The Vocabulary-Rich Classroom:

Modeling Sophisticated Word Use

to Promote Word Consciousness
and Vocabulary Growth
Holly B. Lane, Stephanie Arriaza Allen

Promoting incidental learning and word The weather watcher activity also illustrated how
Ms. Barker carefully guided her students’ vocabulary
consciousness through frequent and development. One early September day, Ms. Barker
deliberate modeling of sophisticated announced, “Sarah, you’re our weather watcher to-
vocabulary can add substantial day. Go outside and watch the weather and come
back and tell us what it’s going to be like outside to-
breadth to students’ vocabularies.
day.” Sarah dutifully jumped up and walked to the
classroom door that opens to the outside. She opened
the door and, standing in the doorway, looked up
The Weather Watcher and around her and said quietly to herself, “Sunny.”
In Ms. Barker’s (all names are pseudonyms) kin- As she made her way back to the circle, she repeated
dergarten classroom, just like in so many other kin- to herself in a whisper, “Sunny. Sunny. Sunny.” It was
dergarten classrooms, the day began with “circle all Sarah could do to keep this important word in her
time.” During circle time, Ms. Barker led her students head for the 30 seconds she needed it there. When
through a series of routines designed to teach basic Ms. Barker asked Sarah for her weather report, Sarah
skills and help students acquire fundamental knowl- blurted out, “Sunny!” Sarah was obviously relieved.
edge. They sang songs that helped them remember Ms. Barker smiled at Sarah and continued with the
the letters of the alphabet and their numbers in se- discussion, “That’s right, it’s sunny outside today.
Does that mean it will be warm or cool?”
quence. The students spent time on calendar activi-
Given the time of year, only three weeks into the
ties that helped them learn the months of the year
school year, Sarah’s response was exactly what could
and the days of the week.
be expected. The choices of words to describe the
Ms. Barker assigned classroom jobs during cir-
weather at that time were sunny, cloudy, and rainy.
cle time, too, and guided the students in carrying
The children were learning the difference between
out their duties. The “zookeeper” was in charge of
these basic terms and what they meant to them.
feeding and watering the classroom pets (a pair of Should they wear shorts or long pants? Should they
hamsters). The “cleanup helper” made certain that all wear a raincoat? Will they be able to play outside?
scraps of paper were picked up off the floor through- They were getting what they needed at that point in
out the day. The “line leader” got to be first in line to their development.
lunch and anywhere else the class went, and the “ca- Fast forward to February in Ms. Barker’s class.
boose” was in charge of bringing up the rear of the Circle time looked much like it did in September, but
line. Finally, the “weather watcher” reported the day’s there were subtle differences. Instead of simply recit-
weather to the group, so they could discuss how to ing the days of the week, the students were able to
prepare for such weather—what to wear, whether to tell Ms. Barker what day it was yesterday and what
carry an umbrella, and so forth. day it will be three days from then. Instead of simply

