Lesson _1_ of _1_ Topic: Vocabulary Acquisition Teaching Date: TBD. Subject/Course: Language Arts Grade Level: 2 Time Frame: 1:00pm 1:25pm

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1 Unit: Guided Reading Designer: Sarah Williams Lesson _1_ of _1_ Topic: Vocabulary Acquisition Teaching Date: TBD Subject/Course: Language Arts Grade Level: 2 Time Frame: 1:00pm 1:25pm Context: The intervention being applied in this small group lesson is mainly intended for one student in particular. She is a struggling reader, did not pass her PALS exam, and is receiving assistance from the reading specialist. The general education teacher and the reading specialist agree that this student could use help in the area of vocabulary acquisition. Research on vocabulary building for students with learning disabilities led to the discovery of the concept model approach. The four students in the guided reading group are lower level readers. They read at about a Rigby benchmark level of 21. This lesson will focus on vocabulary acquisition using the Frayer Model graphic organizer for word analysis and vocabulary building. The Frayer Model prompts students to think about and describe the meaning of a word or concept by defining the term, describing its essential characteristics, providing examples of the idea and offering non examples of the idea. Since guided reading groups only meet for minutes every day, we will pick two words or concepts out of the book Animals of the Tropical Rain Forest by Joanne Mattern to analyze and internalize. We will begin with a pre test of the words and concepts in the book to assess prior knowledge. After reading and vocabulary analysis, we will do a short activity where the students will draw a picture of one or both of the words/concepts we talked about to assess their understanding. If the intervention proves to be successful, future interventions using this approach will be worked into lessons, both whole group and small group. Standards Outcome Objectives VA SOL 2.2: The student will continue to expand listening and speaking vocabularies. All students will be able to apply, through oral and written response, the Frayer Model graphic organizer a) Use words that reflect a growing range of interests and knowledge. for word analysis and vocabulary building during this guided reading session. b) Clarify and explain words and ideas orally. All students will demonstrate understanding of new vocabulary by drawing pictures of one or both of the two concepts/words being analyzed in the guided reading lesson during this session. Materials and Resources Materials: 10 copies of the Frayer Model graphic organizer; 5 copies of text; pencils; drawing paper; crayons. Resources: Fore III, C., Boon, R.T. & Lowrie, K. (2007). Vocabulary instruction for middle school students with learning Preparation: Pre test, choose words/concepts to focus on, prepare examples. disabilities: A comparison of two instructional models. Learning Disabilities: A Contemporary Journal, 5 (2), Frayer Model: Buehl, D. (2001). Classroom strategies for interactive learning. International Reading Association: Newark, DE.

2 Instructional Procedures: 1. Administer pre test to students. Read each question and the answer choices aloud to them. Tell them that they are not expected to know these words and concepts and that it is just a little test to see what they already know. Tell them that it will not be graded and it is OK if they do not know the words and concepts. (2 minutes). 2. Hand out text to students. Read title and author aloud. Tell them that it is a non fiction text. Ask students if they know what non fiction means. Tell students to pay close attention to the bold words. Ask students to find a bold word in the book and place their finger on it. Look to make sure the students understand what a bold word is. Ask them if they know why those words are bolded and why we should pay close attention to them. Allow them to read through the text. It is alright if they do not finish reading it. (5 minutes). 3. Hand out graphic organizer to students. Tell them we are going to talk about a few words and concepts in the text. Tell them that this is a strategy to understanding difficult words/information. Pick out first word/concept (rain forest). Go through graphic organizer with them using glossary in back of book, and context cues/pictures from the text. Pick out second word/concept (environment). Go through graphic organizer again with students. (10 minutes). 4. Give students drawing paper and crayons. Tell them that they are to pick out one of the words we just talked about from the text (rain forest or environment). Tell them to draw a picture of it that can show me they understand. If they finish quickly, ask them to draw a picture of the other word. Use these to assess understanding. (8 minutes). Differentiation: Lesson is differentiated already because the students are flexibly grouped according to ability. If I had a mixed ability group or I was trying to adapt the lesson for different groups of higher or lower ability I could differentiate in the following ways: Content: The text would remain the same but the two focus words in the book would be different. Higher ability students would be asked to focus on more difficult words in their graphic organizers while lower ability or struggling students would be asked to focus on less difficult words. Process: Higher ability students, while filling in their graphic organizers on their focus words, would be asked to write about their focus words in a journal entry and illustrate it to demonstrate understanding. Lower ability and struggling students would simply be asked to fill in their graphic organizers on their focus words and make an illustration to demonstrate understanding. Product: Higher ability students would have to use their focus words in sentences as an exit card from guided reading group time. Medium ability, lower ability, and struggling students would have to name one characteristic of each of their focus words as an exit card from guided reading group time. Accommodations / Modifications: By glancing quickly at the pre assessment, I will be able to tell which students need a bit more help. My main concern during this guided reading lesson is the focus student. That is not to say that I will not pay attention to the other students. Students do not have to finish text in the time allotted. I will make sure that they do not feel pressure to finish. Also students have the option of drawing pictures of only one (or both) of the words at the end of the lesson in case they finish quicker or need a little more time. Assessment (Formative) (Summative) Quickly glancing at the pre assessment will tell me The pre assessment will give me an indication of their

