What keeps you passionate about teaching vocabulary words to students? Here are three reasons why you can be proud and passionate about teaching vocabulary in the classroom!

Vocabulary Is Important

Often, I find that the hardest part about teaching vocabulary words to students is helping them to understand why learning vocabulary is so important. However, just today, I received an email from a former student who was complimented on her exceptional vocabulary knowledge.

Vocabulary Skills Mean Success in the Future

This vocabulary prowess has helped my former student land jobs and has earned her colleagues’ esteem. She continues to let me know when people notice her exceptional lexicon because she knows how proud it makes me to have helped her along the way.

Vocabulary Skills Mean Success in the Present

Today, some of my current students were practicing for standardized tests. The students who had studied vocabulary in a more targeted way were able to figure out words like “disdain” on one test question, and they were able to find context clues for other questions. Teaching vocabulary words and then encouraging students to use those words will ensure they can interpret text in the classroom. Word knowledge is a vital component to academic success!

Why Words Matter Vocabulary Activity

Knowing words matters to me and to my students. I have created a list of my top three reasons why vocabulary skills matter to me, and using this week’s download, your students can generate their own reasons why vocabulary knowledge matters to them.

My Example

1. I can read and comprehend all of your textbooks more easily. I get better grades and find life facile.

2. My writing is far superior to that of my colleagues. Being able to write cogently is incredibly important, whether I’m writing an email or a eulogy — articulating my meaning helps me become an effective communicator.

3. I sound intelligent and impress people. Jobs, college, friends, enemies — I love to sound erudite, whenever I speak or write.

This quick and easy vocabulary activity can be done individually in five minutes in class or at home, or many reasons can be brainstormed as a class. No matter how you complete the Why Words Matter Vocabulary Activity Vocabulary Activity, continuing to motivate students to learn words as the school year goes on is a great way to maintain their attention and motivation. Please let me know how it goes!