Get them reading Children also learn new words through reading independently. Researchers estimate that 5–15% of all the words we learn we learn from reading.27 And indeed, children who read more tend to have richer vocabularies. So when we engage students in motivational activities to encourage reading, we are simultaneously improving their vocabularies.
Engage children in rich oral language Children also learn words through talk, expecially from listening to and participating in high-level conversations. For example, one study showed that young children whose parents use more “rare words” at the dinner table had higher vocabularies and later reading achievement than other children. In school we need to involve children in rich, meaningful conversations whenever we can.
Encourage reading and talk at home As the “rare words” study suggests, children can also develop their vocabularies at home. Encouraging reading and conversations outside of school, for example by sending home books and interactive activities, can have positive effects. Even viewing certain television programs, most notably Sesame Street, has been shown to improve young children’s vocabularies.
Raise word consciousness We want children to notice when they encounter new words and to want to learn them. Some researchers refer to this as word consciousness.28 There are many ways to draw children’s attention to and interest in words around them. Playing with words through games, songs, and humor can be powerful. Simply encouraging children to recognize when they have encountered new words, and to notice special characteristics of words, will also raise word consciousness.
Teach important words Yes, we can teach children new words. But time and other factors mean there are limits to how many new words we can teach. For this reason, it is important to select words for teaching very carefully. Factors to consider include how important and useful knowledge of the word would be, how easily relatable the word is to other words the children know, and how much knowing the word will help with the unit, text, or situation at hand.
