Abstract This paper examines how literature can be used to teach vocabulary. It is based on experiences that were obtained on a practicum. 3 hours were spent in three different classrooms and analysis made on how the instructors facilitate the understanding of the students in the reading and the writing sessions. These observations were observed for both the mainstream and the minority language students. Later, a specific grade was chosen from the Language Arts standards and 6 hours were then spent to develop and design a 5 day lesson plan on how to use literature to teach vocabulary. A single piece of text was then used during the entire 5 days teaching period. This paper therefore covers observations and analysis from 15-30 minutes mini-lessons that covers the various aspects of literacy teaching. These include Oral language and Vocabulary, Phonics, Word patterns, and Word analysis, Fluency, Reading Comprehension and Writing. This paper is therefore based on analysis, observations and corrections from my mentor teacher regarding teaching, management and engagement strategies in accordance to student learning. Synopsis:Using literature to teach vocabulary There are many responsibilities that come about in teaching language in school. In language a teacher must teach comprehension (understanding), reading, literature, grammar, writing and vocabulary. However, because of the tight schedule of events we often find that adequate teaching of vocabulary is denied its due time. This comes as a result of the many responsibilities that the teacher will often have to handle. Unlike in the Elizabethan times where mastery grasp of language was necessary, nowadays we find that most of the students are not interested in learning a new vocabulary simply because sophisticated language is not a priority in the society that they have been brought up. It is therefore necessary that language teachers device a method in which they can teach vocabulary. This paper is going to consider various ways in which vocabulary can be taught through literature. One of the methods that can be used to teach literature is through the use of phonemic awareness. It can be described as the ability to percept, reason about, and work and operate the individual sounds in words. This method is great as it allows us to predict the ease or the difficulty that a student is experiencing when it comes to predicting of later reading success or difficulty. To enforce this skill I usually started with a definition to a vocabulary that is student friendly. I would at first engage the students in reading a single source of text which we used as our source of new words. For some few minutes I would allow the students to lead discussions based on the reading. I observed that doing this created motivation to read and discuss within the students in the class. This scenario actually related to the input hypothesis by Horwitz(Horwitz, 2008). It makes the students to become really intereste.

1. Abstract
This paper examines how literature can be used to teach
vocabulary. It is based on experiences that were obtained on a
practicum. 3 hours were spent in three different classrooms and
analysis made on how the instructors facilitate the
understanding of the students in the reading and the writing
sessions. These observations were observed for both the
mainstream and the minority language students.
Later, a specific grade was chosen from the Language Arts
standards and 6 hours were then spent to develop and design a 5
day lesson plan on how to use literature to teach vocabulary. A
single piece of text was then used during the entire 5 days
teaching period. This paper therefore covers observations and
analysis from 15-30 minutes mini-lessons that covers the
various aspects of literacy teaching. These include Oral
language and Vocabulary, Phonics, Word patterns, and Word
analysis, Fluency, Reading Comprehension and Writing. This
paper is therefore based on analysis, observations and
corrections from my mentor teacher regarding teaching,
management and engagement strategies in accordance to student
learning.
Synopsis:Using literature to teach vocabulary
There are many responsibilities that come about in teaching
language in school. In language a teacher must teach

2. comprehension (understanding), reading, literature, grammar,
writing and vocabulary. However, because of the tight schedule
of events we often find that adequate teaching of vocabulary is
denied its due time. This comes as a result of the many
responsibilities that the teacher will often have to handle.
Unlike in the Elizabethan times where mastery grasp of
language was necessary, nowadays we find that most of the
students are not interested in learning a new vocabulary simply
because sophisticated language is not a priority in the society
that they have been brought up. It is therefore necessary that
language teachers device a method in which they can teach
vocabulary. This paper is going to consider various ways in
which vocabulary can be taught through literature.
One of the methods that can be used to teach literature is
through the use of phonemic awareness. It can be described as
the ability to percept, reason about, and work and operate the
individual sounds in words. This method is great as it allows us
to predict the ease or the difficulty that a student is
experiencing when it comes to predicting of later reading
success or difficulty. To enforce this skill I usually started with
a definition to a vocabulary that is student friendly. I would at
first engage the students in reading a single source of text
which we used as our source of new words.
For some few minutes I would allow the students to lead
discussions based on the reading. I observed that doing this
created motivation to read and discuss within the students in the
class. This scenario actually related to the input hypothesis by
Horwitz(Horwitz, 2008). It makes the students to become really
interested and thus encouraging reading and listening materials.
During the reading process, I would allow the students to note
the new unfamiliar words that have been used by the author.
When such a word was reached, we as a class would pause and I
would stress the significance of such vocabulary in context to
what the author wanted to drive home. The students appreciated
that it is not a must that when reading one should have a
dictionary near them while they are reading. They appreciated

