My Messy Vocabulary System

By: Summer Garris

In the film Most Likely to Succeed, teachers utilize Socratic seminar for deeper learning and comprehension of text. In today's blog post, read about how NGID teacher, Summer Garris, also uses Socratic seminar in her English classroom. Summer shares her vocabulary approach, which she says is "messy," and we appreciate messy because we know authentic learning experiences such as the one Summer describes are the way students experience deeper learning.

I spent years trying to acclimate to a vocabulary system for my students. I tried vocabulary packets with worksheets for students to learn sets of random words by matching them to definitions, working out clues to cross word puzzles, and completing sentences. I tried a variety of graphic organizers, charts, webs and matrices; students connected words to prior knowledge, finding synonyms, antonyms, examples and non-examples. I tried individual word journals; students made independent lists of words replete with contextual information and paraphrased definitions. All of the systems failed me.

My students inevitably became bogged down with packet completion deadlines, bored through “check your work” sessions, and covered in too many copies to organize. I struggled with student accountability and engagement. I found myself spending precious class time, and too much home time, sifting through stacks of papers and worksheets. Students were frustrated, and I was frustrated. What is an antonym of the word “vortices” anyway? None of the systems felt like an embedded part of my literacy instruction. All the systems felt inefficient, and all the systems lacked what I really wanted for my students – not just mastery of a list of random words on a weekly quiz, but ownership of words they could use in their writing and speaking experiences.

It occurred to me one day at home as I cleaned up the remnants of a fun Saturday afternoon with my young children: often good times are pretty messy. In fact, it’s hard to have fun and not make a mess. From this epiphany, I began to hone what I call my messy, but effective embedded vocabulary instruction.

Satisfying Student and Teacher Needs

First, I had to really decide what a good vocabulary system would look like. My vocabulary system had to:

• Give students authentic experiences with the words. Learning the words needed to make sense. The words couldn’t be from a random list. The words had to be necessary from the student perspective.
• Allow students to attach their schema to the new words. Students need opportunities to relate to the words and connect them to concepts they already know. 
• Give students opportunities to speak about and with the words. They need to pronounce the words and recognize them when spoken. 
• Engage students in the learning process and hold them accountable for learning. This means it has to be fun. That’s a tall order when thinking about learning vocabulary words with teenagers. 
• Ensure mastery and ownership of the words. A system must provide assessment data (both formative and summative) to ensure students have learned. It isn’t enough to match words to definitions on a Friday quiz. Students need to use these words on their own and recognize these words when they encountered them in pieces both in and out of class.
• Enhance the other course work, so that any class time spent learning the words is not at the expense of some other important aspect of the course. The vocabulary has to be part of an overall literacy experience, enhanced by and enhancing other literary experiences happening in my classroom. 

Making it Work: The Logistics

Each week, students are assigned a rather dense, rigorous reading piece. Usually, these are 6-7 page essays or excerpts from books. I use and English and Composition textbook and various essays and texts, but any reading assignment will work, as long as it is rigorous and contains elevated vocabulary. Students have the following assignments:

1. Close read the essay and annotate. They are given a set of discussion questions that often include questions on rhetoric and style. As students are collecting notes, they are collecting talking points related to the discussion questions, creating their own questions, and collecting new vocabulary words from the essay. 
2. Prepare for Socratic Seminar. Usually on Thursday, the class will hold a Socratic Seminar about the particular reading selection. To participate in seminar, students must show their annotations and list of words they encountered and defined during their reading. During the text based discussion, students are required to speak and reference text as they engage in conversations about the text. 
3. Write an annotated bibliography entry that rhetorically analyzes the text. They create MLA citations and answer questions about author’s purpose, claim, focus, intended audience, literary devices, diction, and syntax using textual evidence to support their contentions. 

Check back tomorrow for “What It Looks Like” and “What I Love About This System”


Summer is a High School English teacher in LaRue county and is a NGID Participant. Currently, The Fund is featuring blogs from teachers in the Next Generation Instructional Design network. They will share their journey, their ideas, and their collaborative work related to being in the network and with building units of study with LDC modules embedded.

Kentucky: Most Likely to Succeed?

By: Renee Boss

At The Fund for Transforming Education, we pride ourselves in leading innovation, and working with business leaders and educators to do so. Over the past few months, we’ve hosted screenings of the film, Most Likely to Succeed, to spark conversations about innovation in education. Many of you have joined us for these screenings, or have reached out for our assistance and support as you host screenings in your schools, universities and businesses. 

In addition to screening the film, we hosted Ted Dintersmith, producer of Most Likely to Succeed. Along with Rachel Belin at the Prichard Committee, we arranged for Mr. Dintersmith to visit two Kentucky schools, and to meet with a group of our partners and board members to discuss what we can do to accelerate the pace of innovation in education in Kentucky. Here’s what he had to say about his visit:

A few months ago, I committed to taking the film Most Likely To Succeed to all fifty states this school year. My very first state — not accidentally — was Kentucky. Many leaders in education told me I’d be really impressed by the vision and expertise of leaders there. I was lucky to connect with Renee Boss, of The Fund for Transforming Education, and Rachel Belin, an advisor to [the Prichard Committee’s] Student Voice Team, who pulled together a fabulous two-day visit for me, with screenings at two schools and meetings with the people who can and will lead Kentucky’s next big education transformation. What impressed me so much was the confidence exhibited by Kentuckians that, having made major strides over the past three decades, the state can lead our nation forward in transforming schools across the state to new and innovative models that prepare our kids for the 21st Century.

