1、 A Course in English Language Teaching Unit 8 Teaching vocabulary Vocabulary is a weak area for many students,much“vocabulary instruction”ends up being handwriting practice.Without grammar very little can be conveyed;without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed.When students travel,they dont carry gra
2、mmar books,they carry dictionaries.”Vocabulary teaching is an indispensable part of English curriculum.I.The importance of vocabulary The singular importance of vocabulary has become a powerful insight to raise achievement.The words we know help us organize our learning.The creation of words is our
3、tool for increasing learning.Vocabulary instruction should be a focalpoint of learning,especially for students impacted by poverty.Vocabulary instruction is an excellent advance organizer but also must be taught in context.Introduction of This Unit To discuss how to teach vocabulary.Although vocabul
4、ary is usually integrated with the teaching of reading,we still consider it necessary to introduce ways to learn and consolidate vocabulary.Teaching Content How to teach vocabulary What students need to know Presenting vocabulary Consolidating vocabulary Developing vocabulary building strategies 1.I
5、ntroduction Vocabulary plays an important part in learning to read.Beginning readers must use the words they hear orally to make sense of the words they see in print.With 100,000 words in the English language,teaching vocabulary can seem like a very daunting prospect.The average native speaker uses
6、around only 5000 words in everyday speech.Your students wont need to produce every word they learn,some they will just need to recognize.2.Ways for TeachingnTeachers should choose proper ways to instruct words.Many teachers often write new words they want to teach on the blackboard,then explain them
7、 one by one.The way is easy for teachers to teach,while it isnt interesting for students to learnIt makes students feel bored.nSelecting what to teach,based on frequency and usefulness to the needs of your particular students is therefore essential.Criteria DefinitionRangethe extent to which a word
8、occurs in the different types of textsCoveragethe capacity of a word to replace other wordsfrequencythe number of occurrences of a word in the target languagelearnabilitythe extent to which a word can be learned without difficultylanguage needsthe extent to which a word is regarded as required by th
9、e learner in order to communicate 3.Selecting what to teach,based on4.What to Teach While Teaching Vocabulary item Formpronunciationspellingderivations Meaningbasic and literal meanings,derived and figurative meanings,semantic relation and connotation Usagesub-categorization,collocation sociolinguis
10、tic and stylistic restrictions,slangs and idioms II.How To Teach Vocabulary 1.The most effective way is teaching vocabulary IN CONTEXT.There are two advantages:1)students remember the words better.2)students see HOW the words are used.2.Use all kinds of stories:childrens stories,news stories,jokes,m
11、agazine articles.3.Teaching by using word-formation:4.Model the activities first.5.Keep an ongoing list prominently posted.6.Go beyond the definitions of the words.7.Most work with vocabulary should be done with the meanings available.8.Incorporate multisensory learning from the beginning.9.Have str
12、ucture and organization behind the words you present.n10.offering words which have the same semantic field of function.n 11.offering different parts of speech.n 12.making sentences.n 13.asking students to read additional English articles.n 14.learning texts in English textbooks.n 15.listening to the
13、 tapes for English textbooksIII.What a student may need to know?1.Item-What it meansnIt is vital to get across the meaning of the item clearly and to ensure that your students have understood correctly with checking questions.Words can be classified into many parts of speech:noun,verb,adjective,adve
14、rb and so on.Students need to know what form it is to be able to use it effectively.For example,water(n.)water(v.)2.The form 3.How it is pronounced This can be particularly problematic for learners of English because there is often no clear relation between how a word is written and how it is pronou
15、nced.It is very important to use the phonemic script in such cases so the Ss have a clear written record of the pronunciation.Dont forget also to drill words that you think will cause pronunciation problems for your students and highlight the word stresses.4.How it is spelt This is always difficult
16、in English teaching.Remember to clarify the pronunciation before showing the written form.5.The connotations that the item may have Bachelor is a neutral/positive word whereas spinster conjures a more negative image.6.The situations when the word is or is not used Is it formal/neutral/informal?-spec
17、tacles/glasses/specs.Is it used mainly in speech or in writing?-To sum up is usually written whereas mind you is spoken.Is it outdated?-Wireless instead of radio.7.How the word is related to others Synonyms-words different in sound and spelling but most nearly alike or exactly the same in meaning.Th
