What is Vocabulary?

Vocabulary development is at the root of learning any language. It entails learning the meaning of new words and concepts in different contexts. Teaching students to learn new words involves providing explicit instruction about important words from text and helping them learn strategies to independently learn new words. As texts increase in complexity, students need strategies to continue to expand their oral and written vocabulary abilities (Kamil et al., 2008; Loftus-Rattan & Coyne, 2013).

The NRP identified vocabulary instruction as an essential skill that students need to improve reading performance (NICHHD, 2000). Research conducted after the NRP report confirms that expanding the size and depth of a student’s vocabulary is linked to higher levels of reading comprehension (Adolf & Perfetti, 2014; Kamil et al., 2008; Rasinski et al., 2011, citing multiple sources).

Providing explicit instruction, focusing on important words from text, helping students learn strategies to independently decipher word meanings, and gradually increasing the complexity of student word learning enables students to read more complex and grade-appropriate text (Kamil et al., 2008; Loftus-Rattan & Coyne, 2013).