We here at McCormick Elementary recognize that vocabulary is an important component of children's reading comprehension. As children sound out words when reading, they compare the sounds to words they know. The larger the children's vocabulary, the easier it is for them to match words as they read.

In schools, the study of new words is often done through direct instruction. Children study a word's parts, its origin and its meaning. However, as a parent, teacher, or volunteer, you also may have many indirect opportunities to build children's vocabularies.

Using what children are interested in can be a successful way to teach vocabulary. Children often provide clues to their interests as you read, work on projects or in casual conversations. Picking up on these clues and using them to teach new words engages children in their learning and makes it more fun. Therefore, we will broadcast via the McCormick Television Network (MTN) two new vocabulary words (1 primary and 1 intermediate) presented by a guest reader after the morning announcements.

A quote from Louisa Moats (2000) helps us better understand how children remember words; "Words and concepts are known in accordance with prior knowledge. Effective teaching elaborates various connections among better-known and lesser-known words, deepens and enriches existing knowledge, and seeks to build a network of ideas around key concepts that are well elaborated."

The National Reading Panel Report (NICHD, 2000) also found that children learn from extending instruction and from repeated exposure to words and their use in a variety of contexts. Providing various experiences with the words that children are learning in school will strengthen their understanding of those words.