Identify Techniques for Strengthening Vocabulary

The English language includes over 1,025,000 words. The average English-speaking adult has a working vocabulary of about 20,000 words.  That means most of us have about a million words that we could potentially add to our vocabulary!

Having a strong vocabulary makes reading more meaningful and enjoyable, and reading helps build a strong vocabulary.  There are lots of other ways to pick up words, though.  This module includes several tactics for expanding your word power.  Music can be a fun option, as this video illustrates.

See the full transcript for the video, and related activities, here.

What You Will Learn to Do

• identify strategies for defining words from context
• identify additional tools for defining words (i.e. dictionaries)
• identify strategies for retaining new words in a working vocabulary

The Learning Activities for this Outcome Include

• Text: Using Context Clues
• Text: Dictionaries
• Text: Concept Cards
• Video: Enriching Your Vocabulary
• Self Check: Vocabulary
• Try It: Vocabulary