The book that I'm reading for book club is Maniac Magee. The chapters are relatively short (mostly between 2-4 pages), so I looked through a few different chapters to come up with the following examples for each tier of vocabulary words:
Tier 1 (Basic): Simply, jumped, unused, confused, rolling, scrubbing
Tier 2 (Academic): Practically, plunked, unthinkable, sneered, crumpled, loaned, hemisphere
Tier 3 (Specialized): Fishbelly, cast-iron, gingersnap
The words I chose to put in the Tier 1 category are words that are used frequently in everyday conversation. Students who are fluent in English will most likely have heard these words several times before and will know their meaning. The words I listed for tier 2 will probably look familiar to students but they may not know the exact meanings. As the Tompkins chapter described, these are words that students could possibly pronounce and use in a general sense. However, diving deeper into the definitions and uses of the word will be beneficial throughout their academic careers. For example, the word 'unthinkable' may be familiar to children but can also be somewhat confusing. At first glance students might think it is referring to not being able to think about something. However, when it is used in Manic Magee, it's actually describing something that is controversial. The specialized tier 3 words I selected are pretty specific to the book itself and may not have much meaning in other contexts. The word "fishbelly" is used several times throughout the novel as a nickname for the main character. As a Caucasian boy spending much of his time in an African American area, his peers refer to him as "Fishbelly" because his skin is white like the belly of a fish. Explaining this to students would be helpful in understanding the storyline of the book but would probably not be useful in other aspects of learning.
I think you did a good job of finding words and placing them in tiers. I agree that the tier 1 words are words that students have probably heard before and may know the meaning of. However, I'm curious to know which age group you have in mind for this book and these words? I think that may help clarify why these words work well in the tiers. Moving on, I also agree with your tier 2 words. These words are definitely less common than tier 1 and therefore the students are less likely to know the meaning. The specialized words in teir 3 are also a good fit and they are something that should definitely be explained before the start of the book so the students will not struggle when they come across them.
ReplyDeleteFirst off, I'm curious as to how you figured out the "definition" of "fishbelly" in this text? Does the story tell what this means in some way, or did you have to do some "research?" I only ask because I feel like I would not have "caught" this reference or known what it meant! I read Maniac McGee in school when I was younger, and of course do not remember this coming up at all! I wonder if the teacher didn't bring it up on purpose? In response to Chelsey's question regarding "age"- I remember reading this in school in 6th grade, but I am also curious as to Emily's age group in mind as it does change the consideration of which words to consider. I like how you explained how a lot of the tier 1 words are basic words that will be helpful throughout one's academic learning, yet the tier 3 is more important just for understanding the story in general. It's great to bring up the point that just because a word is used a certain way in a story, doesn't mean the word doesn't have another definition not used in the story. I like that you brought this up and addressed this, as students may otherwise falsely believe such words to have only one definition, which can later be problematic!
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