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DVHS Continuous School Improvement
GOAL #2
SęėĆęĊČĞ: CĔėĊ SĎĝ:
AĈĆĉĊĒĎĈ VĔĈĆćĚđĆėĞ
Updated 12/01/17
Purpose:
Improve Reading
Vocabulary CODE Sheet
—How do I CODE with Students?
onnect
—
through synonyms, antonyms, previous learning, visuals, deϐinitions, etc.
rganize
—
through categories
eeply process
—
through work involving active learning, making further connections and con‐
tinued categorizing
xercise
—
through practice and repetition, games, matching, etc.
O
C
D
E
Which words should be coded?
While any word can be, Career Ready Standards for Literacy (CCRSL) stresses the need for students
to work more frequently with Tier Two vocabulary in order to prepare them for learning beyond
secondary school.
What are Tier Two words and why should I spend time on them?
Tier One:
Tier One words tend to be informal in nature. For example, rather than using a word like “thus” to
make a connection between ideas, a person might say “so.” Tier one words are those words which students
learn through speech acquisition (the rate of which varies from student to student) and can be inϐluenced by
regional or dialectical differences.
Tier Three:
Tier Three words tend to focus on content speciϐic language. These words are very often taught
in context in a student’s textbook. They often appear as words that are bold and in‐text deϐinitions are often
provided. Often, exercises, games, and practice activities center around these words. A question to ask your‐
self: would students beneϐit from added connections, organization, or deep processing activities before being
asked to exercise with these words? Tier Three words tend to be concrete in nature.
Tier Two:
Tier Two words are those words most often acquired through reading and are often made up of
conjunctive adverbs, transitional expressions, formal nouns, speciϐic verbs, adverbs, and adjectives that cross
disciplines. As such, they are not informal, nor are they content speciϐic. People tend not to “pick up” Tier Two
words from conversation or from textbooks. Students without a good grasp of Tier Two words tend to struggle
with understanding. Those with a good grasp of Tier Two words tend to be better writers as they have more
concepts with which to work. Tier Two words tend to be abstract rather than concrete, formal rather than in‐
formal. For example:
Thus instead of so:
because of everything I’ve said (written or presented) before, I can now say this
Conversely instead of but:
I’ve said (written or presented) a lot, but now I’m going to say the opposite