By Emily Hathhorn, Speech Language Pathologist at Horizon Academy

One of Horizon Academy’s initiatives for the 2024-25 school year has been to teach high-utility vocabulary words directly. Using precise vocabulary words in written and spoken language enhances our ability to clearly communicate our thoughts; understanding increasingly complex words improves our reading and listening comprehension skills. Direct, interactive vocabulary instruction, therefore, should be integrated into the educational curriculum. Check out Bringing Words to Life (2013) by Isabel Beck, Margaret McKeown, and Linda Kucan to learn more about robust vocabulary instruction.

Vocabulary words are commonly sorted into three categories. Tier I words are basic, common words that children typically learn without explicit instruction because of their frequent usage and concrete nature (ex. chair, run, blue). Tier II words tend to be more abstract and academically oriented, but they are still used in a variety of contexts and content areas (ex. essential, acquire, consequently).  Tier III words are more closely tied to a particular subject area and have less widespread usage (ex. photosynthesis, isosceles, aristocracy). Educators often choose to focus on Tier II vocabulary instruction to get the best “bang for the buck” when supporting students’ increased understanding of useful words; this is our approach at Horizon Academy, integrating techniques outlined in Bringing Words to Life.

Vocabulary is best learned in context; in other words, students can more readily comprehend and recall new vocabulary words when directly taught and interactively explored within the broader context of a history, science, literature, or other topic area rather than when memorized in isolation simply for the sake of being able to recall a definition. Horizon Academy has intentionally tied vocabulary instruction in English Language Arts (ELA) class to concepts being taught in Social Studies. Each week, students are directly taught a new Tier II vocabulary word in Social Studies that relates to the topic being discussed in class. During the following week, the vocabulary word is reinforced in ELA. The target word is added to the ELA room’s “Word Wall” for ongoing reference; it is written on a notecard in the color that matches its part of speech. (For example, red indicates nouns, blue indicates verbs, and green indicates adjectives at our school.) During subsequent weeks, previous vocabulary words are reviewed via various tasks, such as discussions/debates, writing prompts, photos, or real-life examples.

In addition to structured vocabulary word review time in class, students are encouraged to use the targeted vocabulary words in their everyday speech. When a student verbalizes or writes a target word in an appropriate context, they earn a sticker to add to Horizon’s “Word Wizards” wall. Stickers are grouped according to the mixed age-level Horizon “families.” After a period of time earning Word Wizards vocabulary stickers, the school family with the most stickers is presented with the acclaimed Word Wizard Cup!

At home, encourage your students to use their target vocabulary words. You can say the words in your everyday conversations with your student (ex. “It’s time for you to relinquish the remote control.”), reference the words in relation to images you see or movies you watch together (ex. “That’s an enormous tree!”), or ask questions to your students that contain the target words (ex. “Do you think that climbing Mount Everest or going to the moon would be more audacious?”). You can even create your own miniature “word wall” in order to display the target words in your house. Celebrate the magic of descriptive, vivid vocabulary as your young Word Wizards continue to develop this aspect of language throughout the rest of the school year.

Horizon Academy is a school serving students from kindergarten through eighth grade in Roeland Park, KS. We empower students diagnosed with dyslexia and other language-based learning disabilities to become effective learners and confident self-advocates.

Our staff is highly trained in the Orton-Gillingham (O-G) Approach, Multisensory Math (MSM), and the Strategic Instructional Model (SIM). 

Horizon Academy maintains accreditation through the Independent Schools Association of the Central States (ISACS) and AdvancED, and our program is accredited by the Academy of Orton-Gillingham.

Horizon Academy is the only school west of the Mississippi River to be accredited by the Orton-Gillingham Academy. Our teachers and interventionists are TRAINED AND CERTIFIED in Orton-Gillingham.

For more information on the Orton-Gillingham Approach, visit:  https://www.ortonacademy.org/

For more information about Horizon Academy, visit:  https://horizon-academy.org/