Vocabulary and skills Flashcards
Line graph
a visual representation of data which shows change over time or in response to a manipulated variable
Digital resources
resources that provide content beyond what is available in print
Example: In an ELA classroom, students may be able to use digital resources to hear a word said aloud, see more examples of words being used, or see visual representations of a word.
Letter–Sound Correspondence
knowing what sound(s) each letter makes
Example: the letter “f” makes the first sound in the word “foot”
Context Clues / Contextual Analysis
using the words before and after an unknown word to determine its meaning
Example: It was a beautiful day that made it idyllic for swimming.
Root (Word Formation)
the smallest unit or core of a word that carries the meaning
Example: form means “shape,” as in reform, conform, formulate
Denotation
a literal, dictionary meaning of a word
Homophones
words that are pronounced the same as another word but have a different meaning and may be spelled differently
Example: carat, carrot, caret
to, too, two
Synonyms
words with the same or a similar meaning
Example: angry/mad/furious; bad/evil/immoral/tainted; and fast/quick/rapid.
Semantic mapping
a form of scaffolding which helps students to develop connections among words
Example: Semantic maps have a variety of formats. In one method, students write an example, a non-example, a synonym, and an antonym.
academic vocabulary
specialized vocabulary commonly found in an academic setting
Example: Many academic vocabulary words, like “analyze,” “describe,” and “reflect”, are important and relevant across all content areas.
suffix
letter or letters at the end of a root word that changes its meaning
Example: s, es, ed, ing, ly, er, or, ion, tion, able, and ible
Pie chart
a graph in which a circle is divided into sectors that each represent a proportion of the whole. Pie charts are helpful when displaying the relative distribution of categories.
antonyms
words with the opposite meanings
Example: hot/cold; and big/little
semantics
The study of word or symbol meaning
Example: “love” which has many different meanings in English
Literal vs figurative meaning of “Raining cats and dogs”
Contextual Analysis
use of surrounding information in a text to help determine a word
glossary
a list of important words to know along with their meanings
Phonics / Graphophonemic Principle
Using the relationship between symbols (letters and words) and sounds of a language to read and write
Vocabulary / Vocabulary Development
the ability to effectively know and use words in their listening, speaking, reading, and writing
Dictionary (Print)
use when you need to define a word
Example: Oxford English Dictionary
Phoneme Blending
the ability to blend two sounds to make a word
Example: Blend together these sounds to make a word: /b/ /a/ /t/ to form bat.
analogies
are used to compare two things that are usually thought of as different but have something in common
Example: hand is to glove as foot is to sock
word wall
An on-going bulletin board with terms used frequently in the classroom; words are often added as they are introduced
sight word
word that cannot be decoded because it doesn’t follow standard phonics rules and must be recognized by sight
Example: of, was, the, would
Concept / Vocabulary Map
a form of scaffolding in which a new concept or vocabulary word is written in the center and pictures or descriptive words are written surrounding it
Example: A map with the word “weather” in the center is surrounded by words such as clouds, heat, wind, air and rain.
thesaurus (print)
use when you need to locate a more suitable synonym for a word
Example: The Oxford-American Writer’s Thesaurus
maps
a 2-dimensional depiction of a physical area.
Example: Map of Salt Lake City
prefix
A letter or letters at the beginning of a root word that changes its meaning
Example: re, de, un
histogram
a visual representation of data which compares frequencies of different numeral intervals
lexicon
Term definition.
the collective vocabulary of a person or language
Example: Reading over the summer increased the student’s lexicon for the following school year.
bar graph
a visual representation of data which compares values in different categories
Example: the number of people who prefer each genre of movie
semantic gradient
an array of related words placed on a continuum that which helps distinguish between shades of meaning
connotation
the implied meaning of a word; the feeling a word conveys
Example: Describing a person as “shrewd” may make them feel negatively, even though the definition (sharp-witted, intelligent) is positive.
Thesaurus (Digital)
an online thesaurus
Example: thesarus.com
High-frequency word
a word that appears often in grade-level text
Example: Words like “and”, “the”, “as” and “it” are high-frequency words.
Data table
an organized way to display data that presents the results in labeled rows and columns
Example: t-chart
Dictionary (digital)
an online dictionary
Example: dictionary.com
homographs
words that have the same spelling as another word but have different meaning
Example: tired meaning fatigue (verb); tire meaning a rubber cushion that fits around a wheel of an automobile (noun)
timeline
visual representation of events or actions in animation or video
Example: arranging keyframes on a timeline to animate a bouncing ball
decoding
In reading out loud, being able to sound out words by breaking them into simple forms. In reading for comprehension, the understanding of how to read each letter or letter pattern in a word to determine the word’s meaning
Structural / Morphemic Analysis
using meaningful word parts (morphemes) to study a word and determine its meaning
Frayer Model
a popular form of semantic mapping which helps students to identify and define unfamiliar concepts and vocabulary
Example: Students place the following information on a chart divided into four sections - the definition of a concept, its essential characteristics, examples and non-examples.