The Reading Teacher, 63(5), pp. 362–370 © 2010 International Reading Association
362 DOI:10.1598/RT.63.5.2 ISSN: 0034-0561 print / 1936-2714 online
reciting the months of the year, the children identi- Affable Annie
fied the holidays that occur in February, how many
In Ms. Rivas’s fourth-grade class, everyone looked for-
days there are in the month, and in what season it
ward to “morning meeting” (Kriete & Bechtel, 2002).
falls.
The routine was a critical piece of her classroom
Perhaps the biggest difference became evident
management plan, but more importantly, it served as
when Ms. Barker was going over the duties of the
a catalyst for building her classroom community and
class jobs. The zookeeper had become the “animal
for learning in engaging ways. The first segment of
nutrition specialist.” The cleanup helper had become
the morning meeting routine was the “greeting.” The
the “custodian.” The line leader was the “class move-
greeting ensured that each student was recognized
ment coordinator,” whereas the caboose was still
daily and made to feel like a part of the group. The
the caboose. The weather watcher had become the
greeting activity changed from day to day, but one
“meteorologist.”
of the favorites was generating positive words to de-
Ms. Barker explained, “Jared, you’re our me- scribe classmates as they were greeted. Each student
teorologist for today. Go outside and observe the was directed to say hello to the person sitting to his
weather conditions, then bring us back your weather or her left and to say something to described this per-
forecast.” Jared did as directed and returned to the son in a positive way. Each greeting was said aloud
circle. When Ms. Barker asked for his forecast, he for the whole class to hear.
announced, “It’s going to be rather brisk today.” Ms. When the school year started, this type of greet-
Barker smiled and went on with the discussion about ing was limited to simple descriptive words: “Hi,
how to prepare for brisk weather. Annie! You are always nice”; “Hello to the very happy
The observer in this classroom, a bit startled at a Fernando”; “Good morning, Tyran, you are so talent-
5-year-old’s use of the words rather brisk, approached ed.” As the year progressed, Ms. Rivas encouraged
Jared later to ask him about his choice of words. Jared students to think of more original ways to describe
explained, “Well, it’s colder than cool, but it’s a long their classmates. At first, students were reluctant to
way from frigid.” Even more surprised that Jared not stretch their vocabularies too far, and nice, happy,
only used the word appropriately but also seemed to and talented became friendly, jolly, and creative—an
have a strong command of its meaning, the observer improvement, albeit a small one.
asked Ms. Barker how Jared came to know such so- To push her students a bit further, Ms. Rivas took
phisticated ways to describe the weather. over the greeting one day, replacing words she had
Ms. Barker explained that it was all part of the de- used to describe children before with substantially
sign of her circle time. At the beginning of the year, more sophisticated synonyms. The words she chose
children learned the basic concepts through repeti- were mostly words the children had never heard be-
tion and practice. Her challenges at that point were to fore, but they were words that related to the ideas
keep the concepts understandable and engaging. As already expressed about each student. Annie was af-
the children mastered the basics, her efforts turned fable, Fernando was jovial, and Tyran was virtuous.
to building on this solid foundation of knowledge. These new words sent the children scrambling to
She used the classroom jobs to expand her students’ their dictionaries to find out what exactly Ms. Rivas
vocabulary. Although at the beginning of the year was saying about them. The students each learned
the zookeeper “feeds the hamsters,” by midyear the at least their own descriptive word, and most re-
animal nutrition specialist “provides nutritional sus- membered a few more. This simple step nudged the
tenance to our rodent friends.” students to work harder to generate better, more so-
The kindergartners in Ms. Barker’s class were all phisticated descriptors the next time this greeting
comfortable using words that we do not typically ex- routine was used. Each time, the student who used
pect to hear 5-year-olds using. Their comfort came the new word and the student the word described
from their teacher’s careful approach to developing were virtually assured to learn and remember the
their vocabularies through modeling and meaning- word. Everyone in the class heard each word, how-
ful practice. Their well-developed vocabularies will ever, and associated the word with a classmate,
undoubtedly serve them well as they learn to read. helping them understand its meaning. The students

The Vocabulary-Rich Classroom 363

soon became comfortable with a large collection of as their improvements in comprehension as a result
descriptive words. of vocabulary instruction are even greater than for
Before long, Ms. Rivas started to notice these students without reading difficulties (Elleman, Lindo,
descriptive words being used during class discus- Morphy, & Compton, 2009).
sions and even during casual conversations among Thus, vocabulary instruction should be “robust—
students. She was thrilled to see the words turning vigorous, strong, and powerful in effect” (Beck et al.,
up in writing assignments, as her students described 2002, p. 2). To have an effect on reading comprehen-
characters in stories or the historical figures they sion, vocabulary instruction should include multiple
were learning about in social studies. The students exposures to a word, teach both definitions and con-
owned these words. texts, and engage students in deep processing (Beck
et al., 2008).