Mr. Dintersmith’s quote reinforces what we at The Fund already know: Kentucky leads the nation in transforming education, and we always have. However, this work cannot be done in a vacuum. It requires educators, business leaders, community members, legislators, parents and so many more to get involved. Are you ready to join us?

Share your ideas.

Join the conversation on Twitter using #KYInnovates about how we can move from talk to action as we shape the future of education for students in Kentucky. We want students to be not only college and career ready but innovation-era ready as well. You can also use this google form to provide input. 

Tell your stories.

Connect with us to share your local stories of innovation. We believe the more people see and hear stories of innovative work happening, the more they will be inspired and compelled to take action in their own schools and districts.

Host a screening.

Show Most Likely to Succeed in your school, district, workplace, or community. We can help with logistics and facilitation.

Invest in innovation.

Invest in The Fund, so that we can continue to spark conversation and support action to drive excellence in Kentucky’s public education system. A gift of $350 supports one screening of Most Likely to Succeed.

When A Teacher’s Vision Gets Cloudy...Go Back to the Basics

by Ellen Kenimer

Ahh….the beginning of a new school year….the anticipation, the goal setting, the fresh, new bulletin board that welcomes students to start a new journey with me -- a journey I aspire to be meaningful, fun, life-changing, and unforgettable. And then, reality sets in. The routines, the paperwork, the data, the hustle and bustle of each day can easily cloud my mission. I’m often left feeling, how do I manage this? How do I make a difference? How can I make learning occur for my students?

This summer, I had the opportunity to be a part of work led by The Fund for Transforming Education. I worked with a team of teachers and leaders from all over the state of Kentucky who were passionate about helping their students succeed. We spent two days creating and refining a meaningful unit to be taught in our classrooms this fall. During our work sessions and discussions about how to engage students in learning, I was reminded of a few basic principles of good teaching and purposeful learning. On days when my vision gets cloudy, I find they are helpful to revisit.

1. It’s All About Relationships. On the morning of our first meeting day this summer, I entered a room full of people I didn’t know. I had no idea what to expect. I had no idea what the schedule for the day would be. I had no idea how our work sessions would be organized. Needless to say, I felt a bit nervous, much like a child on the first day of school. Now, I am fairly shy and not outspoken, so for the first half hour, I took on an observer role which fit nicely in my comfort zone. But then, something happened. Our leader got up and began the “program” for the day and her introduction included a key element...laughter. It was then that I realized just how powerful laughter could be! Laughter brought together an entire room of strangers. Laughter helped me begin working relationships with people I had met 30 minutes prior. And I thought, “Laughter should be present every day in my classroom.” Laughter builds community and in turn, builds a place for students to invest their hearts, effort, and lives. When a student has a genuine relationship with a teacher and peers in his or her classroom, the student feels safe enough to explore new concepts, make mistakes, engage in productive struggle, and ultimately, achieve success they can be proud of. As part of our work this summer, one of my favorite activities was interviewing a student about what he liked/disliked about school. This activity gave me insight into just how powerful relationships with students can be. By listening to this child’s ideas about ways he learns best, I was able to refine my instruction. In summary, when my vision gets cloudy, it is important for me to remember relationships with my students are foundational.
2. Work With the End Goal in Mind. In our instructional design work this summer, we used the process of backward design - essentially identifying the end goal first and working backward. While this wasn’t a new practice for me and my colleagues, it was an essential reminder that designing instruction this way really does result in tight alignment and focused instruction and classroom activities. This is positive for two reasons: (1)It focuses my questioning and instruction in my teaching. When I know the end goal and am continually directing my students toward it, it helps me in my reflect on and refine which activities are the best to get students there. (2) It shows students a clear path for their learning. In my experience in the elementary classroom, I’ve found that the best learning occurs when students are able to make meaningful connections. By working with the end goal in mind, students can see the connection between the activities we do and the learning that should be taking place. Using the LDC template and the CAS template fostered the backward design thinking within our team this summer and it is a tool that I will continue to use in my classroom. When my vision gets cloudy, I try to refocus on the end goal.
3. Set Up for Authentic Learning. One of the most thought-provoking experiences with The Fund occurred about a month after our summer work when I viewed a documentary titled “Most Likely to Succeed”. I won’t take the time here to give a detailed description of the movie, but I will say it is definitely worth watching. For the most part, the movie walked viewers through a close-up look of a school called High Tech High, located in California. The authentic learning that occurred in this school was nothing short of incredible. At this school, instead of test scores measuring student success, a public exhibition night showcased authentic learning and hard work of the students. The ownership of learning the students showed was what captured my attention the most. Since I teach elementary school, the implementation will need to be drastically different, but the basic premise is something I want to continue to explore. When students begin to take responsibility for their learning and begin to own their progress, true authentic learning begins to happen! When my vision gets cloudy, I can ask myself, “How can I make this learning authentic for students?”

As an educator, it is easy to get overwhelmed with new initiatives and feel defeated by constant changes. However, I’ve found that by starting with these 3 basic principles, I am able to get refocused and refreshed, which in turn, directly benefits my students!

Ellen is a third grade teacher at Rosenwald Dunbar Elementary School in Jessamine County and is a NGID Participant. Currently, The Fund is featuring blogs from teachers in the Next Generation Instructional Design network. They will share their journey, their ideas, and their collaborative work related to being in the network and with building units of study with LDC modules embedded.