In this lesson, you will learn how to acquire vocabulary and use the world around you to practice it every day.
Merely reading and memorizing a vocabulary book is not enough to learn vocabulary. What do you think you can do to build your vocabulary every day?
Researchers say that a second language learner needs to hear and interact with a word 16 times before it becomes part of their memory. How can you make hearing or interacting with new vocabulary part of your everyday life?
Note from our Matthew (paraphrased): [Tell your students] Don’t expect to learn everything when you meet a new word. You don't need to look every word up. Use strategies from lesson 1 to decide what the word might mean from context. In the end, if it is an important, useful word, you will come across it again. Just improving your chance of encountering the word 16 times is enough. I think this is really important. Students obsess about understanding things 100%. They have to learn to let go.
A. Here are some ways to learn new words every day. Discuss each of them with your teacher.
- Pay attention to English words around you.
- Use the context to guess the meaning.
- Use an etymology dictionary, thesaurus and standard dictionary.
- Notice words being used at your workplace.
- Keep a vocabulary notebook.
- Use the words you’ve learned.
- Ask! It’s okay not to know something.
B What other ways you can think of to build your vocabulary every day?
This isn’t an exhaustive list! Use this time to brainstorm with your students. What other ways are there?
For example:
- Change the language on your devices to English.
- Watch TV or videos in English with English subtitles (or in your L1 with English subtitles, or vice versa).
- Play video games in English.
- Read a paragraph or a news article every day. You can read anything that interests you, including graphic novels, sports reports, book reviews on Amazon—it doesn't have to be heavy!
The important thing is that it is interesting to the student. If they enjoy it, they'll want to do it.
Imagine these scenarios and define the italicized words by context:
Scenario 1: You are walking down the street, and you notice a new word on a billboard: “Go on a shopping spree at the Mall of America!” What does the word spree mean?
Scenario 2: Your boss says, “We need to consider our budget before negotiating with our partners, since they may come up with a counteroffer that doesn’t guarantee success.” What do the words in italics mean?
Scenario 3: You are in an exam and the examiner says, “Explain the organizational structure of your company." What does he mean by organizational structure?