Do you use 5 dollar words?
I think it is important for children to use a wide variety of words in both speaking and writing. My students and I would label words as either a 2cent word or a 5dollar word. I wanted them to use more 5dollar words. What could I do to encourage them to learn those types of words and begin to use them more?
Traditional vocabulary instruction consists mainly of providing students with a list of words and then asking them to use the dictionary to find definitions and possibly write some sentences with those words. I don’t know about you, but I don’t remember many of the words that I “learned” that way even if I made a 100 on the test at the end of the week.
In my classroom I tried to expose children to new words in reading. I tried to pick books to read aloud that would have some of those 5dollar words. My classroom often had large lists around the room for students to add words they encountered that they considered 5dollar words. There were days when students were challenged to try to use at least one 5dollar word. At the end of the day or the next day, we would talk about the words they chose and how they used them.
As I was searching for some vocabulary information the other day, I came across a site called VocabSushi, and one paragraph really stood out to me:
“The VocabSushi philosophy believes you can learn the meanings of words faster, more accurately and more efficiently by reading through sentences rather than just trying to memorize definitions. Many words, for example, commonly appear with other words – such as “an egregious error” or “an intrepid reporter” – which can clue the reader in on the word’s appropriate usage as well as its general meaning.”
Think of all the books you have access to (especially the ones at BigUniverse) that could be used to increase the vocabulary knowledge of children. I know that when I read with my 4 year old, we talk about the words that are interesting to her (and the ones that are fun for her to say). I don’t why it surprises me when I hear her using those words the next day …
image from http://www.flickr.com/photos/94168846@N00/5413729128/
