Teaching vocabulary is an important part of any English class. Many teachers agree that teaching vocabulary in the context of your class’s novel or unit is currently studying is the most effective strategy.
Below is a #2ndaryELA Twitter chat recap about meaningfully teaching our students vocabulary. These ideas come from real teachers and can be quite effective when teaching vocabulary in middle school.
Read how teachers make their vocabulary lessons meaningful and engaging by using cue cards, games, student competitions, and teaching Greek and Latin root words. At the end of this post, I’ll also share some no-prep resources you can use in your classroom.
Meaningful and Engaging Ideas for Teaching Vocabulary
Q1: What vocabulary do you explicitly teach? From the texts you’re reading? A root-based program? A separate vocab book?
- Sadlier-Oxford levels F & H. One unit every two weeks. Also, teach vocabulary in context with reading.
- I teach new words as they come up in the texts we are using. I do not use a formal program.
- I prefer to teach root-based vocab, but last year, I was required to use the Sadlier Oxford Vocab Workshop.
- I teach vocabulary from whatever we are reading. However, now I will be focusing on test vocabulary since test season is almost here.
- I use a separate vocabulary book that includes short readings for each unit so that students can first see the words in context.
- Vocabulary in context with readings.
- We do two programs—a root-based program a colleague and I created, and vocabulary that is chosen from 500 Words for the SAT.
- We use books that teach Latin and Greek roots in addition to the vocab. I also incorporate new vocab as it arises in units.
- I teach vocabulary in context (novels, etc.) and also academic vocabulary (lit terms, drama terms, poetry terms).
Q2: How do you teach new vocabulary words as they arise? Share your strategies.
- Index cards. Alliterative sentences, images, poems, mnemonic devices—students choose what matches their learning style.
- I spend two weeks per unit (20 words) reviewing definitions and practicing usage. We then quiz on the words every other week.
- Games are a big part of teaching vocabulary. It is a fun way to get students to use words in different contexts. Some are here: http://goo.gl/dLXFCK. Also, use Cornell Notes & “word webs with a twist.”
- We discuss words as they arise in context, and if it is specific new vocab, I have used the Frayer model.
- I pick words that we can figure out using context clues then we’ll record the definitions and any other important things like prefix, suffix, etc.
- Vocab posters (each student picks a different word off the list), skits, and sentence games.
- Games (dictionary wars is a favourite), using prior knowledge of roots, cue cards, using context clues, having a class recorder.
- Cloze activities are a favorite, too.
- A building word wall and personal dictionaries!
- Students could use Kahoot as a vocab review if testing on the new words.
- Look at examples of literary devices & talk about impact of word choice. Switch it up & see how it changes meaning.
Q3: Do you use word walls in your classroom when teaching vocabulary? How do you make effective use of them?
- No word walls yet. No space.
- Instead of a word wall, I have a word tree to save wall/bulletin board space.
- I need word wall ideas! How do you get your kids to use them?
- Never used one. Do students think it is too elementary or are they receptive?
- We use word walls for units, like #Shakespeare or poetry, but we don’t have an all-year one. I would love ideas.
- I have a word wall but I am not sure how effective it is. It’s a good reminder but I’d like it to be more.
- I thought about it being interactive with matching words and definitions.
- Mine are boring—large post its and I record the words as we go. But no printing or laminating necessary!!
- There are so many different ways to track words – check the secondary ones on Pinterest!
- Word walls need to work for your students and your teaching styles.
- I think chart paper is a great way to put up words.
Q4: Do you encourage the use of paper or online dictionaries in your classroom? What are the pros and cons of each type when teaching vocabulary?
- Both dictionaries. I like online and phone app dictionaries because they pronounce the words.
- Paper vs. digital doesn’t matter to me. More importantly, students should put definitions into words they understand.
- I have paper dictionaries in my classroom and students can use their devices to look up words as well.
- I have been promoting digital since I know that’s what they do at home.
- Using a paper dictionary is an important skill in my opinion. It uses many literacy skills and no autocorrect to help.
- Mostly digital. Students have iPads so it is quick and easy. No need to flip through.