The Role of Vocabulary

What Does It Mean to Know a Word?
Learning Vocabulary refers to the “knowledge of words and
Vocabulary is a critical factor in the development of word meanings” (Honig, Diamond, Cole, & Gutlohn,
reading skills. Vocabulary knowledge has long been 2008, p. 407). Different types of vocabulary are used
identified as one of the best predictors of reading in different circumstances. According to Kamil and
comprehension (Davis, 1972; Thorndike, 1917), read- Hiebert (2005), there are four types of vocabulary:
ing performance in general, and school achievement oral, print, receptive, and productive. Oral vocabulary
(Beck, McKeown, & Kucan, 2002, 2008). Receptive refers to those words we understand when we com-
vocabulary is also a predictor of decoding skills municate orally or when someone reads aloud to us.
(Ouellette, 2006). The more words the reader knows, Print vocabulary refers to words we know when we
the easier it will be to read and understand what is read or write. Receptive vocabulary includes words
read (Blachowicz, Fisher, Ogle, & Watts-Taffe, 2006; we understand when we listen or read. Productive
Kamil, 2004; National Institute of Child Health and vocabulary encompasses words that are used dur-
Human Development [NICHD], 2000). ing speaking and writing. According to Kamil and
Unfortunately, not every student comes to school Hiebert (2005), words in the receptive vocabulary
with an adequate level of vocabulary knowledge to are “less well known” and “less frequent in use” (p. 3)
support reading success, and the diversity of vocabu- when compared with productive vocabulary. Words
lary knowledge among children entering school is used in speaking and writing tend to be “well known,
great (Blachowicz et al., 2006). Among students familiar, and used frequently” (p. 3). Overall, recep-
from different socioeconomic groups or with differ- tive vocabulary is larger than productive vocabulary
ent learning abilities, there is a marked difference and plays a key role in the early years when children
in vocabulary knowledge (Beck et al., 2002; learn to read. As they encounter text and de-
Hart & Risley, 1995). Furthermore, these code words, they use their knowledge
differences can be observed through- of words to understand what they
out the school grades (Beck et al., read. If the words they encounter
2002; White, Graves, & Slater, are not part of their vocabulary,
1990). Unless vocabulary be- the readers will not compre-
comes an integral part of ev- hend their meaning (Kamil,
er yday literacy instruction, 2004). Therefore, developing
the gap among groups will children’s vocabulary is ex-
continue to widen, making tremely important.
it harder for low-perform- When we talk about devel-
ing groups to catch up to oping children’s vocabular y,
their peers. Vocabulary we are not only talking about
instruction is particu- knowing a high number of words
larly critical for students but also about how well they know
with reading difficulties, © 2010 JupiterImages
those words. According to Beck et
Corporation

