All Info About Reading

 A big part of understanding text lies in word knowledge.  In order to be efficient readers, students need good vocabulary skills.  They need a large working vocabulary, they need the ability to discover the meanings of unfamiliar words from context, they need to apply definition information, and they need to recognize vocabulary-based comprehension questions when they see them.

It is important for a reader to have a wide vocabulary.  When unfamiliar words are encountered in the text, they are much easier to decode if the words are already in the student’s oral vocabulary.  Vocabulary knowledge will give the reader clues about the new word.  For example, if a young reader is reading about vegetables, he or she may be stumped by the word “squash.”  However, if the reader is already familiar with squash in real life, the word will come to mind based on the initial or final sound.  It will take fewer cues to uncover the word’s identity.

There are many ways to build vocabulary.  First and foremost, students will learn new words by exposure.  Use new words in conversation and be sure to explain their meanings.  Books are veritable fountains of new words, too.  Read out loud to students from a wide array of books and other publications.  Keep reading even when after your child or group has learned to read independently.  Each author will use new and different words.  Make sure you read from many different genres.  Mystery stories use different types of words than science fiction or historical novels.  Nonfiction books are loaded with topic-specific vocabulary, and are super ways to supplement science or social studies texts.

Puzzles are another great resource for vocabulary development.  Word search puzzles and word scrambles are among the easiest, and promote attention to letter sequence and spelling.   In order to add meaning (vital to vocabulary growth), you may want to add sentences with missing words or a matching exercise.  Crossword puzzles are better for helping students truly master new words.  Clues can be synonyms, examples, or definitions.  Cryptograms and codes help students focus on spelling patterns.

It is also important to play word games with your children.  As you play spelling games with dice or letter tiles, you will invariably use words that are unfamiliar to your child.  By taking time to explain each one and encouraging the child to use the word within the game, you can motivate your youngster to retain these words and claim them for his or her own.

Many students have difficulty with words that have multiple meanings.  You know these tricky customers: spring can mean a season of the year, a sudden jump or a curved, bouncy coiled wire.  Help your child practice by occasionally asking which definition is applicable to the passage containing the multiple-meaning word.

As readers mature, it is important that they begin to understand how to gather meaning from context.  Many words have clues nearby that help attach meaning to the new word.  Teach children to look for other nouns that rename the unknown word, nearby sentences that give clues about the meaning and so forth.  Picking up on context clues is a vital skill.  It’s also important that students understand how to look for roots and word parts within unknown words.  This begins with seeing common suffixes and prefixes and mentally omitting these to uncover the root word.  At higher levels, this skill involves learning Greek, Latin, and other common letter clusters that add meaning to words.  Examples include tri- meaning three and cycle meaning round or circular.

Vocabulary questions are common on tests and in textbooks such as science or social studies.  Teach students to find the boldfaced words and pick the meaning out from the words nearby in the text.  You’ll want to monitor this process to be sure that the learner actually captures the meaning of the word and not a sentence with little to do with the definition.  Vocabulary questions are often straightforward: students are directly asked to give the meaning of a particular word or required to match definition with word.  At other times, though, vocabulary questions may be a bit more subtle.  A student may be asked to demonstrate comprehension of a word in context.  An example might be “How did Sue feel when she was sobbing?”
 

The gift of words is one of the most precious things you can give to a child.  Guide yours to a better vocabulary by talking, reading, playing games, and practicing these vital skills

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