Academic Vocabulary Tier I, II, III

Academic Vocabulary is important in all subjects, in all grade levels, and to all students. Using common academic vocabulary across grade levels not only benefits EL students, but benefits ALL students. Expanding our student's vocabulary is one of our top priorities at Clinton Public Schools. 

Can you imagine being a Newcomer, or having been in the United States for a few years and hearing several different terms for essentially the same thing. An example might be: (5 take away 4 is 1)  then the next year you learn (5 minus 4 equals 1), or maybe it is the same year just in different classes (pullouts, specials etc.). I know to some this seems minor, but when you are learning a new language, or you are a slow learner, it becomes jumbled in your brain. We need to teach the correct terms so that the struggling student can learn it correctly the first time. It is ok when explaining a new term to use words that the student can relate to in order to build upon their background knowledge, however we need to quickly introduce the proper vocabulary. 

 Academic Vocabulary words are broken into three tiers. Classrooms may have a word wall for each tier, however our district has defined the Academic Word Wall to consist of Tier II and Tier III words. Words that a student may not use in everyday language, words that are specific to a subject area. These words can be found on the OSDE website by following this link. Our district also has stated academic vocabulary words should be placed on the word wall as the word is introduced and taught. 

Having a place for students to keep Academic Vocabulary words so that they can refer back to them as needed is important too. A few ideas are: using the Marzano Method (write, define, illustrate) in a notebook; have an ongoing Interactive Notebook. Interactive Word Walls are also important in a classroom, you may have two or three going at a time. 

Revisiting Academic Vocabulary in a center, or even a whole class game, after explicitly teaching them, is a wonderful way to review. Using SeeSaw to define or illustrate a word would be a way that parents can see the words the students are learning, or using an app such as Tellagami  to build a character then define a word from the Academic Word Wall.  Playing Bingo or Password would be two whole class ways to review. Students learn by doing, hands on activities will make academic words concrete. 

In what ways are you teaching Tier II and Tier III Academic Vocabulary words in your classroom? Share at least one idea below (by September 6th at 8:00am) to enter your name into a drawing for this awesome Pineapple Giveaway package:
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Please reach out to me if I can assist, clarify, collaborate, or answer any questions about Academic Word Walls.

Teachingly,
Stephanie Hime
stephanie.hime@cpsreds.org
Extension 2002
https://hime.youcanbook.me

Reflect, Adjust, Move Forward into School Year 2018-19

Last year ended for me on the thirtieth of June.  It was a year filled with some of my favorite things: connecting, sharing, learning, and growing. There are minutes, hours, and days that I look back on and think, "Goodness, I can't believe that happened!". Some of those moments were positive and productive, while others were less than stellar.  A very wise man once told me "You can not control the actions of others, you can only control yours".

This past year, while maintaining the positions of EL/GT Director for my district, I added yet another experience to my resume, Director of Elementary Curriculum.  Essentially, I had two and half jobs. Juggling has become one of my qualities, tricky, yet fulfilling!

There were times during the year that I felt isolated from the world. It was the first time in my career that I felt completely shut down and shut out. At my lowest points, out of nowhere a bright light would shine through. Someone holding a white flag, letting me in their game, valuing my opinion, validating my worth to the district. What is that old saying, "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade".

Two words came to my mind quite often: discourage and encourage. These two words have a root/base in common... courage. Having the courage to make changes, to try something new, to step out of one's comfort zone is huge, I think I did it!

Looking back, I see that even though the year was bumpy, amazing things did happened within EL, GT and elementary curriculum.

Moving forward, I plan on continuing to build relationships, breaking down barriers, being in classrooms more and my office less. My position can be an asset in the district; modeling, guiding, and watching the magic unfold. My mission for this year can be summed up in the following scene from Dirty Dancing:

I used to love to blog, I'm hoping to bring that back too!
Teachingly,
Mrs. Hime