364 The Reading Teacher      Vol. 63, No. 5      February 2010
al. (2002), “knowing a word is not an all-or-nothing level of utility. The first tier includes basic words
proposition: it is not the case that one either knows that most children already know and that seldom re-
or does not know a word” (p. 9). That is, an individ- quire direct instruction in school. Words like house,
ual may know a little bit or a lot about a word. Dale mom, car, and toy are examples of tier 1 words. Tier
(1965) was one of the first to explain the importance 2 includes words that are key to comprehension and
of differences in levels of word knowledge and to are frequently used by “mature language users” (p.
classify these levels: (a) never saw or heard the word 16). Examples of tier 2 words include curious, gaz-
before; (b) heard the word, but does not know its ing, mysterious, stingy, scrumptious, and drowsy. Tier
meaning; (c) recognizes the word in context as hav- 3 encompasses low-frequency words that are asso-
ing something to do with _______; and (d) knows the ciated with specific domains or content areas. This
word well. Beck, McKeown, and Omanson (1987) tier includes words like morpheme, peninsula, similes,
also identified the quantity of word knowledge along nucleus, and protons. Tier 3 words should be taught
a continuum of levels: (a) no knowledge; (b) general as they are encountered, usually during content-area
sense of the word; (c) narrow, context-bound knowl- instruction. However, the focus of most vocabulary
edge; (d) some knowledge of a word, but not being instruction should be on tier 2 words—those words
able to recall it readily enough to use it in appropriate that adults use with ease in everyday conversation,
situations; and (e) rich, decontextualized knowledge reading, and writing.
of a word’s meaning. Beck and McKeown (2007) maintained that so-
So what should our goal for instruction be? Some phisticated words are particularly appropriate for in-
researchers (e.g., Beck et al., 2002; Coyne, 2009) struction, because these words are not likely to be
suggested that knowing fewer words well is more encountered or learned through typical interaction
important than knowing many words superficially. with academic materials or everyday conversation.
According to Beck et al., teachers should strive to help Selecting for instruction words that are more sophis-
students use the words they have learned not only ticated labels for familiar concepts expands both vo-
during reading but also during writing and speaking. cabulary breadth and depth. Vocabulary breadth is
This means that they need a “deep kind of knowl- expanded, because these sophisticated words add
edge” (p. 11). Other researchers (e.g., Biemiller & to the number of words a child knows. Vocabulary
Boote, 2006) promoted breadth of vocabulary knowl- depth is increased, because each of the new words
edge acquisition. Those who emphasize vocabulary can be linked to familiar words, which enhances un-
breadth assert that knowing many words is critical derstanding of both the new and familiar words.
to understanding a variety of text. No matter which
they emphasize, most researchers would agree that
Promoting Word Consciousness
both breadth and depth of vocabulary knowledge
Considering the number of new words a child en-
are important.
counters each year, vocabulary instruction becomes
a titanic task. Based on this knowledge, Graves
Selecting Words to Teach (2000) identified four key components of vocabulary
Although recent research tells us more about how to instruction: wide reading, instruction of individual
teach words, determining which words to teach re- words, word learning strategies, and development of
mains a challenge (Coyne, Simmons, Kame’enui, & word consciousness. Word consciousness involves
Stoolmiller, 2004). Nagy and Anderson (1984) found being aware and interested in words and word mean-
that a typical third grader knows about 8,000 words, ings (Anderson & Nagy, 1992; Graves & Watts-Taffe,
and a high school student knows between 25,000 2002) and noticing when and how new words are
and 50,000 words, or even more. A student typically used (Manzo & Manzo, 2008). Individuals who are
will learn between 3,000 and 4,000 new words each word conscious are motivated to learn new words
year (Graves & Watts-Taffe, 2002). Knowing this, Beck and able to use them skillfully. Helping students be-
and colleagues (2002, 2008) argued that not all un- come word conscious is a crucial endeavor for teach-
familiar words in a text should be the focus of class- ers across grade levels, especially teachers working
room instruction. They developed a three-tier model with students whose prior vocabulary exposure may
for selecting words to teach, based on each word’s be limited.