3. the fact that one can get the meaning of a new word through
comprehension of what the author wanted to stress or mean.
Thus the students would establish their outstanding words
definitions’ before they leave.
I however, observed that despite the discussions playing a key
role in the understanding and comprehension, teacher
supervision was necessary. This was especially when there were
mistakes, lack of effort and even confusion amongst the
students themselves. Despite the method working for higher
level students, it just did not work for the lower level students.
This rendered the teacher input a necessary evil.
I used the Read Aloud approach during the reading. Allowing
the students to read improves their reading quality and even
boosts their confidence. In the case of distractions or difficulty
in pronunciation in the apart of the student I would often re-
read the text to make sure that wall the students are on the same
page and that we are tackling the same issue. I would have all
the students repeat the vocabulary aloud until they got the
pronunciation correct. During this makes the students excited
and eager to learn. It also alienates boredom in class. A student
would then later try to define the said vocabulary in context to
how it has been used by the author. I would help only if needed.
I observed that using this approach actually improved the
comprehension/understanding skills of the students. The ‘Think-
Pair-Share’ approach was the one that was used during replying.
The human brain is quite unpredictable. This is because the
sooner you get some information the sooner you forget it. Since
students are busy children (they love play) they have a high
tendency of forgetting what they have learnt in class. Brain
exercise is thus very vital for anyone to ensure that your brain
retains as much information as it can hold. Again, when the
activities remain to be too formal for the students they stop
being interesting and therefore the students do not learn much.
To ensure the students retain much of what they learn in class, I
did engage them in fun activities that allowed them to learn.
Some of the activities that we engaged in included thins such as

4. playing scrabble especially with the new words that we had
learnt, Pictionary, bingo and memory much and so forth. While
engaging in these activities the students got to learn a lot and a
major boost was that it was fun. I observed that the students
were completely motivated by these activities and consequently
this improved their masterly of the language. They also
incorporated the new words that they had learnt in class in their
day to day speeches.
Having the understanding that practice makes perfect, it thus
goes without saying that knowledge is not worth anything if you
cannot be able to use it. Throughout the rigorous learning
activity one cannot completely ascertain that every student has
learnt something in the process. Thus testing and evaluation
points are necessary to allow the instructor to judge whether
what was understood in class was actually what he or she
intended the students to get. Although this was not a major
testing point, I made the students do some writing. Here, they
were supposed to make up their own stories but had to use some
of the words that we had learnt earlier on. This acted as a mile
stone in which I could examine how each student understood the
definitions of the words that we had learned in class. Writing
was not only assessment point but I also allowed that they do
some of the activities that we had not done in class such as
debating, creating scripts et cetera.
Finally, for the final evaluation I had to examine the students
understanding of these new vocabularies. I did this by
administering an oral spelling test to the class and also a written
quiz in class. I also had a circle where I would identify each
student one at a time at random and they were supposed to spell
out the word and construct a sentence on the same. I did this
regularly to make sure that they were all examined.
At the end of the practicum, I had learned a lot from that
experience. The Language Arts Unit experience turned out to be
great and very successful during the entire practicum period. I
did not face many challenges and many of them I was able to
handle them. One of the strength of the Language Arts Units is

