[LIT] Vocab. learning and assessment

[Pam]

Tena wrote:
I noticed Janet Allen uses a lot of "non-examples" the "what it isn't"
sort of thing. Short of an exact opposite, I think this would be
confusing to some kids. What did you find?


Pam writes:
No, it's been my experience, once the kids understand a graphic 
organizer that asks for non-examples and what non-examples are, they 
are good to go.

I tried a form of a frayer model that I adapted from Vocabulary 
Unplugged. It had the word (with dictionary definition) in the middle 
connected to 4 boxes. Those 4 boxes asked for: definition in kid's own 
words, a synonym or example, an illustration, and a non-example. I 
found this to be effective, but time consuming (last year's group just 
plain didn't do homework & this year's group isn't much better). The 
kids' didn't like doing these, but most grudgingly admitted that it 
really helped them to understand and use the words. So, it was a battle 
to get them to do, but worth the effort. If anything, my kids last year 
struggled more with the illustration than the non-example as many of 
our words weren't nouns.

I did find that I had to really hold their hands with the first 5 
(regular ed) and probably 15 (ese/ELL). It really helped them to have 
an example of a completed one to review too.


 :o) Pam/6th gr./FL
An education isn't how much you have committed to memory, or even how 
much you know. It's being able to differentiate between what you do 
know and what you don't.
Anatole France (1844 - 1924)

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