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Teaching Vocabulary
Vocabulary can be defined as the words/items we teach in the foreign language. It may be
more than a single word as in "post office" and "mother-in-law" but which express a single
idea. It can also be learned as phrases "listen to music, go running, etc."
What needs to be taught?
Form:
● Pronunciation
● Spelling
Grammar:
● if it's a verb: past form, regular or irregular, transitive or intransitive
● If it's a noun: plural form , or if they have no plural form
● Verbs with their prepositions
● Collocations
● Connotation
● Aspect of meaning : synonym, antonyms, hyponyms, superordinates, translation
Word formation
Why is it important?
Vocabulary (lexis) is essential for communication. Even if learners don't use correct
grammar, they can often get their message across by using key words. For example, a
student saying "Yesterday. Go disco. And friends. Dancing" can still be understood.
Learning a lot of words helps learners express themselves more accurately, but it's not easy
to remember or use them correctly. Translating words from one language to another often
doesn’t fully show how those words are used in context. It’s important to understand how
words are related, what phrases they are part of, and in what situations they are commonly
used.
Using English-English dictionaries can help learners see how words are used in sentences
and in real life. Teaching students how to use these dictionaries can improve their
vocabulary skills both inside and outside the classroom.
Beginners use most of the words they learn in daily situations, but as they learn more
advanced words, they may only encounter them in reading or listening. Teachers should
adjust their lessons depending on whether the vocabulary is for active use or passive
understanding.
A good method for teaching vocabulary involves four steps:
1. Introducing new words and their meaning
2. Practicing them
3. Memorizing them
4. Using them in real situations
Vocabulary can be divided into two types:
- Productive vocabulary (words students use in speaking and writing)
- Receptive vocabulary (words they understand but may not use often)
Examples: "defy," "conveyed," "acquire," and "systematic." Even though students might
recognize and understand these words when they read or hear them (receptive vocabulary),
they are less likely to use them in their own speech
Beginners use most of the words they learn in daily situations, but as they learn more
advanced words, they may only encounter them in reading or listening. Teachers should
adjust their lessons depending on whether the vocabulary is for active use or passive
understanding.
Effective presentation techniques
1. Realia / drawing pictures
2. Word building
(From Proficiency Expert
coursebook)
3. Matching
(From New Headway Pre-intermediate Student's book)
4. Guessing from context
5. Using a song
(From Poptropica Island 1)
6. Demonstration/miming
7. Synonyms / Antonyms
8. Familiar or famous words:
Use well-known English songs' titles, books or people.
For example:
Idiom: the final straw as in the song by R.E.M
Prejudice as in the book "Pride and Prejudice"
9. Examples:
T wants to introduce the word PET and mentions different kinds of animals : dog, cat,
hamster, rabbit.
10. Pictograms
(From English File Elementary)
Sts have the emojis to represent the meaning of the phrases.
11. Translating
12. Dictionaries
(From New Headway Pre-intermediate Student's book)
Why lexical sets?
A lexical set or word set is a group of related words. It's important to present vocabulary
through lexical sets because humans' brains store information in a group of related words.
How can words be related?
● By topic
● By similarity of meaning
● In pairs- opposites, synonyms, idioms
● In a serie or scale:
Boiling, Hot, warm, cool, cold, freezing
● By superordinates and hyponyms
Superordinates: Vegetables
Hyponyms: onion, carrito, lettuce, garlic
● By activity or process: steps in buying online productos
● Word families
Using dictionaries:
● Reference dictionary: is one where a student looks up a word to see the meaning it
has, how it is used and the way it is spelt and pronounced.
● Production dictionary: is designed for students to use the other way around, starting
with the meaning they wish to express and looking for the word it expresses. (They
look for words that might have similar meaning) Example: they want to know how to
say when someone secretly listens to a conversation , so they go to the word listen
and they find the word "eavesdrop: to secretly listen to someone else's conversation
by standing near them."
Summarizing, we can say that:
1. Vocabulary should be taught in a structured way, not just as a side topic to grammar.
2. Teachers should help students not only learn new words but also practice and remember
them.
3. Teaching students to use English-English dictionaries is a helpful tool.
4. Lessons should distinguish between vocabulary for active use and vocabulary for
understanding.
5. Teachers should also focus on multi-word phrases, not just individual words.
Bibliography
- Harmer, J. The Practice of English Language Teaching. Pearson Longman.
- Tanner, R., & Green, C.
TASK for teacher education: A reflective approach. Pearson Education.
- Scrivener, J. Learning Teaching. Macmillan Education.