5. that it is very effective and comes in handy practically when
teaching is done in the classroom by an instructor. However,
despite its success it also has shortcomings especially to
students whose English is a foreign language. Vocabulary
development scientific research has showed that children learn
majority of their vocabulary indirectly from 3 most influential
sources. The sources include reading extensively on their own
(CIERA, 2001), listening to adults read to them and finally
through conversations mostly with adults. Despite the success
of the Language Arts Unit, it definitely could have serious
implications if their parents are not fluent in English. Since the
shortcoming is something that is an external factor I would not
change anything in the implementation of the Language Arts
Unit.
During the practicum, my mentor teacher taught me so many
things regarding teaching, management and engagement
strategies in accordance to student learning. He used to guide
me throughout the entire practicum period and I am grateful to
him. He helped me through with the preparation of the lesson
plan. He guided me through school ethics and supervised me
throughout the entire practicum period.
a) Benchmark Assignment: Language Arts Unit Plan (e-
portfolio)
i) As the first part of the practicum, spend 3 hours each in three
reading classrooms (9 hours total), grades 4-8. It is suggested
that these initial observations occur in Modules 2-4. Analyze
how instructors use strategies to ensure students’ understanding
in the reading and writing components of the reading lessons,
including both mainstream and language minority students.
Determine how these strategies will influence the second part of
the practicum. Two observations must be in different grade
levels and one placement must be in a Title 1 school.
ii) Choose a specific grade and concept from the Language Arts
Standards – visit the Arizona Department of Education’s

6. Language Arts Standards page at:
http://www.ade.az.gov/standards/languagearts/articulated.asp
iii) Between Modules 5 and 6, as the second part of the
practicum and in one of the classrooms you observed, spend 6
hours designing and teaching a week-long (5 day) unit plan
using a single piece of text that is appropriate for the chosen
grade level and based on the language arts academic standards.
A poem, short story, newspaper article, or content area piece
may serve as a text selection. This single piece of text should be
used as a teaching material for all five days of instruction.
(1) Create a mini-lesson (15-30 minutes) to address each of the
following areas related to literacy development:
(a) Monday: Oral language and Vocabulary
(b) Tuesday: Phonics, word patterns, and word analysis
(c) Wednesday: Fluency
(d) Thursday: Reading Comprehension
(e) Friday: Writing
(2) Each day’s mini-lesson should address an evaluation of
learning that is objective and measurable, and directly assesses
the students’ achievement of the targeted academic standards.
Every lesson should have the following structure at a minimum:
objective (linked to academic standards), materials (include
copies of all materials to teach lesson), procedure (a step-by-
step description of the lesson from beginning to end), and
assessment (a concrete, measurable way to assess the objective).
(3) Each mini-lesson should be a piece of the larger whole, not
individual or unconnected lessons. That is, lessons later in the
week should build on lessons from earlier in the week, and they

7. should all reinforce and integrate skills from the prior lessons in
the weekly sequence.
(4) The remaining five hours of the practicum should be used
for conferring with your mentor teacher regarding your
teaching, management and engagement strategies, as well as
conducting an analysis of student learning. Use your assessment
data to formulate a plan to adjust your teaching to meet student
needs. Utilize this data and mentor teacher feedback to adjust
your Unit before submitting it to the instructor and to
Taskstream.
iv) Write a 1500-1750 word Practicum Reflection that includes
the following:
(1) A synopsis of your observations in the reading classrooms,
and how they influenced your Language Arts Unit Plan.
(2) A reflection on the Language Arts Unit after you taught it.
What were its strengths and weaknesses? What would you
change and why? What did you learn about teaching from your
mentor teacher? Include this reflection with your Unit Plan.
(3) APA format is not required, but solid writing skill in APA
style is expected.
(4) Ask the classroom teacher to complete the Classroom
Teacher Evaluation Form. Include it, your Language Arts Unit
Plan, and the Practicum Reflection as the Benchmark
Assessment submission to the instructor. Attach the Practicum
Placement Form and Observation Record.
v) Submit the assignment to the instructor at the end of Module
8.
vi) Additionally, submit the assignment in TaskStream.
Directions for submitting to TaskStream can be found on the
College of Education’s page in the Student Success Center.

