MINILESSON Word Consciousness: Develop a Content Word Collection CONNECTION
Display your plant word collection. Invite students to choose a word they’ve learned from your collection and discuss its meaning, giving examples. “Readers, we’ve got so many interesting and important words in our plant word collection.” Display your Vocabulary Word Wall from read-aloud and the vocabulary extensions. “Each of you probably already knows some of these words well, and some less well. Will you choose a word you know well, and get ready to teach your partner all you know about that word? Before you teach, think about how to say the word, what the word means, and examples you could share of the word. Will you act out the word for your partner? When you’re ready, give me a thumbs up. “Now, turn and teach your partner all about your word.” Name the teaching point.
Encourage students to point to pictures or annotations on the word wall as they teach part- ners. Often the use of an illustra- tion or diagram can promote or enhance language experiences for multilingual language learn- ers.
“Today I want to teach you that nonfiction writers use special words to help readers under- stand the precise details of the topic. So, nonfiction readers have to learn the exact mean- ings of those special words to understand and become experts on the topic! As you read, study and collect the important words—these will often be words that are bold or keep showing up in the text.” Add a new sticky note to the “Nonfiction Readers Research New Topics” anchor chart. TEACHING Invite students to join you as you add a few new words to your Vocabulary Word Wall. Think aloud about how each word connects to the words you’ve already jotted. “Readers, let’s read together, this time being on the lookout for new and important words that we can study to learn special details of our topic. We can add those words to our word collection. Listen as I read aloud, and be ready to yell ‘stop’ when you hear a word we should add.” Project “Wetland plants” on page 26 from Plants in Different Habitats , and begin reading it aloud. “Oh, I heard several of you call out ‘stop’ at the word sedges . I don’t know what that word means, but it’s in bold, so the author is signaling that it’s important. Let me jot it down.” Jot the word sedges to add to your Vocabulary Word Wall. “Readers, we can’t just jot the word down and then move on. We need to always stop and think, ‘What does this word mean?’ I don’t see a definition here, so let’s check in the glossary.” Project the glossary, and read aloud the definition for sedge . “You see this? It says that a ‘ sedge ’ is a kind of grass that grows somewhere wet. Interesting. Now I know more details— that certain plants always need to be in a wet area to grow!” Add the definition to the word card.
Nonfiction Readers Research New Topics
Encouraging students to be ‘tuned in’ to new words explains a difference in word learning in middle-grade classrooms (Beck, Perfetti, & Mckeown, 1982).
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Bend I • Strengthen Nonfiction Research Skills: Researching Plants
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