Are you trying to learn new vocabulary?
Form a long-lasting habit.
Get your good old pen and a piece of paper. Draw a picture of something you want to remember.
Come back to this picture every now and then. Not just once.
Many times.
Practice makes perfect.
When 25 years have passed, ask yourself one simple question.
Do I still recollect the word?
I certainly do. Here you can see some of my ‘newly acquired’ words from 1998.
How do I make my students remember new vocabulary?
When I teach vocabulary, I always consider the following questions.
- What is the importance of vocabulary in language learning?
- What role does vocabulary play in the usage of language?
- What is the relationship between vocabulary and grammar?
- At what points in the learning process is it useful to introduce new vocabulary?
- What roles do context and culture play in teaching vocabulary?
I bear in mind that my students are much more likely to remember if the words presented are somehow related.
All of the suggested techniques are best used in combination with one another. Here are some of the examples: realia, pictures, verbal explanations, matching definitions, showing the word in a sentence, finding synonyms etc.
Would you like to practise some vocabulary and a little bit of grammar?
Check out my “Compound Freaks” and “English with LOS Songs” series.
Martin Norling, LOS Founder & CEO