Download Scaffold for Increasing Known High Frequency Words

Scaffold for Increasing Known High Frequency Words
Refer to Clay, LLDI, p. 40 for Expanding Meagre Knowledge of Words & Allington, What Really Matters in Fluency, At a Glance Words p. 105-109
Cautions: This activity takes only 1-2 minutes per lesson, Do Not overload the child’s working memory
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Only 10 words in any one lesson (only 2-3 brand new words). Blank playing cards work well, Font
size—Use a size similar to size of words in familiar books when possible-promoting transfer
Words taken from familiar reading books (include phonetically irregular words that can be easily
learned by the child)
1. 10 on a ring all mixed together with most familiar and familiar
 Present to child who is asked to read the words (Pace—Allowing about 2-3 seconds to read)
 If read within 3 seconds place in pile next to child (for later flash/instant practice)
 If read instantly, highlight yellow
 If not recognized ask child to run his finger under it and try it, share the context, “This was in your
Dan the flying man books—catch me, catch me, if you can, or read to the child pointing out a
known letter or feature-“it starts like ‘fish’ in your alphabet book.
i. Place in different pile (eg. further from child to remind you)
2. Fast pile/Flash—take the recognized pile only and flash through the words quickly (1 second or less) while
child tries to recognize the word instantly (speeding up the response to already quickly recognized word)
3. Remove instant words once recognized approximately 3 consecutive times in an instant
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Keep track if needed…highlighting replaces the need to make checks on the card, but you may want to
record on lesson plan and/or Reading Vocab. Chart to help you stay in synch with the child
File these words in the students individual box in alphabetical order for easiest access and reference if
needed in the future (in writing or for analogy for example)
Usually, do not remove more than 3 words per day to limit the load of new information, yet add new
words as often as possible to promote acceleration
4. Either add in 1-3 newer words from familiar reading or writing telling each word and perhaps talking briefly
about each word to help the child know the context or make a known link to the letters in the words. Later in
the lesson series, adding new words takes minimal time and the child may even recognize the word
instantaneously on the first exposure because s/he has learned it from his reading of continuous text or in the
classroom.
Balance these two: NOT overload the memory & the need to INCREASE vocabulary at an accelerated rate
4. And/Or….Return to a nearly known word from the slower pile to learn more detail about the word. How is
it different from another word s/he knows that starts the same way? Provide brief but sufficient opportunities
for knowing this word. Make links to what the child already knows. Attend to known letter information and
help the child distinguish the word from other known words (see Clay LLDI Part 2 p. 40 for learning a new
word, doing only what is necessary to get the word learned)
5. If appropriate and timely, work with the whole set of 10 words (including the newly added words, NOT
including removed words). For example, mix them up and read again. If it helps the child, use an echo
approach (teacher reads, student reads), or choral approach (read together) or some combination (teacher
reads words not recognized quickly by the child).
PROGESS APPEARS TO INCREASE MORE RAPIDLY—when the words go home for practice each day!
Spokane Public Schools Reading Recovery, Draft 1-18-13