How to Build Your Vocabulary

🗪Communication skills continue to grow over our lifespan.  Many times we do not even realize the extent of communication we are engaging in.  An infant can cry in a different manner to express whether he or she is hungry, tired, bored, in pain or scared and we learn to comprehend the baby's various cries as well.  We can see from subtle physical changes whether a person is getting agitated or angry, whether they are tired or bored or not feeling well. We can see a person's joy, disappointment, hurt, fear, satisfaction, pride all without verbal communication and it is worthwhile to build nonverbal communication skills.  However, this post is about vocabulary building.

🗒Note:  Vocabulary may be in any language, including sign language and grows from infancy through to old age.  There is no reason not to keep learning new words in your native tongue or in a new language throughout your lifespan!

1.  It is beneficial to support vocabulary with sign language, body language and actions.  

2. Use multiple senses to help strengthen the learning and memory processes when building vocabulary. Ideas include bouncing a ball as you spell out each letter or putting the vocabulary words to music. 

3. It helps to listen to the word, read the word quietly, say it, write it, spell it out loud and then to repeat the word.   Do this multiple times to help you to learn to read and write the new word.

4. Learn the definition of a new word to expand your vocabulary.  Use the new word in context.  

5. Say the word in a variety of voices: whisper, shout, croon.  You can use a deep voice or a high one, a cartoon voice or an accented voice.  You can say the word using a squeaky, angry, animated, growly or babyish voice.  There are so many possibilities.  Have fun!

6.  Write the word in a normal way or as graffiti or as a picture.  It triggers a different part of the brain to see the word as an image which aids in memory.  

7.  To expand on this, you can also outline the words like putting a bubble around them to "see" the shape of the word also. Some spelling lessons include an activity where you fit the spelling words into the correctly shaped boxes. It is a trick to help remember the right spelling of words. 

8.  Have a word of the day.  There are calendars and apps for this or you can randomly open up a dictionary or ask what word was heard that day that was new when reading or watching something.  It can be preplanned or spontaneous.

9. Teach a child how to make a good guess as to the meaning of a word by looking for the root word inside of it.  dis-courage-ment. (prefixes and suffixes added to the root word: courage)

10.  Ask questions when you see an unfamiliar word that you do not understand.  "It was a preposterous idea!" Is that a good or a bad thing?  If you don't know, it is always good to ask the person who spoke the word what it means.

11.  Play a game and unscramble the letters to make a word (lpya=play) or write a phrase and see how many smaller words you can write using only the letters found in the phrase. 

12.  Read!  Read!  Read! This is one of the absolute best ways to build your vocabulary.


                Which activity do you like to use when trying to build your vocabulary?

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