary lesson here, and the “Couch Potato” vocabulary lesson here. Both are downloadable, printable .pdf files, complete with quizzes, short writing activities, and the answer keys to the lesson.

FREE — Sample Lesson for Building Vocabulary — “Bad Words”

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building vocabularyBuilding vocabulary can be especially difficult with reluctant readers. I personally know quite a number of adults who were formerly reluctant readers themselves. What eventually turned them on to reading? Comic books! There are even comic book versions of most literary classics now.

After all, who doesn’t love a classic “super hero vs. villain”building vocabulary story? In this vocabulary lesson, “Bad Words,” we find our super hero, “Captain Lexicon” battling his nefarious nemesis, Doc Nuisance, who wants to stink up the town with a noxious gas. Building vocabulary is easy and fun with activities students find interesting. It’s the “Comic Con” of vocabulary lessons!

Capitalizing on what is already appealing to them is one way to “hook” kids. The lesson’s title, “Bad Words” lets them think something naughty. The bait-and-switch comes later. Instead of expletives, or similar interjections, the “bad” words found in the vocabulary exercises in this lesson turn out to be college-prep vocabulary words. Maledictions, Batman!

To download a free .pdf of the sample lesson, “Bad Words,” click here:

Taking the GramMarch Challenge

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With the end of March rapidly approaching, I couldn’t let the month expire without commenting on middle school teacher Heather Shotke’s “GramMarch Challenge,” a quest to halt students’ use of social media shorthand in their academic work and written texts. While the “English teacher” in me cheers on the GramMarch Challenge and lauds Ms. Shotke for her gumption, the “poet” in me questions the need to tamper with the relentless march of living language.

social media shorthandWitness, for example, what the Twitterverse is capable of in the hands of such formidable poets as Elizabeth Alexander, Robert Pinsky, and Claudia Rankine, whose Twitter poems have been featured in the New York Times. In fact, Twitter, with its classic “soul of wit,” has given rise to a whole new genre of abbreviated literature, dubbed “Twitterature“. However, it does not elude the keen readers’ notice that while these poems (and by extension, the very concept of “Twitterature” itself) gleefully embrace and celebrate the possibilities for utilizing a pared language to concede a truncated literary form, the poets themselves are incapable of escaping the impulse for likewise employing a highly developed, even stalwart vocabulary. For example, in “Teeny tiny poem,” Elizabeth Alexander meets the 140-character constraint, but manages nonetheless to work the word Impluvium into the space. Likewise, Claudia Rankine’s Twitter poem, “earth donates,” includes the line: “fallout active plume cloud spills/” — in which the word plume gives away the poet’s highly developed vocabulary.

Of course, it also cannot elude keen readers’ notice that these poets’ consummate use of the language did not occur without prolonged development of their skills. This brings us back around to the question of the GramMarch Challenge: should we make an effort to halt students’ use of social media shorthand in their academic work and written texts? On this question, I must side with no less than the venerable professor William Strunk, Jr., co-author of The Elements of Style, whose entire body of work asserts that “one must first know the rules to break them.” This is, after all, the purpose of formal education: teaching students the rules and conventions of Standard Edited English, so that once they’ve mastered them, they’re freed to break them. And for that, I’d have to say, “Kudos” to Heather Shotke on issuing the GramMarch Challenge.

 

Neologism Jackpot: OED word of the year

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neologism definitionLike many teachers, I often peruse newspapers and websites in search of topical items I might clip to share with my students. The Los Angeles Times recently rewarded this practice with a short article about why the Oxford English Dictionary (OED for short) had just named the word, selfie as the 2013 word of the year. Beyond offering a justification for its inclusion in what’s widely considered to be THE definitive source of words in the lexicon, the article inspired me. Jackpot! The fact that the staff of the OED even awards a newly minted word with the distinction of being the “word of the year” would make a terrific way to get the concept of what a neologism is across to my students.

One of the things I most admire about the English language is its adaptability and predilection for slurping up new words with ease. It keeps the language fresh and vibrant, probably much to the chagrin of academicians, lexicographers, and, well, (truth be told) English teachers. I mean, after all, who’d have predicted ten years ago that unfriend or inbox as verbs would be acceptable usage? (We can all thank Facebook for that.)