The Vocabulary-Rich Classroom 365

By mid-kindergarten, Ms. Barker’s students were happens through oral communication and casual
eager to learn new words for familiar concepts. reading without direct instruction (Nagy et al., 1985;
Their enthusiasm stemmed from the success they Oetting, Rice, & Swank, 1995).
had learning new words all year, with Ms. Barker’s Because incidental learning is an authentic
support, in a word-rich environment. They noticed medium for expanding children’s vocabulary, and
unfamiliar words when others used them and asked word consciousness is key for this learning to hap-
what the words meant. They also recognized new pen, teachers can take advantage of adult–children
words they had learned as they heard them used interactions in the classroom to model the use of
in different contexts, allowing them to deepen their sophisticated language (Beck et al., 2002; Graves &
understanding of the words and make more connec- Watts-Taffe, 2002). Incorporating these words into
tions between the new daily routines and classroom conversations creates
words and other words. By a learning atmosphere where children become mo-
Frequent mid-kindergarten, these tivated and competent in word usage. Graves and
children had already de- Watts-Taffe (2002) suggested that teachers should
encounters help veloped sharp word con- promote “adept diction” (p. 145) as a way of devel-
students not only sciousness. Similarly, the oping word consciousness. Teachers who model and
remember the fourth-grade students Ms. encourage adept diction foster curiosity and interest
Rivas taught moved be- about words in their students.
meaning of words yond finding sophisticated In addition to a general atmosphere of promoting
but also access words to describing their adept diction, we need to consider other conditions
classmates and applying
word meanings their word consciousness
that are necessary to ensure learning. One of the
main findings of the National Reading Panel (NICHD,
more efficiently. to classroom assignments
2000) regarding vocabulary instruction was that
and even to their conversa-
repetitious and diverse exposures to vocabulary are
tions with their peers.
vital. The more children hear, see, and engage with
Both teachers worked in high-poverty schools
words, the better they will learn them (Armbruster,
with large populations of English-language learners.
Lehr, Osborn, & Adler, 2001). According to Beck et al.,
Ms. Barker’s school is a rural school, where many of
(2008), frequent encounters help students not only re-
the students are children of migrant farm workers. Ms.
member the meaning of words but also access word
Rivas teaches in an urban school, where nearly 100%
meanings more efficiently. This has a significant im-
of the students participate in the free and reduced-
plication for reading, because when readers access
price lunch program. These teachers recognized the
word meanings quickly, more cognitive resources
need for their students to learn as many words as they
are available to be allocated to the comprehension
can during the school day, because their home envi-
of connected text (Beck et al., 2008; Beck, Perfetti, &
ronments provided little opportunity for word learn-
McKeown, 1982).
ing. Despite these challenges, their students became
word conscious and were anxious to add words to
their lexicons. Modeling Sophisticated
According to Graves and Watts-Taffe (2002), this
positive disposition for words greatly facilitated the Vocabulary Use
challenging task of learning thousands of words Multiple encounters are important in word learning,
each year, especially since most of the learning hap- but they are not enough. For children to actually learn
pens incidentally in the context of reading and listen- and use the new words, teachers need to make sure
ing (NICHD, 2000). Incidental learning from context that those encounters allow children to make con-
has been identified as a main cause of vocabulary nections with their prior knowledge and experiences
growth among children. Children are remarkably (Armbruster et al., 2001). There are many different
skilled at learning new words from unstructured strategies we can use to foster the acquisition of new
contexts (Akhtar, Jipson, & Callanan, 2001; Nagy, and more sophisticated words, but one of the sim-
Herman, & Anderson, 1985; Rice, Buhr, & Oetting, plest and most powerful approaches is Ms. Barker’s
1992). This effortless acquisition of word knowledge method of frequently modeling sophisticated labels

