Just the other day I subbed for a 9th grade English class. The plans left for me included having the students make vocabulary "note cards" where the students were to look up the words in their book. One girl said to her friend, "I have no idea why we do these. I never look at them anyway." It was almost torture watching the students make these cards that they would probably never use. Just as the "Vocabulary Casserole" recipe stated, this will serve no one. The "Vocabulary Treat" recipe showed just how easy it would be to put a helpful spin on vocab.
As a substitute, I'm not sure how well the regular teacher would appreciate me changing their plans for that day to benefit their students. As an intervention specialist, I can see all of the suggestions being beneficial. Either with working one on one with a student or within a classroom. There are so many ideas offered in our text that could be used. I would love to highlight this chapter and put it in the mailboxes of several teachers.
I tell students all the time to use context clues to find the meaning of a word... Well, how can they do that if they have no idea what I'm talking about? I like how in these section it explains how to teach students to use context clues.
Teaching word parts with a vocab tree is so neat. Building trees to keep in their binders or even class trees would give students something to look forward to when it comes to vocabulary.
Also, something as simple as graphic organizers and logographic cues could be so helpful. Students are learning words in words in ways that are easy to remember and easy to look up if they forget.
It is amazing what you see, especially as a sub or as an observer in the classroom. You are really getting a good experience. I have often wanted to buy books for teachers and leave post-it notes on chapters :)
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