Abstract
Encountering words repeatedly, both through text and in conversation, builds a fabric of understanding that clarifies the meaning of familiar words and then makes it even easier to determine the meaning of new words, creating a snowballing spiral of vocabulary acquisition. Good readers read more and learn more new words. As a result, by merely encountering more words, good readers learn much more about language. Two major types of vocabulary are relevant in grade 4–8 classrooms: meaning vocabulary and reading vocabulary. Word study is a systematic, conceptual learner-centered approach to instruction in spelling, word analysis and vocabulary. Essentially, word study is the interplay among reading, writing, and spelling instruction. Instruction in word study begins in the primary grades with activities that develop phonemic awareness, that is, the ability to attend to sounds in the context of the spoken word independent of the visual representation or meaning of the word.