Vocabulary knowledge is an important aspect of cognitive development.
It contributes to success in word reading and reading comprehension1 and
thus has implications for learning in all subjects.
Children’s vocabulary achievements are staggering. By age 10, average children
know about 40,000 root words2 – learning about 4,000 words per year, the majority
coming during school years. By contrast, children from disadvantaged backgrounds
are likely to be challenged with respect to vocabulary development and to fall
further and further behind over time. Some studies suggest that disadvantaged
children acquire vocabulary at about one-third to one-half the rate of more
advantaged children, which contributes to widening the gap3. This presents a
huge challenge: even if taught ten new words a week for 40 weeks for each year
from Grade 1 to Grade 5, this represents only 2,000 additional words compared
to the 20,000+ words that an average student would learn over this same period.
And because children with low vocabulary scores learn new words more slowly,
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it is unlikely that those who need vocabulary development the most will remember
even half of these words.