But then I thought, Well, if the OED staff can debate and discuss neologisms and decide among themselves to choose only one as the word of the year, who’s to say that we can’t do the same? After all, who better has a “finger on the pulse” of new words coming into the language through texting and “tech talk” than students? They practically coin new words themselves on a fairly regular basis. Why not try to keep track of neologisms such as these ourselves, and award our own “word of the year”?

So, I’m going to be putting a big piece of blank butcher paper up with the title NEOLOGISMS scrawled across the top of it in bold, black letters and inviting all of my students to participate in collecting entries for consideration. Toward the end of the year, we’ll discuss the entries we’ve collected, decide on a winner, and write a brief justification for our choice. Move over, OED, we’re on the prowl for what will arguably turn out to be next year’s best new word.

Creating A Language-Rich Environment

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Language-rich environment“Words, words, WORDS! My English teacher’s classroom is plastered with words!” one particularly enthusiastic student wrote in a final evaluation essay. But getting this type of response from a young adult is unusual because while there is a plethora of material on transforming the elementary school classroom into a language-rich environment, I’ve found scant articles with ideas for making the high school language-arts classroom a word-rich environment that is interesting, fun, and still age and grade appropriate. Therefore, I’d like to offer some of the ideas I’ve thought up, gleaned from my colleagues, or collected through my travels for creating a word-centered environment that teenagers will find challenging and intriguing. So, if you’ve encountered any ideas along these lines, please be sure to share them with us in the “Comment” section of the “Leave a Reply” form that follows at the bottom of this post. So, here goes:

  • Establish a well-stocked classroom library – first and foremost, a language-rich environment must include a wide selection of reading materials that students will find interesting – which can (and should) include everything from comics to the classics.
  • Use your wall space to set good examples – put up banners, posters, and exemplary student work that feature bits of poetry, famous literary quotes and/or quotes about reading and writing, literary trivia, and stellar sentences (i.e. see “golden lines” below).
  • Extract “golden lines” – take the very best sentences from students’ compositions and highlight them by posting the quoted lines, along with the student authors’ name(s) on posters or large pieces of paper that you’ve put up on the wall. Consider allowing students to nominate their peers’ best sentences for this feature during any peer review done as part of the writing process. You could go so far as to have students review all the entries at the end of a grading period or semester, and vote for the best one(s). You might even award the winner(s) a prize!
  • Post previous students’ best work – as examples, including any especially artistic or witty vocabulary flashcards prior students have created.
  • Stick word magnets on any surface they’ll adhere to – invest in a few Magnetic Poetry kits, or make your own, and stick them on the sides of file cabinets, magnetic white boards, the classroom door (if it’s made of metal) and voila! Watch the magic happen!
  • Have students start a “word collection” of their own – part of cultivating “word awareness” is having students keep track of any “found” bits of language that fascinates them. Therefore, if students are required to keep a “language journal” and hunt for and write down any particularly interesting words, phrases, sentences, or short paragraphs they stumble upon in their reading or daily routines, they will be more aware of how language is used and the particular patterns that attract them.
  • Read poetry aloud often!
  • Engage in word-play whenever possible – if you’re having fun with language, then students will. Fun is catchy.
  • Use word games as “sponge” activities – it’s five minutes before the bell, and the lesson you planned is all wrapped up. What now? Give “free time”? NO! Play word games like “Hangman” or “Dictionary”!! Keep ready-made materials or a list of word games always at your disposal – they’ll come in handy in times like these.
  • Hang up a Giant Crossword puzzle – everyone loves to solve puzzles! Giant Crossword puzzles on the wall or door provide a fun group activity. Consider giving out prizes (small trinkets like pencils, etc.) to students who solve a word (or words) correctly.
  • Institute the Word of the Day – while we’re on the subject of word games, consider borrowing Groucho Marx’ shtick from the television show, You Bet Your Life, and institute the practice of a daily “magic” word. (Read more…)
  • Add word-centric board games to your classroom library collection – games like Scrabble, Boggle, Balderdash, and Apples to Apples stress having fun with words, and are appealing even to teenagers!

If there are any other ideas that you have, or that you’ve come across in your travels for creating a language-rich, word-centered environment that young adults would enjoy, please leave a reply to this post and share it with us!

