Tutor Tips

Create Analogies. Analogies help learners develop concepts for words that cannot be represented with firsthand or visual experience. Think of something your learner knows that is like the word they don't know. Ask them what they know about the familiar concept, highlight relevant traits, and add to the information they give you as necessary. Tell them this familiar concept is like the unfamiliar concept and point out the similarities. Finally, show the learner how the new concept is different from the known concept.

To help learners become aware of the links words share, get them in the habit of asking themselves:
· Do I know any other words that sound and look like this word?
· Are any of these look-alike/sound-alike words related to each other?

The answer to the first question helps learners pronounce and spell the word. The answer to the second question helps learners discover what, if any, relationships exist between the new word and others in their vocabulary.

Let learners select the words to be learned.  Have them preview reading materials with the purpose of listing several words they consider important and unknown. Help them consider whether the words is unknown not by their ability or inability to pronounce it, but by their "I wonder what that means" reaction.

Teach learners how to effectively use the dictionary. Model for them: people do NOT look up lists of words and then memorize definitions for a test. A dictionary is useful when a word cannot be understood as it is encountered in reading. When your learner sees a new word and ask what it means, respond with a little information and suggest it be looked up in the dictionary.