18、ere are two kinds of synonyms.(1)Absolute synonyms;(2)Relative synonyms.Antonyms-words which are opposite in meaning.They can be classified into three major groups.(1)Contradictory terms;(2)Contray terms;(3)Relative terms.lexical sets-words that belong to a particulary group.(1)Semantic group;(2)Syn
19、tactical group;(3)Functional group.8.Collocation or the way that words occur together You describe things in great detail not in big detail，and to ask a question you raise your hand，you dont lift your hand.It is important to highlight this to students to prevent mistakes in usage later.9.What the af
20、fixes may indicate about the meaning?(the prefixes and suffixes)Prefixes-change the meanings of roots.(1)Negative prefixes：dis-,non-un-.(2)Prefixes of degree or size：micro-,over-,under-.Suffixes-change the grammatical function of roots.(1)noun suffixes:-er,-ese,-tion.(2)verb suffixes:-fy,-ize.(3)adv
21、erb suffixes:-ly,-wards.(4)Adjective suffixes：-able,-al,-ful,-y.This is particularly useful at a higher level.Which of these areas you choose to highlight will depend on the item you are teaching and the level of your students.Now its time to think about how to present vocabulary.nThere are lots of
22、ways of getting across the meaning of a lexical item.IV.Ways to present vocabulary Ways to present vocabularyn 1.Presenting vocabularies by stick drawings,models,slides,films,videotapes,radios and TVs.2.Creating a Monster If teaching body languages,you can use-Basic building blocksnRed hair and gree
23、n fur.A monstrous wardrobe.Do you know where your monster is?Five eyes and two fangs.Two claws.n3.IllustrationThis is very useful for more concretewords(dog,rain,tall)and for visual learners.It has its limits though,not all items can be drawn.n4.MimeThis lends itself particularly well to action verb
24、s and it can be fun and memorable.n5.Synonyms/Antonyms/Gradable itemsUsing the words the students already know can be effective for getting meaning across.n6.DefinitionMake sure that it is clear(maybe check in a learner dictionary)before the lesson if you are not confident.Remember to ask questions
25、to check they have understood properly.n7.TranslationIf you know the students L1,then it is fast and efficient.Remember that not every word has a direct translation.n8.ContextThink of a clear context when the word is used and either describe it to the students or give them example sentences to clari
26、fy meaning further.nAgain which you choose will depend on the item you are presenting.Some are more suitable for particular words.Often a combination of techniques can be both helpful and memorable VI.Consolidating vocabularynLabelingnSpotting the differences nDescribing and drawing nPlaying a game
27、nUsing word thermometers nUsing word seriesnWord bingo nWord association nOdd man out Using word categories:countriesmilk,typist,apples,pigs,shirts,Germany,chickens,Japan,shoes,oranges,peaches,wine,cows,butcher,tea,driver,Greece,socks,Turkey,trousers,banker,dogs,sheep,coffee,plums,pearsDrinksFruitsA
28、nimalsJobsClothes Using word net-work:sitting roombathroom ktichen bedroom knife HOUSEVII.Developing vocabulary building strategiesnReview regularly nGuess meaning from context nOrganize vocabulary effectively nUse learned vocabulary VIII.Alternative ways of teaching vocabulary n1.Give your students
29、 a few items of vocabulary and tell them to find the meaning,pronunciation and write an example sentenced with the word in.They can then teach each other in groups.n2.Prepare worksheets and ask your students to match words to definitions.n3.Ask students to classify a group of words into different ca
30、tegories.For example,a list of transport words into air/sea/land.n4.Ask students to find new vocabulary from reading homework and teach the other students in the class.IX.Other things to considern1.Review the vocabulary you teach through a game or activity and encourage your students to do the same
31、at home.n2.Encourage autonomy in your learners.Tell them to read,watch films,listen to songs etc.and note the useful words.n3.Have a section of your board for vocabulary items that come up as you are teaching.Use different colors for the word/the phonemics/the prepositions/the part of speech.Riddle
32、ClimbingtheladderWerethewinner.Pass the picture andPass the picture and repeat the word repeat the word Whats in the picture?Pairs comparePictureAPictureBUsing a rhymeOne potato,two potatoes,three potatoes,four;Five potatoes,six potatoes,seven potatoes,more.n 4.It is a good idea to teach/learn words
33、 withn associated meanings together.n 5.Encourage your students to purchase a good dictionary and use class time to highlight the benefits of one.n 6.Teach your students the grammatical names for the parts of speech and the phonemic script.n 7.Always keep a good dictionary by your side in case a stu
34、dent asks about a word you dont know.n 8.If you dont and have never heard of the word,tell the student you will check and get back to them.Do get back to them n 9.Give extra example sentences to the students if they are unsure and encourage them to write the word in an example sentence(maybe for homework)Vocabulary teaching is not an isolated activity.Vocabulary teaching is also a cooperation The purpose of English vocabulary teaching is to help students develop the abilities of using English for communication and of acquiring knowledge in the future.