8. Scoring Tool/Guide (Rubric)
Language Arts Unit Plan
Criteria
% Value
1: Unsatisfactory
2: Less than Satisfactory
3: Satisfactory
4: Good
5: Excellent
Addressing ACEI Standards (15%)
Development, Learning, and Motivation 1.0
2%
Candidates do not know, understand, or use the major concepts,
principles, theories, and research related to development of
children and young adolescents to construct learning
opportunities that support individual students’ development,
acquisition of knowledge, and motivation.
Candidates know and understand some of the concepts,
principles, theories, and research related to development of
children and young adolescents to construct learning
opportunities that support individual students’ development,
acquisition of knowledge, and motivation but rarely use them
effectively.
Candidates know, understand, and effectively use the major
concepts, principles, theories, and research related to
development of children and young adolescents to construct
learning opportunities that support individual students’
development, acquisition of knowledge, and motivation.
Candidates know, understand, and carefully use the major
concepts, principles, theories, and research related to
development of children and young adolescents to construct
learning opportunities that support individual students’
development, acquisition of knowledge, and motivation.

9. Candidates know, understand, and methodically use the major
concepts, principles, theories, and research related to
development of children and young adolescents to construct
learning opportunities that support individual students’
development, acquisition of knowledge, and motivation.
Reading, Writing, and Oral Language 2.1
3%
Candidates do not demonstrate competence in use of English
language arts, nor do they know, understand, or use concepts
from reading, language and child development, to teach reading,
writing, speaking, viewing, listening, and thinking skills and to
help students successfully apply their developing skills to many
different situations, materials, and ideas.
Candidates demonstrate a limited level of competence in use of
English language arts and they know, understand, and use few
concepts from reading, language and child development, to
teach reading, writing, speaking, viewing, listening, and
thinking skills and to help students successfully apply their
developing skills to many different situations, materials, and
ideas.
Candidates demonstrate an adequate level of competence in use
of English language arts and they know, understand, and use
concepts from reading, language and child development, to
teach reading, writing, speaking, viewing, listening, and
thinking skills and to help students successfully apply their
developing skills to many different situations, materials, and
ideas.
Candidates demonstrate a high level of competence in use of
English language arts and they know, understand, and use
concepts from reading, language and child development, to
teach reading, writing, speaking, viewing, listening, and
thinking skills and to help students successfully apply their
developing skills to many different situations, materials, and
ideas.
Candidates demonstrate a comprehensive level of competence in

10. use of English language arts and they know, understand, and use
concepts from reading, language and child development, to
teach reading, writing, speaking, viewing, listening, and
thinking skills and to help students successfully apply their
developing skills to many different situations, materials, and
ideas.
Integrating and Applying Knowledge for Instruction 3.1
2%
Candidates do not plan or implement instruction based on
knowledge of students, learning theory, connections across the
curriculum, curricular goals, or community.
Candidates rarely plan or implement instruction based on
knowledge of students, learning theory, connections across the
curriculum, curricular goals, and community.
Candidates plan and implement instruction based on knowledge
of students, learning theory, connections across the curriculum,
curricular goals, and community.
Candidates skillfully plan and implement instruction based on
knowledge of students, learning theory, connections across the
curriculum, curricular goals, and community.
Candidates methodically plan and implement instruction based
on knowledge of students, learning theory, connections across
the curriculum, curricular goals, and community.
Adaptation to Diverse Students 3.2
2%
Candidates do not understand how elementary students differ in
their development and approaches to learning, nor do they
create instructional opportunities that are adapted to diverse
students.
Candidates do not completely understand how elementary
students differ in their development and approaches to learning,
and rarely create instructional opportunities that are adapted to
diverse students.
Candidates understand how elementary students differ in their

11. development and approaches to learning, and create
instructional opportunities that are adapted to diverse students.
Candidates understand how elementary students differ in their
development and approaches to learning, and skillfully create
instructional opportunities that are adapted to diverse students.
Candidates understand how elementary students differ in their
development and approaches to learning, and methodically
create instructional opportunities that are adapted to diverse
students.
Development of Critical Thinking and Problem Solving 3.3
2%
Candidates do not understand or use a variety of teaching
strategies that encourage elementary students’ development of
critical thinking or problem solving.
Candidates understand but rarely use a variety of teaching
strategies that encourage elementary students’ development of
critical thinking and problem solving.
Candidates understand and use a variety of teaching strategies
that encourage elementary students’ development of critical
thinking and problem solving.
Candidates understand and efficiently use a variety of teaching
strategies that encourage elementary students’ development of
critical thinking and problem solving.
Candidates understand and meticulously use a variety of
teaching strategies that encourage elementary students’
development of critical thinking and problem solving.
Assessment for Instruction 4.0
2%
Candidates do not know, understand, or use formal and informal
assessments strategies to plan, evaluate or strengthen
instruction that will promote continuous intellectual, social,
emotional, and physical development of elementary student.
Candidates know, understand, and use formal and informal

