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Effective with students of all ages
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Form mental images of words and relate descriptors to the words
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Link meaning to new vocabulary
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Links new concepts to already existing schemata
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Use new terms in connected language in various settings
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Write sentences using new word
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Summarize information
Strategy
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Select a key word that is critical to the comprehension of the text the students will be reading.
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Write the word on the board. Students say/sign, fingerspell, and write it.
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Tell the students what the word means and then use it in an analogy.
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For example, if the key word is zebra, tell the students: A zebra is an animal that lives in Africa. A zebra looks like a small horse with black and white stripes.
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Children close their eyes and picture a zebra in their minds. Each child describes her/his mental pictures and teacher and students discuss.
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Students draw their mental pictures (this step will not be appropriate for all concepts).
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After the students have read the text, they can elaborate on the key word/concept.
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Summarize by writing sentences explaining the meaning of the key word.
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The class can write a summary together.
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Each student can write a summary.
Advancing the Strategy
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Summarize by writing sentences explaining the meaning of the key word.
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The class can write a summary together.
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Each student can write a summary.