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Content

1. Introduction 3
2. Five Essential Steps in Vocabulary Teaching 4
2.1. Encountering new words 5
2.2. Getting the word form 6
2.3. Getting the word meaning 8
2.4. Consolidating word form and meaning in memory 10
2.5. Using the word 12
3. VLS – Vocabulary Learning Strategies 13
3.1. Strategies for the Discovery of a new Word´s Meaning 15
3.2. Strategies forthe Discovery of a new Word´s Meaning 17
3.3. Strategies for Consolidating a Word Once it has Been Encountered 18
4. Implications for Teachers 19
5. Exercise That Underlines one of the Most Common VLS – Vocabulary Learning Strategies 20
6. Conclusion 22
7. Bibliography 23
7.1. Secondary Sources 23
7.1.1. Books 23
7.1.2. Internet Sources 23

Introduction

This seminarpaper will give an overall outlook on VLS – Vocabulary Learning Strategies. The first chapter will cover the five essential steps in vocabulary learning in order to get a comprehensive idea about the structure of the process of vocabulary learning from the very first encounter of a word until the usage of the word.
The second chapter ties in with the first one and supports the five steps mentionedearlier. It is some sort of a guideline that can be used to learn vocabulary. It describes very detailed how vocabulary learning can be accomplished and also includes implications for teachers to help them understand their role in the process of vocabulary learning.
This seminar paper should give an insight on how to get from a simple word that a student encounters, to a word that can be countedamong vocabulary that he or she uses whenever language is produced either written or orally.
At the very end, an example of a possible exercise is given to demonstrate how certain activities can support the process.

Five Essential Steps in Vocabulary Teaching

It was and still is really important to find out how language learners actually approach new vocabulary and therefore it isinteresting to know which strategies learners use to memorize new words.
The data to formulate these five essential steps in vocabulary learning emanate from a study that by Payne that was conducted in 1988. Her study group consisted of 17 students who were part of an English program. She asked all of them which strategies they were using to learn vocabulary. The interviews were all conducted in theirnative language to make sure that they were able to express themselves as exactly as possible. She used the students´ answers and created a questionnaire which contained 32 statements that each described a strategy. Payne then started to pass on her questionnaire to 100 ESL students and asked them to rate the effectiveness of the strategies, the ones Payne previously collected from the studentinterviews. The data and the subsequent analysis that Payne performed together with Brown, clearly revealed that the strategies can be grouped into five essential steps:
1. Encountering new words,
2. Getting the word form,
3. Getting the word meaning,
4. Consolidating word form and meaning in memory,
5. Using the words.

These five essential steps are something a learner shouldkeep in mind as a guideline in order to build up his lexicon. A deeper insight on each one of the five essential steps will provide more detailed information about how they function in the process of vocabulary learning.

Encountering new words

The first step, the encounter of new words is obviously the one you start with. There are lots of different channels to perceive new vocabulary.Students normally encounter new words by reading books, newspapers and magazines, listening to the radio or watching TV, or they sometimes even pick it up during a conversation. Less interactive and interesting ways to encounter new vocabulary is through textbook or teacher-assigned word lists.
These two approaches are widely known and practiced in formal settings, such as schools. Another very...