12. assessments strategies to plan, evaluate and strengthen
instruction that will promote continuous intellectual, social,
emotional, and physical development of elementary student.
Candidates know, understand, and effectively use formal and
informal assessments strategies to plan, evaluate and strengthen
instruction that will promote continuous intellectual, social,
emotional, and physical development of elementary student.
Candidates know, understand, and strategically use formal and
informal assessments strategies to plan, evaluate and strengthen
instruction that will promote continuous intellectual, social,
emotional, and physical development of elementary student.
Professional Growth, Reflection, and Evaluation 5.1
2%
Candidates are not aware of and do not reflect on their practice
in light of research on teaching, professional ethics, and
resources available for professional learning; they do not
evaluate the effects of their professional decisions and actions
on students, families and other professionals in the learning
community or actively seek out opportunities to grow
professionally.
Candidates are rarely aware of and scarcely reflect on their
practice in light of research on teaching, professional ethics,
and resources available for professional learning; they seldom
evaluate the effects of their professional decisions and actions
on students, families and other professionals in the learning
community and do not seek out opportunities to grow
professionally.
Candidates are aware of and reflect on their practice in light of
research on teaching, professional ethics, and resources
available for professional learning; they occasionally evaluate
the effects of their professional decisions and actions on
students, families and other professionals in the learning
community and seek out opportunities to grow professionally.
Candidates are aware of and reflect on their practice in light of

13. research on teaching, professional ethics, and resources
available for professional learning; they typically evaluate the
effects of their professional decisions and actions on students,
families and other professionals in the learning community and
seek out opportunities to grow professionally.
Candidates are aware of and reflect on their practice in light of
research on teaching, professional ethics, and resources
available for professional learning; they continually evaluate
the effects of their professional decisions and actions on
students, families and other professionals in the learning
community and actively seek out opportunities to grow
professionally.
Mini-lessons 70%
Oral Language and Vocabulary
12%
The oral language and vocabulary lesson plan is missing many
of the required components. Attention to prior knowledge and
essential vocabulary is weak or missing.
The oral language and vocabulary lesson plan consists of most
of the required components. Attention to prior knowledge and
essential vocabulary is minimal or underdeveloped.
The oral language and vocabulary lesson plan consists of all the
required components. The lesson activates prior knowledge and
teaches essential vocabulary that enhances comprehension.
All lesson plan components are addressed. Prior knowledge is
surveyed and built to support new learning. Essential
vocabulary is thoughtfully developed and meaningfully
connected to prior knowledge.
All lesson plan components are addressed. Exceptionally
organized activities that create depth of understanding through
connecting old knowledge with new knowledge and predictions.
Phonics, Word Patterns, and Word Analysis
12%

14. The phonics, word patterns, and word analysis lesson plan is
missing many of the required components. Attention to phonics,
word patterns, and word analysis is weak, missing, or
incomplete. Skills and activities are not grade appropriate.
The phonics, word patterns, and word analysis lesson plan
consists of most of the required components. Attention to
phonics, word patterns, and word analysis is minimal or
underdeveloped. Skills and activities are mostly grade
appropriate.
The phonics, word patterns, and word analysis lesson plan
consists of all the required components. The phonics, word
patterns, and word analysis activities are grade appropriate and
teach students to actively analyze word parts in an effort to
generalize to new words and to aid in fluency and
comprehension. The phonics and word patterns come directly
from the text piece.
All lesson plan components are addressed. The phonics, word
patterns, and word analysis skills and activities are thoughtfully
developed and meaningfully connected to new words and
patterns.
All lesson plan components are addressed. Exceptionally
organized activities that create multiple and meaningful
opportunities to learn new word patterns that are high utility.
There is a strategic balance between word parts and whole text
applications.
Fluency
12%
The fluency lesson plan is missing many of the required
components. The fluency activities are missing, weak, or
incomplete. Skills and activities are not grade appropriate.
The fluency lesson plan consists of most of the required
components. Attention to fluency is minimal, underdeveloped,
or inappropriate for teaching fluency. Skills and activities are