Vocabulary Flash Cards w/ High School Students

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boyListening to Ron Koertge read his delightful poem, “Coloring,” I was reminded of just how much joy even high school students still take from participating in “art projects.” One of the projects my students (even seniors!) always seem to enjoy is creating their own flash cards for reviewing and studying new vocabulary words. Since it’s difficult to give up a lot of precious class time when there’s always so much to teach and only so many minutes to teach it in, what I’ve found works best for me is to dedicate 20 minutes or so at the beginning of each week to explaining the process and allowing students to work on their miniature masterpieces during class at the start of the school year, but to gradually taper off on the amount of in-class time given to this activity as the weeks pass, and encouraging students to keep up the practice on their own (out-of-class) time. Nonetheless, the practice of making vocabulary flash cards also makes a good “sponge” activity – a nice way to wrap up the last 5–10 minutes of class in a productive, fun, and word-centered pastime.

Making vocabulary flash cards is pretty straightforward and requires only a few materials, but there are a few tricks and tips for assisting with language acquisition that I’ve learned through the years which students have found rather helpful. For example:

  • Instead of copying the dictionary definition onto the card for rote memorization, it’s important for students (especially English-language learners) to actually practice working with the language, so translating the dictionary definition into their own words is preferable:
  • It’s also important for students to allow the mind to translate the word into an associative picture. Since many of the vocabulary words at this level are abstract, a literal representation may be quite out of the question. Therefore, an associative one is perfectly acceptable and even encouraged. For example, for the word ameliorate, one student thought right away of hot tea and chicken soup (i.e. comfort foods):
  • Because students are trying to incorporate the new vocabulary words into everyday speech situations, it’s also important to let them experiment with generating sentences that use (or attempt to use) the new words correctly in context. However, the key word here is practice. Students’ initial attempts may require monitoring. Some student-generated sentences may be a bit “rough around the edges” and in need of gentle editorial suggestions for revision. Moreover, inspecting students’ flash cards periodically at the outset may prove to be a natural tool for assessment, so that you can quickly gauge the level or difficulty/ease of their language acquisition:
  • Finally, it’s important to allow students the opportunity to creatively and playfully engage with language, so that the mind is allowed to do what it does best (i.e. work associatively) and each student’s learning is owned. This does take some time, but the payoff is well worth the investment:
  • All you need to get started is a stack of 3 x 5″ index cards, highlighters in four different colors, and crayons, markers, or colored pencils. Alternately, students may want to cut-and-paste pictures or computer-generated clipart onto their vocabulary flash cards. Instruct the students to:
  1. Write the vocabulary word and its part of speech (i.e. noun, verb, adj., or adv.) on the front of the flash card, centered in the middle.
  2. Also write out the vocabulary word’s part of speech (noun, verb, adjective, or adverb) in the upper right-hand corner on the front of the card.
  3. Using a different color highlighter for each part of speech (i.e. all nouns one color, all verbs a second color, etc.) highlight the part of speech in the upper right-hand corner. For example, you could make all nouns yellow, all verbs pink, all adjectives green, and so on.
  4. On the back of the card, draw (or cut-and-paste) a picture that expresses the meaning of this word for you. It may be associative, or even abstract; it doesn’t have to be a literal representation. You may also choose to include more than one picture, if you’d like.
  5. Underneath the picture(s), write the word, the part of speech, and a definition in your own words (as opposed to copying down the dictionary definition).
  6. Complete your vocabulary flash card by thinking up an original sentence that uses the word correctly in context. Write your sentence on the back of the card beneath your definition.

Saving Daylight – Using Vocabulary Words Aloud in Class

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As a teacher, I’ve always loathed “springing forward,” because the vernal time change doesn’t, in fact, save time, but actually cheats us of an hour. With a dining room table perpetually plastered with mounting piles of papers to grade, I’m always on the lookout for ways of saving time by doing things more efficiently, streamlining my processes, and reducing or eliminating unnecessary procedures or steps. One of the best stack-shrinking suggestions I ever got from another teacher was to assign my students to write a short composition or paragraph using the vocabulary words we’re studying, and then listening to them (and simultaneously assessing them) as they read their work aloud.