3 which students need more help. I will also formatively assess student understanding through paying attention to their responses while filling out the graphic organizer. prior knowledge. Their illustrations of the concepts at the end will tell me how much they internalize and understand the concepts. After using the Frayer model for vocabulary acquisition in many guided reading sessions, a post assessment combining questions from all the pre assessments can be created and administered to indicate understanding and internalization of vocabulary. Possible Pre Assessment Questions: 1. Which of the following is the best definition of a tropical rain forest? A) A forest of tall trees found in hot, rainy places B) A forest of small trees found in the United States C) A dry, sandy region with little rainfall D) A treeless area that is very cold 2. Which of the following is NOT a layer of the rainforest? A) The understory B) The canopy C) The ceiling D) The forest floor 3. Which of the following is an example of an animal found in the rainforest? A) Polar bear B) Toucan C) Rattlesnake D) Dog 4. Which of the following is NOT an example of an animal adapting to the rain forest environment? A) A jaguar using its spots to hide B) A monkey using its tail to swing from branches C) A plant using the sunlight to grow D) A sloth using its claws to hang from branches

4 Background Research: The target behavior of this research is vocabulary acquisition. The focus is a second grade student who is struggling in reading and language arts. She did not pass her PALS exam and is receiving assistance from the reading specialist. She does not have an IEP. The general education teacher and the reading specialist agreed that she could use help in the area of vocabulary acquisition. 1. Use the concept model to teach content-area vocabulary. Research by Fore, Boon, and Lowrie (2007) comparing two commonly used types of instruction on the learning of content-area vocabulary words (definition model and concept model) indicates that the concept model had a greater effect upon the learning of content-area vocabulary words for all students participating in the study. The concept model uses a concept diagram to teach content-area vocabulary. The teacher starts by displaying the concept diagram on the overhead or document camera and giving each student a paper copy. In the middle of the diagram the teacher writes the new content area vocabulary word and reads the word aloud. The teacher instructs the students to follow her and write down what she writes down. The teacher then states and writes the definition of the word and tells the class that they are going to discuss characteristics present in the word (concepts). The teacher elicits responses from the students about characteristics that are always present, those that are sometimes present, and those that are never present. These are all written down. They then list and discuss examples and non-examples of the word. The teacher elicits and answers any questions the students may have. Citation: Fore III, C., Boon, R.T. & Lowrie, K. (2007). Vocabulary instruction for middle school students with learning disabilities: A comparison of two instructional models. Learning Disabilities: A Contemporary Journal, 5 (2), Use different channels of learning to teach content-area vocabulary.

5 Research by Kossack (2007) on content-area vocabulary instruction and acquisition indicates that rote memorization of vocabulary words involves only one pathway to the brain (verbal/linguistic through words and dictionary use) and that students will learn vocabulary better by involving different or multiple pathways (visual). To implement, the students begin by actively predicting meanings from words that are written in a manner that suggests its meaning. The words could be written in shapes or fonts that suggest meaning or visual images could be embedded to suggest the terms meaning ( as when the e or the o in the word equator is drawn as a globe on which the equator obviously visually emphasized [Kossack, 2007]). Students can work together to interpret or guess visual definitions, thus using interpersonal, logical/mathematical, verbal/linguistic, and visual/spatial pathways to the brain. Citation: Kossack, S. (2007). Comparing the effects of high and low learning pathway instructional approaches on vocabulary mastery of middle school at-risk learners. The International Journal of Learning, 14 (6),