- We use online because our paper ones aren’t thorough enough. It’s nice to be able to switch to a thesaurus quickly, so pro!
- Sometimes the thesaurus is more helpful than the dictionary definition.
Q5: Share your favourite vocabulary resources that you use in your classroom when teaching vocabulary.
- Favourite resources are my own, but I recently discovered Vocab Gal, blog with teaching ideas, games, etc.
- Has anyone tried https://www.flocabulary.com/?
- 500 Vocabulary Words for the SAT by Charles Gulotta.
- I love vocab posters because they double as artwork for your room.
- A5 Marzano’s Building Academic Vocabulary.
- FreeRice.com
- Vocab relay race: All the words & definitions are scattered on the ground at one end of a field & the students are at the other. The objective: race to the words and definitions, grab a matching pair, and take it back to the team. The next team member then rushes off to do the same. The team with the most matching pairs wins! Yes, this is played outside. Yes, they compete against one another on teams.
I hope you found some ideas for teaching vocabulary in your own class through these teacher-tested ideas. Teaching vocabulary really can be meaningful and engaging for students when using the right tools. For lessons you can use in your classroom when teaching vocabulary, keep reading.
Helpful Lessons for Teaching Vocabulary and Grammar
Middle School Greek Roots Morphology Unit and Worksheets
This Middle School Greek Roots Morphology Unit is designed to provide the lessons and worksheets you need to teach Greek roots effectively, ensuring that your students become confident readers with a strong grasp of word etymology. This is also a great unit to use when teaching vocabulary. It comes with 19 lessons that cover 16 different Greek Roots, anchor charts, student practice pages, PDF and digital formats, answer keys, and more.
Here’s what teachers have said about this unit:
“This resources aligns perfectly with the 2023 Ontario Language curriculum and makes teaching morphology much easier!” – Tiny Scholars
“This was a great resource in the classroom. Lessons were well planned out and easy to use. Matches the curriculum for Ontario. Students were engaged with active ways to assess their learning. Easy to use with occasional teachers!” – Sara S.
You can find the Middle School Greek Roots Morphology Unit on Shopify CAD or Teachers Pay Teachers USD.
Middle School Greek Prefixes Morphology Unit and Worksheets
This comprehensive Middle School Greek Prefixes Morphology Unit is perfect for middle school teachers. It equips students with essential skills to decode and understand complex words by exploring Greek prefixes and is a great resource for teaching vocabulary. It comes with 23 lessons that cover 16 different Greek Prefixes, anchor charts, student practice pages, PDF and digital formats, answer keys, and more.
You can find the Middle School Greek Prefixes Morphology Unit on Shopify CAD or Teachers Pay Teachers USD.
Parts of Speech Grammar Unit
This engaging Parts of Speech Grammar Unit, available in both PDF and digital formats, empowers teachers to guide their students through the intricacies of nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, pronouns, conjunctions, prepositions, and interjections. It includes 8 detailed lesson plans, anchor charts, video links, student practice pages, and comes with both PDF and digital formats. Following each lesson, students dive into hands-on practice activities such as fill-in-the-blanks, colouring, or matching to reinforce their understanding.
Here’s what teachers have said about this unit:
“A great resource to help students understand the parts of speech. Provided good, to the point, structured lessons that my students needed.” – Steven Z.
“This unit was great. It was very in depth and made it so I didn’t need to relearn and research everything. I like that there were different types of notes and activities to do. Very easy to print and go!” – Lauren M.
You can find the Parts of Speech Grammar Unit on Shopify CAD or Teachers Pay Teachers USD.
For even more grammar units and other lessons to help with teaching vocabulary, you can search the entire grammar category on Shopify CAD or Teachers Pay Teachers USD. It includes lessons on punctuation, grammar, morphology, and grade-specific grammar units.
More Articles on Teaching Vocabulary and Grammar
- Creative Ways To Teach Vocabulary
- Effective and Engaging Ways to Teach Grammar
- Real-World Skills That Can Be Taught in ELA Class
- Effective Ideas for Teaching Grammar and Vocabulary
- 10 Important Reasons to Teach Grammar in Middle School
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