What a week! We had our first week of school today. Well, technically it was only two days but boy, did it feel long! This week I worked on paperwork mainly but had some time to prep some things that I will use later in the year.
One of the things that I worked on prepping was my vocabulary word wall for 4th grade.
Here’s a few of the words and sentence frames that we started this week.
The classrooms use a curriculum called Wit and Wisdom for most their literacy needs. I love this program! I have been using it for 3 years and I like it a little bit better each year. This is probably because I think of new things to add each year!
One of the things that has been most helpful, is posted vocabulary words. I post words that students will hit in homerooms within the next week or two. I like to try to pre teach the words.
Here’s how I use the words:
- Model/pre-teach words in whole group.
- Whole group sentence frame practice.
- Student-to-student practice via four corners, think pair share or other KAGAN formations.
Repeat as needed!
Here’s my Pre-teach and Review routine that I use daily at first:
First, I introduce each word on the board. I read it, then I have students read to each other. This is with the posted vocabulary word visual aid and sentence frame.
Next, we practice the sentence frame. I usually read it first, then I pick one or two students to do a “model sentence.” I raise my hand, say “model sentence,” and pick the first student to give their sentence, etc. This speeds up as students learn the routine and we get through pre teaching/reviewing the words quickly this way.
I like to keep an extra copy of just the sentence frames ready for KAGAN structures like Quiz-Quiz Trade, Think-Pair-Share and four corners. See below.
I have found this routine VERY helpful with all grades, especially younger ones. Get a free sample of vocabulary cards with sentence frames and try it out here
Ell Teacher Bliss 