15. mostly grade appropriate.
The fluency lesson plan consists of all the required components.
The fluency activities develop ways to build speed and accuracy
with text. Activities are appropriate for grade level and
encourage participation.
All lesson plan components are addressed. The fluency skills
and activities are thoughtfully developed and provide
meaningful practice with familiar text. The fluency activities
are fun, interactive, and creative.
All lesson components are addressed. Exceptionally organized
activities that create multiple and meaningful opportunities to
practice reading text with smoothness, accuracy, speed, and
prosody. Activities are engaging and focus on fluent processing
of whole text.
Reading Comprehension
12%
The reading comprehension lesson plan is missing many of the
required components. Attention to reading comprehension is
weak, missing, or incomplete. Skills and activities are not grade
appropriate.
The reading comprehension lesson plan consists of most of the
required components. Attention to reading comprehension is
minimal or underdeveloped. Minimal or no attention is given to
quality “before, during, and after” reading activities to develop
comprehension. Skills and activities are mostly grade
appropriate.
The reading comprehension lesson plan consists of all the
required components. The reading comprehension activities
address “before, during, and after” reading stages. The learning
activities are high quality and strategically selected.
All lesson plan components are addressed. The reading
comprehension activities are thoughtfully developed and focus
on building understanding of text and extending learning

16. beyond the text.
All lesson plan components are addressed. Exceptionally
organized activities that create multiple and meaningful
opportunities to create and extend learning of the text. There is
a variety of useful strategies in activity selection. The specific
comprehension strategies teach student independence.
Writing
11%
The writing lesson plan is missing many of the required
components. Attention to writing is weak, missing, or
incomplete. Skills and activities are not grade appropriate.
The writing lesson plan consists of most of the required
components. Attention to writing is minimal or underdeveloped.
Minimal or no attention is given to incorporating the skills and
objectives from days 1-4 in the Unit. Skills and activities are
mostly grade appropriate.
The writing lesson plan consists of all the required components.
The writing activities incorporate the skills and objectives from
the days 1-4 in the Unit. The lesson is based on the academic
writing standards in language arts.
All lesson plan components are addressed. The writing activities
are thoughtfully developed and focus on meaningfully
synthesizing and reinforcing the skills from earlier in the Unit.
All lesson plan components are addressed. Exceptionally
organized activities that create multiple and meaningful
opportunities to use writing as a tool to create and extend
learning of the text. There is a variety of response choices in
activity selection.
Unit Cohesiveness and Scaffolding
11%
There is weak or no attention to thoughtful organization of the
overall scope and sequence of the lessons in the Unit. Lessons

17. seem random and do not scaffold.
There is minimal/ some attempt to organize the overall scope
and sequence of the lessons in the Unit, but it is incomplete or
underdeveloped. An attempt is made to scaffold lessons but the
skill development is not clear or well thought-out.
The 5-day Unit Plan flows smoothly as a holistic unit. The
lessons build on and reinforce each other. There is a fluid and
logical sequence of lesson development throughout the week.
The Unit has a solid structure of interrelatedness of lessons that
weave previous skills into the new activities so that learning is
meaningful and seamless.
There is exceptional cohesiveness and scaffolding throughout
the entire Unit. All lessons build on and reinforce earlier
lessons while directly teaching the core skills and objectives of
the 5 days.
Reflection 10%
Content
10%
No reflection is submitted with the Unit Plan.
Reflection is cursory at best; mentor teacher observations are
alluded to; some Unit Plan analysis is present but lacks detail;
limited indication of influence of mentor teachers on lesson
plans.
Reflection includes observation synopses and mentor teacher
influences on mini-lesson plans; analyzes Unit Plan’s
strengths/weaknesses, change requirements, learning
experiences.
Unit Plan’s analysis is organized and focuses in its component
parts.
Rigorous analysis of Unit Plan.
Organization 5%
Mechanics of Writing (includes spelling, punctuation, grammar)

18. 5%
Surface errors are pervasive enough that they impede
communication of meaning.
Frequent and repetitive mechanical errors distract the reader.
Some mechanical errors or typos are present, but are not overly
distracting to the reader.
Prose is largely free of mechanical errors, although a few may
be present.
Writer is clearly in control of standard, written American
English.
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