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Elementary teachers demonstrate vocabulary strategies tied to MTSS and the science of reading
Summary
Elementary teachers showcased classroom strategies — vocabulary notebooks, mini anchor charts, a 'hot seat' retrieval game and explicit morphology instruction — aimed at improving reading comprehension; district tied the work to MTSS and teacher-evaluation indicator 1.1 on academic vocabulary.
The board heard a classroom demonstration of vocabulary instruction from a team of elementary teachers brought by the superintendent. "Vocabulary is very important," Rachel Smith told the board as she described vocabulary notebooks and mini anchor charts she uses to help students access math and reading terms.
Judy Thomas described a classroom activity called the "hot seat," where a selected student guesses a teacher-chosen word from classmates' hints to reinforce vocabulary in a fun, social setting. "It's fun. It promotes teamwork and positive class energy," Thomas said.
A fourth-grade teacher outlined a routine that breaks words into prefixes and suffixes, gives kid-friendly definitions, and provides multiple opportunities for students to use and write the word in context. The superintendent said the district is prioritizing academic vocabulary in evaluations and MTSS work: indicator 1.1 on teacher evaluations emphasizes academic-vocabulary teaching and student use.
Teachers said vocabulary instruction is embedded into 10'20-minute daily blocks and reinforced in tiered intervention (win time) to support students identified by i-Ready and MAP diagnostics. Staff said the goal is to develop independent learners who can apply rich vocabulary across content areas.
