What's the Story - Vocabulary Techniques

ACTFL Convention 2014

What’s the Story – Making Vocabulary Connections

                Meredith White – Freedom Prep Academy, TN

+ Power Point with pictures – talk to it in target language, students have a visual to hang on to. Slides in target language (on top), English (on bottom).  Cycle through and practice pronunciation. Have a story at the end with the vocabulary words underlined.  Students have a worksheet with the words.

+ Phrase of the Week

+ Revisit, repeat, revisit…

+ Use celebrities in the picture to catch student interest (the crazier, the better)

+ Wear an apron with pockets to pull out things.

-          This presenter made tricked out Power Points that probably took her a ton of time, with pictures, vocabulary in context with sentences, motion, etc – very impressive and doable for teachers with ONE PREP!

+ Use student photos (outgoing students with permission of course)

+ Open a picture in Paint, use the star tool, cut around the face.

+ It’s OK to teach ‘scripted phrases’ to give students a springboard.

+You can also use Power School photos (with permission of course).

-          Then the presentation turned into a Power Point demo, but she was using a Mac, which wasn’t entirely helpful L