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Instructional Strategy

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INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY

Linked Words

Grade:

K-2, 3-5, 6-8

Type:

Acquire Vocabulary
/ Develop Language (MLL)
20-30

Minutes

When:

During reading

Materials:

Linked Words graphic organizer, preselected text, whiteboard or display, writing utensil
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Description

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© wildpixel— iStock/ Getty Images Plus/Getty Images
The Linked Words strategy helps students connect new vocabulary words with familiar ones. This approach supports vocabulary building by encouraging students to create meaningful thematic links and categories. As students draw on personal connections and background knowledge, they form associations between new and response words. This approach helps students internalize new vocabulary more effectively and develop a deeper understanding of word relationships. Through this strategy, students can expand their vocabulary, improve retention of new words, and enhance their language comprehension skills.
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Procedure

1
Explain to students that words are often connected, and finding these connections makes new words more meaningful and helps vocabulary grow.
2
Write an example of a word association on the board and prompt students to share their ideas. Consider using the words gloves and winter as an example. Explain that the word gloves is associated with concepts such as winter, hands, and warmth.
3
Discuss how these associations help students remember and understand the word gloves.
4
Introduce students to a preselected text, briefly introducing the topic of the text to activate thinking and provide context.
5
Preview what the reading will be about, encouraging students to pay attention to unfamiliar words.
6
Engage the class in a guided reading of the text, placing special emphasis on new vocabulary words. Pause at key words to define them and discuss their meanings.
7
While reading together, encourage students to make associations between new vocabulary words and familiar words. Discuss how these associations relate to the word’s meaning. Use the example of photosynthesis to demonstrate this process.
Pause and model a think-aloud: “Let’s look at the word photosynthesis. Photo means light, and synthesis means to make or produce. Can anyone think of familiar words or ideas that relate to light or producing something?”
Elicit student responses: Students might suggest: sun, plants, green, food, energy.
Discuss associations: “Great associations! Photosynthesis is indeed related to plants using sunlight to produce their own food. How do these familiar words help us understand the meaning of photosynthesis?”
8
Following the reading, review new vocabulary words from the text and list them on the board. Briefly review each word’s meaning.
9
Distribute Linked Words graphic organizer to students. Instruct them to work independently, in pairs, or in small groups to complete the organizers. Explain that they should:
Write each new vocabulary word in the first column of the organizer, titled “New Words.”
Brainstorm and write three to five word associations for each new word in the “Familiar Words” column.
10
Review the completed graphic organizers as a class and reflect on the different associations generated. Discuss the variety of associations and how they relate to each word’s meaning.
11
Reflect on how these associations can help students remember and understand the new vocabulary.
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Differentiation

Supported Ideas: Encourage students to think critically about their word associations by reflecting on why they believe the words are connected. This deep analysis promotes higher-order thinking skills.
Antonyms: When possible, invite students to consider words with opposite meanings and reflect on whether these words can also be associated. This encourages students to examine ideas from different perspectives.

Multilingual Learning Support

Beginning Proficiency: Encourage word associations in students’ home language alongside English. Provide bilingual word banks with visual supports. Use sentence frames like “This word makes me think of…” / “Esta palabra me hace pensar en…”. Create multilingual word webs with translations and pictures. Partner students who share the same home language for initial brainstorming.
Intermediate Proficiency: Support students’ dual-language word mapping with academic vocabulary connections. Guide students in making cross-linguistic connections between cognates and related terms. Provide structured supports for explaining associations in both languages. Include vocabulary maps that bridge social and academic language. Encourage students to record word relationships using both languages.
Advanced Proficiency: Focus on analyzing complex vocabulary patterns and relationships across languages by guiding students to understand academic word families and derivatives, exploring how terms like photograph, photosynthesis, and phototype share meaningful roots. Support students in comparing how academic concepts translate between languages, noting both similarities and differences in expression. Help students recognize and apply shared prefix/suffix patterns between languages, while navigating false cognates and precise terminology.
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Variations

Word Chains: Invite students to generate an oral word chain to practice word association. Ask students to sit in a circle and present them with a new word. Then invite students to take turns sharing associated familiar words (response words). Encourage students to keep the chain going for as long as possible and challenge them not to repeat words. Consider using a ball or beanbag to make the activity more engaging.
Student 1: “Hot!”
Student 2: “Summer!”
Student 3: “Beach!”
Student 4: “Sand!”
Student 5: “Castle!”
Word Association Game: Share different vocabulary words and ask students to say or write the first thing that comes to mind. This promotes fast thinking and also allows students to reflect on how their personal experiences shape their word associations. After the activity, discuss how students’ associations might differ and why.
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