In terms of pedagogy, there are several advantages to this exercise:

  1. It requires students to use the words in context — vocabulary acquisition is not complete until students start to work the words into everyday speech situations on a consistent and regular basis.
  2. It allows for immediate, periodic, and authentic assessment — by listening to students read their work out loud instead of lugging home more papers, students’ acquisition of new words can be evaluated orally/aurally on the spot.
  3. It implements the standards for speaking and listening — inviting all of the class members to participate in tallying up each speaker’s performance along with you ensures an engaged audience. One suggested scoring method, for instance, would be to award each speaker point(s) for each vocabulary word used correctly in context, and an additional point (or points) for each word the speaker pronounces correctly.

Of course, students may be reluctant, initially. Many resist reading aloud for a variety of reasons. The very first time I instituted this practice in my classroom by asking for volunteers, no hands went up. Since I’ve always had more success by taking more of a “carrot,” rather than a “stick” approach, I offered “extra credit” or “bonus points” to the first orators. Eventually, as students gained confidence in their abilities to utilize new words, the task became more competitive, less of a chore. For the entertainment of everyone in the room, and much to my (not so) secret delight, clever verbal sparring matches, referred to in the colloquial parlance of some locales as “joaning” or “playing the dozens” frequently ensued. Some of the more creative students even produced short stories, skits, or radio plays on occasion. But perhaps the best outcome of all: because this one assignment is assessed orally/aurally each week, it contributes no papers to the “to be graded” heap on the dining room table. And THAT truly saves daylight.

You Bet Your Life!

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Not many people remember watching a popular and widely televised quiz show from the mid-50’s called You Bet Your Life. I stumbled upon it thanks to the cultural repository known as YouTube. Hosted by Groucho Marx, one of the show’s hallmark features, called the “word of the day,” or “magic word,” (or “woid,” as Marx pronounced it) made great use of dramatic irony and the iconic rubber chicken, both of which have since become indelibly associated with Groucho Marx’ particular brand of verbally playful comedy. At the beginning of each segment, before the next pair of contestants came out, the “magic word” was shared with the studio (and television) audience. If, at anytime during the contenders’ chat with Marx, either of the participants uttered the “word of the day” by chance (or sheer luck), the rubber chicken dropped from the ceiling (with the “magic word” printed on a card held in its beak) and the contestants won an additional cash prize!

While most of us probably can’t rig our classrooms so that a rubber chicken falls from the ceiling (but wouldn’t it be fun if we could?) we can still adapt the concept of a “word of the day” or “magic word” to reinforce vocabulary words. The show’s successful implementation of this idea relies on two key factors: surprise and randomness. Although they surely knew this was part of the show’s premise, the contestants who said the “magic word” always seemed surprised – but who wouldn’t be to see a rubber chicken drop from the sky? However, the studio (and television) audience also reacted with surprise, even though they were in on it from the outset. This must be attributable, then, to the randomness with which it happened – no one knew ahead of time when or even if any pair of contestants would manage to say the word. And if they did, having been uttered, that word was taken out of circulation and replaced with a new “word of the day”.

As a classroom strategy, then, the same basic principles should be in play:

  • Surprise! – to be fair, the students should know that there is a “word of the day” in play, but they can’t know ahead of time what it is. Rubber chicken notwithstanding, if the fact that someone actually says the word aloud is not enough of a surprise already, perhaps some sort of visual and/or sound cue could be produced with little difficulty, using whatever instructional media is on hand. A word or image printed on a card or projected on a whiteboard would work, or a bell or buzzer used for another purpose (say, timed writing, for example) could be used to alert the class that the “magic word” has just been spoken.
  • Randomness – if a student in one class period says the word, the word has to be taken out of circulation and replaced with a new one. In a contained classroom, once the “word of the day” for that day has been uttered, play can be suspended for that day and resumed the next day. Also, while the “word-of-the-day” can be used to reinforce the vocabulary that’s currently being studied, the words may be chosen from previously studied vocabulary as well.
  • You Win a Prize! – finally, although awarding a cash prize is quite impractical, offering another token prize, (i.e. a pencil, sticker, bookmark, etc.) or even a couple of points of “extra credit” can be just as effective, as long as the prize is presented with some degree of fanfare, and specifically reserved for “word of the day” recipients.

Like studio and television audiences, students respond to game-play. It makes learning fun. More importantly, however, will Groucho Marx’ clever little device tempt students to work “difficult” words into classroom conversation, pronounce them aloud, and remember them later on? You bet your life!