World Language Classroom

Turn That Vocabulary List Into A Communicative Activity

• Joshua Cabral, French, Spanish and World Language Teaching Ideas • Season 1 • Episode 242

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#242

Do you have required vocabulary lists by units that you’re expected to teach? Let’s say that you have a list of 30 or 40 words per unit. Your colleagues teaching other sections have the same list for consistency. You introduce them, do a few games, quiz students on the definitions… but something feels incomplete. Because while your students know the words, they’re not really using them. So how do we move from word lists to real communication? That’s what we’re talking about today. So, let’s jump in.

Topics in this Episode: 

  • Instead of asking, "How do I teach this list of words?", ask: “What communication can these words support?”
  • Communicative goals drive how you teach the vocabulary. The vocabulary becomes the vehicle, not the destination.
  • Classroom Strategies:
    • Chunk the List into Functions. Instead of introducing 30 words on Day 1, group them by communicative function and frame your activities around those functions.
    • Turn the List into a Task: “What could students do with these words that feels real and authentic?”
  • These shifts don’t require rewriting your curriculum. They just require reframing how you approach the vocab.
  • Ready For Tomorrow Quick Win PD Course: From Vocabulary Lists to Communicative Tasks.

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