366 The Reading Teacher      Vol. 63, No. 5      February 2010
for familiar concepts. Several aspects of her method heads that will make it easier to recall the word later
likely contributed to its effectiveness. (Beck, 2004). Ms. Barker followed up at the end of
First, she planned carefully which words she the lesson by asking again, “What is our new name
would introduce. She spent a good deal of time for the weather watcher?,” and the children said the
thinking about the words she used throughout the new word again, further strengthening the associa-
school day. She made lists of words that were related tions they were forming.
to classroom routines and to different areas of the With older children, Ms. Rivas was able to del-
curriculum. For each word on each list, she searched egate more of the responsibility for learning new
for more sophisticated substitutes and culled these words to her students. She first made them comfort-
lists of synonyms to a list of words she believed to able with the greeting routine during the morning
be manageable for her students. She selected words meeting. She then provided a clear and compelling
that related to the most familiar concepts first and be- example for them to follow. Finally, she encouraged
gan introducing more sophisticated terms for those their attempts to follow her example as the students
words. For example, the children already knew what used sophisticated words on their own.
it meant to feel happy, so Ms. Barker began using Ms. Barker and Ms. Rivas both made decisions
synonyms such as glad, cheerful, and delighted. They about how direct their teaching needed to be to en-
already knew what nice meant, so she began to use sure students learned the words they intended. Their
kind, pleasant, and thoughtful. Most importantly, she decisions to use either implicit or explicit means to in-
helped the children understand when one of those troduce new words were based on (a) their familiarity
words might be a more appropriate choice than an- with their students’ word knowledge and (b) careful
other. For other words, she taught the concept and thought about the complexity of the words (Mercer,
the simpler word first, then only after allowing the Lane, Jordan, Allsopp, & Eisele, 1996). Any teacher
children to become comfortable with the simple at any grade level can follow these procedures for
word, she introduced the more sophisticated syn- generating a list of words to teach through modeling.
onym. Her circle time routine was replete with this Familiarity with a particular group of students and
type of introduction. what they know is the best gauge to use when select-
Although her students’ learning of the words may ing words. Table 1 contains sophisticated words that
have been incidental, Ms. Barker’s teaching was not. might be used to substitute for the more mundane
The introduction of new words was deliberate but words we typically use during classroom routines.
natural. With some words, the instruction was some- When a teacher shifts from asking the class to line up
what implicit. For example, she asked for a volunteer next to the wall to suggesting they line up adjacent to
to pass out paper for an art activity to each table. the wall, she is expanding her students’ vocabular-
When they were finished, as she started directions ies. Table 2 contains words to use when describing
for the activity, she said, “Thank you, Angelo, for dis- students’ behavior or academic performance.
tributing the paper.” She continued casually linking Sophisticated words can also be used during
pass out with distribute in this way for a few more content instruction. For example, beyond the content
days until one day when she asked for a volunteer vocabulary in a unit on plants (e.g., stamen, pistol,
to help “distribute our snacks,” and all the children germinate), the teacher can find mature words to de-
knew what this meant. scribe plant growth in general (e.g., flourish, thrive)
With other words, instruction would be more
or a particular plant (e.g., a meandering vine). Table 3
explicit. For example, Ms. Barker explained to her
contains examples of words that might be connected
students, “Everybody knows now what the weather
to specific content areas.
watcher does, right? Today, we’re going to learn a
new word for weather watcher. From now on, we’ll
call the weather watcher our meteorologist. A me- Avoiding the Temptation to
teorologist watches the weather. Can everyone say
that word with me? Meteorologist.” All the children
“Dumb Down” Our Language
practiced saying the word with help from Ms. Barker. for Children
By saying the word themselves, the children created One of the biggest barriers to vocabulary growth in
a phonological representation of the word in their school is the simplistic way many teachers talk to

The Vocabulary-Rich Classroom 367

Table 1
Sophisticated Words to Use During Classroom Routines
Classroom supplies Walking in line Group time
accumulate adjacent articulate
allocate approach ascertain
allot disorderly assemble
amass efficiently coherent
arrange file contribute
collect halt converse
deplete linger convey
dispense orderly cooperate
distribute parallel deliberate
dole pause determine
gather perpendicular disband
hoard proceed disperse
issue procession elaborate
replenish proximity elucidate
reserve queue express
stockpile rapidly lucid
remain oblige
swiftly partake
vicinity participate
portray
verbalize

Table 2
Sophisticated Words to Use When Discussing Classroom Behavior or Performance
satisfactorily conflict impolite correct wrong
affable amends boorish accomplished awkward
agreeable bicker coarse appropriate erroneous
amiable quarrel discourteous exemplary flawed
compassionate rectify offensive masterful inaccurate
considerate resolve uncouth precise inadequate
courteous squabble vulgar proficient incorrect
decorous proper invalid
gracious superior
pleasant suitable
respectful
sympathetic

children. We have all been guilty at one time or an- help them better understand the concept of alpha-
other of using words beneath our students’ level of betizing. However, even first graders can understand
understanding. Simplistic vocabulary may be appro- that alphabetical order is the same thing as ABC or-
priate for initial instruction, as a support for students’ der, and using the more sophisticated term as soon
understanding of a new concept. But once students as students understand the concept is appropriate.
develop a basic understanding, it is time to elevate Continuing to use the simplistic term limits our stu-
our instructional language to enhance our students’ dents’ vocabulary growth. Likewise, using phrases
vocabularies. such as take away in place of subtract or same as
For example, at the beginning of first grade, teach- in place of equal beyond initial instruction is limit-
ing students to put a list of words in “ABC order” may ing. If we listen carefully to our own words during

