• Vocabulary

     

    Vocabulary refers to the set of words that a child knows both receptively and expressively.

    Receptive vocabulary consists of the words a child understands while listening and reading.  

    Expressive vocabulary consists of the words a child uses when speaking and writing. 

    Vocabulary is the basis for learning language and is crucial to success in reading.  A varied vocabulary is one of the most important factors which allows a school-age child's ability to learn new information.  Educational research shows that vocabulary strongly relates to reading comprehension, intelligence , and general ability.  The size of a person's working vocabulary is a measure of educational achievement and a key to academic success. 

    Building blocks to vocabulary development include:

    Content Words: nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs.

    Synonyms:  words which have a similar meaning; example, laugh-giggle.

    Antonyms:  words which have opposite meanings; example, hot-cold.

    Homonyms:  words that have the same name but different spelling and meaning; example, son-sun.

    Categories:  words that are related to another; example, foods, drinks, clothing.

    Ways to Encourage Vocabulary Development:
    • Read to your child, read with your child.  Provide plenty of reading material.  The largest influence on students' vocabulary is the volume of reading they do.  
    • Talk with your child about a variety of topics.  Children whose parents talk to them often come to school with a much higher vocabulary  than in homes where talk is limited.
    • Talk with your child about the environment around you.
    • Encourage your child to tell you about his or her day, what they learned about, a special friend, a subject that they like.