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Week 2 Summary

Week 2

January 20 - 26, 2014

In Week 2, we’ll  review and discuss selected research on vocabulary acquisition and retention and discuss and the use of web resources to enhance vocabulary instruction.

We’ll also introduce you to English Central, which is a paid website (free seats available to us during this session!). Finally, we’ll provide you a list of websites which you can use to create various vocabulary activities with your students. Please take a quick look at the websites and identify one which you’d like to examine further. Next week we’ll be introducing the websites in more depth and asking you, in small groups, to review one of the websites and share your evaluations. For now, please glance through them, find one that looks interesting to you, and sign up for a small group.

If you would like to view an overview of Week 1 and Week 2, please click on the below PDF.  This is from the WizIQ session on January 18th.

• Overview of Weeks 1 and 2.pdf
  

By the end of week 2, you will have:

• Read at least one current research article about Second Language vocabulary acquisition and retention

• Posted your comments to three discussion questions on Week 2 Questions 

• Replied to at least one of your fellow participants' discussion postings
  

• Reviewed English Central Tutorial  and joined (optional)

• Selected and signed up for the website review group of your choice

Activities for Week 2

• Read: Using Vocabulary to Increase Reading Comprehension

• Vocab to Increase Reading Comp_ah_EVO.pdf
  

• Read: Making Words Stick (optional)

• Making Words Stick.pdf
  

• Read: Keeping Them Interested (optional)

• Keeping Them Interested.pdf 

• The two optional reading articles are both from the excellent (in Jennie's humble opinion :-) ) professional development magazine English Teaching Professional (ETP). Although ETP is a subscription based magazine, they have graciously allowed us to use materials from their archives. If you're interested in seeing more of their materials, click on this link to go to their website.

• Just for fun -- English, like all languages, is constantly evolving and adding new vocabulary. The Oxford English Dictionary tracks the "word of the year" for the year you were born. Curious what new vocabulary was created the year you were born? Click here.
• Share your thoughts on the following questions on Week 2 Questions
• How long do you think it takes students to learn a new word? Why?
• What in the readings gave you food for thought and why?
• What are some of your favorite vocabulary learning websites and why?
• Reply to at least one other participant's  discussion posting (and more, if you have time! :-) ) 
  
• Review the list of websites for Week 3 (on our WonderfulWords Participants' wiki)
  
• Select one website you’d like to explore further and sign up for that website’s group
• Review English Central Tutorial for English Central and sign up (optional)