As we conducted research for this book by scouring academic journals, online sources, and published professional books on vocabulary learning, we noted that references to digital tools and their impact on literacy learning are somewhat sparse (though they are growing). While we may lack direct research on many of these tools, we have observed firsthand the positive impact they make in teachers’ explicit instruction and students’ engagement. Classroom researchers continue to supply empirical evidence to provide implications and support for integrating digital tools into direct instructional activities and independent practice (Hutchison & Colwell, 2014).
While we have some advice in chapter 3 about how to select words wisely, this part of the framework is about providing effective direct instruction. It includes teaching specific words—choose these wisely based on the standard, the task, and various other factors—and strategies to employ with unfamiliar words. It also includes teaching word parts and morphology so that students understand how to unlock unknown words when they encounter them. Students also need to learn how to use context, particularly in informational text, to help them determine meaning.
For teachers who are not readily familiar with or comfortable with technology, the task of selecting appropriate tools to support these learning goals can seem daunting. There are many ways to become familiar with online tools and, perhaps of greater interest, to learn how other educators select digital tools to use and for what purposes. The following tips and resources will help you begin developing your own curated selection of digital tools to best serve you and your students. Visit go.SolutionTree.com/literacy for live links to these resources. See appendix A (page 107) for extensive descriptions and reviews of some tools we find especially useful. However, keep in mind that existing online tools may evolve and disappear over time, and new tools will emerge. Knowing how to find and evaluate new and evolved tools will enable you to continue using the most effective, current, and relevant tools available, regardless of these inevitable changes. Consulting the following resources will enable you to do just that.
Education Organization Websites
To begin, we suggest following several popular educational organizations and individual educator blogs that frequently provide recommendations and reviews of online tools and apps. Some of our favorite groups and organizations include the following.
• TeachThought (www.teachthought.com)
• Edutopia (www.edutopia.org)
• Edudemic (www.edudemic.com)
• International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE; www.iste.org)
Blogs
Individual blogs we follow include Vicki Davis’s CoolCatTeacher (www.coolcatteacher.com) and Mr. Nussbaum (www.mrnussbaum.com), written by a classroom teacher who provides comprehensive reviews of games and apps. Kimberly also frequently blogs specifically about digital tools and apps that support literacy and vocabulary at Dr. Kimberly’s Literacy Blog (www.kimberlytyson.com).
Social Media
In addition to blogs, many teachers use Twitter and Pinterest to find recommendations, reviews, and classroom solutions (often referred to as hacks). If you’re not familiar with either of these social media outlets, you can download Kimberly’s popular cheat sheets for Twitter (Tyson, 2012e) and Pinterest (Tyson, 2012d) and get up to speed in no time. Those already active on Twitter can still learn new ideas and tools by joining a Twitter chat group such as #web20tools, #sigetc, or #iPadchat. Each of these groups has weekly or biweekly chats specifically about technology and shares ideas for using digital tools in the classroom. If you’re a Twitter newbie, you can check out many educator chat groups and the times they meet using Kimberly’s Cheat Sheet: 101+ Twitter Chat Groups for Educators {12 Days of Literacy} (Tyson, 2013d). You’ll find simple steps outlining how to join a chat group, follow hashtags, and contribute to the online conversation.
These resources as well as others will help set you on the path to selecting digital tools that support your curricular goals. For those teachers who are new to integrating technology, the Technology Integration Planning Cycle for Literacy and Language Arts (Hutchison & Woodward, 2014) may be a useful planning tool to navigate selecting digital tools and aligning them to instructional goals. Choose which resources work best for you as you discover more about digital tools that support a comprehensive approach to vocabulary expansion.
Incidental Learning
The third part of the model is about doing all you can to encourage incidental learning of words. We know that students will never learn enough words from direct instruction and modeling alone to adequately address the vocabulary gap. As educators, we must intentionally build word consciousness in a variety of ways. Students also need to learn words incidentally within a print-rich environment that supports and encourages word learning. Incidental word learning includes opportunities to engage in independent reading, listening to peers use interesting words, and engaging in games and playful activity. The best incidental word learning occurs in a robust, literate environment across classrooms where print and ebooks, newspapers, word walls, labels, anchor charts, and posters provide rich context and exposure to words.
We also encourage schools to ensure that students are able to attend dramatic performances, host events like poetry slams at coffeehouses where both students and community artists can interact, and hold family literacy nights that surround everyone with words in a pleasurable context. For example, several elementary schools in Kokomo School District in Indiana host popular vocabulary parades each year where students dress up in costumes ranging from simple to outrageous—each representing a vocabulary word. This fun, engaging idea, which reinforces nonlinguistic word learning, originates from the book Miss Alaineus: A Vocabulary Disaster by Debra Frasier (2000).
Incidental word learning, the third element of the blended vocabulary model, aligns with the three previously mentioned models of word learning. For example, it aligns with Marzano’s model when he suggests using games that enable students to play with words and be exposed to unfamiliar words while engaging in game-like activities. Beck suggests providing many encounters with words over time, which includes reviewing words and developing word awareness through read-alouds, print, and conversation. Graves’s model directly aligns with providing incidental word-learning opportunities when he suggests providing rich and varied language experience and building word consciousness through direct and indirect activities.
The powerful vocabulary and constant enthusiasm that the teacher models, the explicit instruction the teacher provides, and the time and structures the teacher creates for incidental vocabulary learning all combine to form a model that is well defined and research based yet adaptable to unique situations.
Recap
Models for teaching vocabulary are a viable component of a schoolwide or districtwide framework for teaching vocabulary. They help educators develop a common language and