Teaching Vocabularyby Jeanne McCarten

Prepared by Yesha Bhatt

Index 1. Lessons from the Corpus ^ - What kind of corpus do we need to use ^ - Teaching strategic vocabulary:

Fundamentals for a syllabus ^2. Lessons for the Classroom ^ - What do we need to teach about vocabulary? - How can we help learners to learn

vocabulary? ^ - Teaching vocabulary in class - Helping students to become independent

learners in and out of class ^

1. Lessons from the CorpusStudent’s Vocabuary

Cambridge Dictionary of American English – more than 40,000 words

University Graduate knows about 20,000 word families

Frequent 2,000 to 5,000 vocabulary items

Activity1) One word with different context

2) One word related with various words

3) “Vocabulary and its related research paradigms have many inflections in relation to English Language Teaching”

(Vocabulary by Roland Carter) ^

What kind of corpus do we need to use? (6)

1)Frequency: - Which words and expressions are

most frequent and which are rare - Frequency lists are useful to help us

make choices about what to teach and in what order.

- For e.g.: A pair of, you want to go, different words like Literature, Ceremony, etc.

2) Differences in speaking and writing: - how frequent a word is in different

corpora - Comparison of the frequency of

vocabulary in newspapers, academic texts, and conversation.

1. Probably – conversation- newspapers - academic texts

2. However - academic texts - newspapers – conversation

3) Contexts of use: - Information about speakers and

situations in which conversations take place.

- Formal – informal words

4 ) Collocation: Which words are often used together

Soft – cornerHeavy – rainHome - workLazy – manCreative Art

Think about this verbs and related expression.Go – Play - Read

MAKE: sure, difference, sense, decisions, money DO: anything, something, things, nothing, work, whatever, homework

5) Grammatical patterns:1. The grammar of vocabulary:Verb – Mind – Request - permission- Do you mind helping me for a second?- Would you mind helping me for a second?

2. The vocabulary of grammar:- the most frequent verbs used in the past

continuous structure was . . . ing. The top ten are going, thinking, talking, doing, saying, trying, telling, wondering, looking, working.

6) Strategic use of vocabulary: words and expressions

- Vocabulary in conversation/ of conversation- Effective phrase and words1. Finding a vocabulary of conversation1. Discourse markers – well - anyway, main point2. Responses - Exactly, Absolutely, That’s too bad3. Monitoring expressions - let me tell you,

dialogue4. Vague expressions - or whatever, like anything5. Hedging expressions – avoid the answer6. Expressions of stance – point of view, Personally, I think ^

Teaching strategic vocabulary: Fundamentals for a syllabus

1. Organizing your own talk - own views and opinions, highlighting key points, taking time to think, correcting yourself – repetition of words

2. Taking account of another speaker - ways of being polite – ‘No’ = ‘Not really’

3. Showing listenership - a range of responses, hm, yah

4. Managing the conversation as a whole – End – Restart the conversations

^

2. Lessons for the Classroom What do we need to teach about

vocabulary?• The meaning(s) of the word• Its spoken and written forms• What “word parts” it has • Its collocations• Its register• What associations it has • Its frequency ^

How can we help learners to learn vocabulary? Teaching vocabulary in class:1. Focus on vocabulary – grammar

v/s vocabulary, unknown English words

2. Offer variety – Audio-visuals, stories, conversations, web pages, questionnaires, news reports

3. Repeat and recycle - students generally need to see, say, and write newly learned words

4. Provide opportunities to organize vocabulary

- Real-world groups – Parts of body, food type, General words

- Language-based groups - linguistic criteria, parts of speech, prefix or suffix

- Personalized groups - personal habits or personal history, likes - dislikes

5. Make vocabulary learning personal - use the vocabulary meaningfully, express self

6. Don’t overdo it! - Don’t overload students – there are limits to how much vocabulary anyone can absorb

^

Helping students to become independent learners in and out of class

1.Vocabulary notebooks2.Research tools3.Everyday usage

References: Teaching Vocabulary by Jeanne McCarten

Thank You

“Without grammar very little can be conveyed,

without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed.”