Teaching Vocabulary: Two Dozen Tips & Techniques Handout from a prentation at TESOL 1995 (Chicago)
Joph Pettigrew
Center for English Language & Orientation Programs Boston University
890 Commonwealth Avenue
Boston, Massachutts 02215 jpettigr@bu.edu
people.bu.edu
Permission is freely given for personal u by any teacher. Permission for u on an institutional level is also given provided that the author’s name and university affiliation remain with the materials.
I. Oldies but goodies
1. Matching synonyms
2. Matching opposites
3. Fill in the blank ntences
II. Variations on the above
1. Choo all the possible answers
We ate lunch in the _____.
cafeteria restaurant snack snack bar salad bar diner
2. Where would you find . . . ?
an MD _____ a) in the British or Canadian Parliament
a Ph.D. _____ b) on a ruler
an MP _____ c) on a engine
in. _____ d) in a hospital
hp _____ e) in a university
3. Compete the phras
to achieve ____ a) a cret
to reveal ____ b) an idea
to grasp ____ c) a goal
4. Correct the mistakes
录像笔
He felt exhausted after a long nap. E.g., refreshed for exhausted or running to school for a long nap 5. Label a picture
monitor keyboard mou screen
6. Draw a picture(Works for a limited number of words)
Draw
a
target.
Draw
a
bow and arrow and label each one.
7. Cross out the word that doesn’t belong with the others in the group.
uncle father aunt brother
EST pm Ph.D. BC
meadow river yard field
8. Categories - You give the example; students give the category. Or vice versa.
Examples: gun, knife, club: weapon
Category: weapon: gun, knife, club
9. Complete the ntences
I was exhausted after ___________________________________
III. Distinguishing shades of meaning & near synonyms
1. Analogies - Good even at low levels
This exerci allows tho with limited English to do something on a more sophisticated level than they are usually able to do.
easy : hard :: cold : hot skyscraper : city :: tree : forest warp : wood :: peel : paint shatter : glass :: crumble : stone
2. Choo the two possible answers that can complete each ntence.
Semantic:She longed for . . .
(a) her freedom.
(b) her lover who was far away.
(c) some ketchup for her French fries. (only a joke; not rous enough)
Grammatical: H e pondered . . .
(a) his future.
(b) that he didn’t know what to do. (only followed by a noun, not a clau)
(c)
the
meaning
of
life.
Good source for incorrect answers: student errors
3. Semantic , break, damage
dented the . . . car’s bumper / tree branch / glass of water
He
splintered the . . . can / board / mirror
She
shattered the . . . mirror / water / curtains
He
shredded the . . . can / tree branch / curtains
She
4. Arrange the words on a scale (most to least, largest to smallest, etc.)
hot > warm > lukewarm > cool > cold
despi > hate > dislike
This is nice to do when possible, but it’s not possible all that often. New words are usually prented and defined with one or two known words. Focus on how the new word differs from the one they already know. For example:
5. Which word in each pair is stronger, more forceful, or more inten?
___ to surpri ___ to boil ___ to toss ___ to hurl
___ to astound ___ to simmer ___ to throw ___ to throw
6. Which word in each pair is slang?
_____ a kid _____ disgusting _____ to fail
_____ a child _____ gross _____ to flunk
7. Which word would be more polite when talking about a person?
or Which word has a more positive connotation?
_____ thin _____ fat _____ frugal
_____ skinny _____ overweight _____ mirly
8. Complete the definitions - How are the actions performed?传承传统文化
thrust = to push ____________________ (forcefully, hard)
shatter = to break ____________________ (into many pieces)
tap = to hit _____________________ (lightly, softly)
破坏分子IV. Things to do with the vocabulary in a reading passage
1. Guessing word meaning from context - See suggestions in Section V.
But make sure it is really possible to guess the meaning from context. A lot of textbooks give students context exercis using unclear or ambiguous examples. This just convinces them that it’s not really possible to do.
If you have a reading with a lot of vocabulary words who meanings you cannot reasonably expect students to get from context, try some of the techniques.
仗节死义
2. Give students the definitions; let them find the words.
<, find a word in paragraph 5 that means angry.
A good way to deal with a difficult article without simply giving students the vocabulary.忆江南的古诗
This also teaches them to focus on context and can be a good complement to work on guessing meaning (ction V below).
3. Teach students when not to look up a word.
o Can you get a general n of the word? e.g., a person? a feeling? a job? something good/bad?
黄河壶口瀑布位于陕西与哪个省之间o Find all the words on a page that refer to movement (or speaking).
o Do you really need to know exactly what each word means to understand the action of the story? How much can you understand before you u a dictionary?
o Take a magic marker and block out all the words you don’t know. Can you still tell what the passage is about?
Follow-up/reinforcement
4. Parts of speech
With a corpus of words you’ve already studied, give ntences that require a different part of
speech. (Dictionary u)
5. Different meanings of familiar vocabulary
<, toll
[while driving on the highway] There’s a toll bridge ahead. Do you have any quarters?
The highway death toll has declined sharply since police began to enforce the drunk driving laws more aggressively.
The bell in the old church tower tolled four o’clock.
V. Teaching students how to guess word meaning from context Types of context clues:
1. Cau & effect - Label the ntence C & E; then make a guess.
Becau we lingered too long at the restaurant, we misd the beginning of the movie.
The door was ajar, so the dog got out of the hou.
2. Opposite/contrast - Underline the two words or phras in contrast to one another, then make a
guess.经纬网练习题
熊的英文
Even though I studied for hours, I flunked the test.
My last apartment was really small, but my new place is quite spacious.
3.General n- Focus on SVO, actor & recipient of action. What type of word is it?
If it is a noun: a person, place, thing, abstract idea
If it is a verb: an action (e.g., movement?), or feeling/emotion, etc.
If it is an adjective: what is it describing? good or bad? size? color? shape? emotion?
Each summer thousands of tourists flock to the beaches of Cape Cod.
The father tosd the ball to his little boy.
4.Synonyms or paraphras - Found elwhere in the ntence or paragraph
Samuel was deaf, but he didn’t let his handicap get in the way of his success.
Sally’s flower garden included dozens of marigolds, which she tended with great care.
5.Examples -if you know the example, you can often figure out the category; if you know the category, you can get a general idea of what the example is.
The baboon, like other apes, is a very social animal.
6.Recognizing definitions - Common in college textbooks, newspaper & magazine articles
Many children of normal intelligence have great difficulty learning how to read, write, or
work with numbers. Often thought of as “underachievers,” such children are said to have
a learning disability, a disorder that interferes in some way with school achievement.
Ten Steps to Improving College Reading Skills]
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