Q+A: How can I fold vocabulary study into my reading instruction?
A downloadable guide to 4 field notes that boost reading comprehension
Q: Do any of your sessions shed a light on how to do vocabulary while teaching a whole-class novel? Or can one (all) of the modules be applied to that? I really want to teach how to do field guides independently, related to any reading, but this year I also wanted to do offer a more immersive shared experience during a whole-class novel. — Annie
A:
A few weeks ago, I shared about my shift away from varied warm-ups and toward consistent independent reading during the first ten-fifteen minutes of my class each day.
Among the many changes this necessitated was finding other places for my field-note-based vocabulary instruction to go. And to be honest, that suits me well. We know that grammar instruction is best situated inside of authentic student writing experiences, and I think the same is true for vocabulary. A lot of the best word-level work we do is inside what we’re already reading.
Today, I’ve gathered four types of field notes specially designed to get students to dig deep into the word-level work a writer is doing in a passage.
I’ve put them in order from easiest to most-challenging, and, by downloading the guide, you will see general instructions for exploring any word, great websites to assist in word exploration, and a one-pager you can share with students for each type of field note with an example from my class.