368 The Reading Teacher      Vol. 63, No. 5      February 2010
Table 3
Sophisticated Words That Are Related to Specific Content Areas
Science: Plant life Science: Space Social studies: Civilizations
abundant celestial cooperation
burgeoning existence customary
dwindling globe dominant
fertile immeasurable hardy
flourish infinite hierarchy
lush miniscule nomadic
meandering orb obligation
neglect remote prosperity
sow trajectory resistant
tend universe resourceful
thrive vast stability

instruction, most teachers can find many examples Rivas hooked her students immediately, because
of unnecessarily simplistic language use. Avoiding they all wanted to know what she was saying about
oversimplification and exposing students to more them.
mature terminology helps them be more confident The students in both teachers’ classes used lan-
as they progress to more complex content. guage far beyond what might otherwise be expected
for their age and grade level, and they used this lan-
guage effortlessly. They enjoyed learning and using
Be a Word-Conscious Teacher new words. As the kindergartners move into read-
Incidental learning is the method by which we ac- ing independently, their advanced vocabularies will
quire knowledge of most new words throughout support their reading comprehension. As the fourth
our lives. It is important to note, however, that inci- graders face more challenging assignments and high-
dental learning is necessary but not sufficient for stakes assessments in reading and writing, their ex-
the vocabulary learning that must occur during the panded vocabularies will become a support to them.
school years. We know that children learn words Any teacher can accomplish what Ms. Barker and Ms.
best through extended instruction over time (Coyne, Rivas did by creating a word-rich classroom environ-
2009), and explicit instruction is the best way to ment with more sophisticated models for students to
ensure that children learn word meanings and, es- follow.
pecially, subtle differences between words (Scott &
Nagy, 2004). That said, promoting incidental learning
and word consciousness through frequent and delib- References
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Being a word-conscious teacher is the best way Anderson, R.C., & Nagy, W.E. (1992). The vocabulary conundrum.
American Educator, 16(4), 14–18, 44–47.
to promote word consciousness among students.
Armbruster, B.B., Lehr, F., Osborn, J., & Adler, C.R. (2001). Put read-
Ms. Barker’s kindergarten class is a prime example ing first: The research building blocks for teaching children to
of well-developed word consciousness. By linking read, kindergarten through grade 3. Washington, DC: National
new words with familiar concepts, introducing the Institute for Literacy, U.S. Department of Education.
Beck, I.L. (2004, April). Igniting students’ knowledge of and in-
words clearly and matter-of-factly during classroom terest in words. Presentation at the Florida Middle School
routines, having the children say the word repeat- Reading Leadership Conference, Orlando, FL.
edly, and then continuing to use the word in place of Beck, I.L., & McKeown, M.G. (2007). Different ways for different
goals, but keep your eye on the higher verbal goals. In R.K.
the familiar word, Ms. Barker optimized conditions
Wagner, A.E. Muse, & K.R. Tannenbaum (Eds.), Vocabulary
for word learning—and it showed. Likewise, by be- acquisition: Implications for reading comprehension (pp. 182–
ginning with words that described her students, Ms. 204). New York: Guilford.

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Beck, I.L., McKeown, M.G., & Kucan, L. (2002). Bringing words to findings. In P. McCardle & V. Chhabra (Eds.), The voice of
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Beck, I.L., McKeown, M.G., & Kucan, L. (2008). Creating robust vo- H. Brookes.
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