Assignment #2 Group Strategies Workshop

Vocabulary Strategy: Semantic Gradients

By: Jacqueline Samuels, Sonia Arora and Cynthia Asante-Gyimah

Introduction:
Students with learning disability (LD) face Frustration, Anxiety, and Tension
everyday at school (A. Fitzgibbon, PPT Week2, slide 18). 80% of the disabilities are
reading disabilities as is mentioned in week 3(slide 63). Therefore we need to learn
the evidence based strategies to teach how to read to the students with LD. These
help in creating new neurological pathways in their brain (Week6, slide 26). One
such strategy that we learned and liked as a group is Semantic Gradients
strategy to teach vocabulary. (Readingrockets, 2016)

Connection with the Learning in Class

In the five weeks, we learned from looking at the first perspective that LD can
impact the life of the students academically as well as socially. We learned the
general academic deficits and the specifiers in reading, writing and math are used
to define LDs as mentioned in DSM5. We learned the impacts of these deficits and
specifiers and different evidence based strategies used to teach them.
Learning Disabilities in reading are due to general deficits in Phonological
processing, language processing (understanding verbal instructions), visual-spatial
processing (understanding main idea, summarising), Processing speed
(understanding text), or memory (recalling, connecting), and executive functions
(choosing strategies), (A. Fitzgibbon, PPT Week2, slide 19) and the sprecifiers. The
specifiers in reading are: word reading accuracy (decoding, phonetic knowledge);
reading fluency (word recognition, strategies); reading comprehension
(understanding content, remembering content) (A. Fitzgibbon, PPT Week1, slide
91). As mentioned in week 3, slide 68, reading is a complex process consisting of
many steps. If any of them is missing, print will not make a sense for the students.
In the week 4 PPT, we learned about some tier 2 and tier 3 interventions to teach
reading to the students with LD. Reading Rocks and PHAST/Empower are the
programs that were discussed in the class in detail. We learned the eight ways of
phoneme awareness. We learned how Orton-Gillingham approach can make reading
easy by giving them a multisensory experience. Using nonsense words, KWL
charts, reviews etc are some of the strategies mentioned in the classroom. We
learned that comprehension skills highly depend on vocabulary and fluency.
Repeated Reading, R.I.D.E.R. strategy, mind mapping, story boarding, word wall,

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graphic organisers were some of the strategies from the long list that we discussed
to teach comprehension skills to the students with LD.

Defining Semantic Gradients

A semantic gradient is simply an array of related words placed along a
continuum (Greenwood, 2007)
We create this continuum either by selecting the opposite words, or collecting the
synonyms of a single word or by collecting semantically similar words.
WHAT IS THE BEST METHOD FOR TEACHING SEMANTIC GRADIENTS?
The best method is to select a specific word or pair of antonyms, then generate at
least (5) synonyms.
These words can be arranged on a continuum vertically or horizontally, then ask
students to discuss the reason for placing words in its location and to identify the
indistinct difference between these words.
Steps for Creating Semantic Gradients
1. Students will be given a theme or topic on Adjectives that describes feeling.
2. Student will select a pair of antonyms or opposite words on the topic.
Example: good and bad.
3. Students will find at least five synonyms for each antonym.
4. Arrange the set of synonyms from most to least extreme.
5. Students will then arrange the sets of synonyms from the most to the least
extreme.
6. Student will put the least extreme words in the middle and the most extreme
at the ends.
7. Then students will discuss their choices with their peers.
8. Students can make adjustments to the arrangement using a reliable reference
source to clarify word meaning and rearrange words on a continuum where
necessary. (Reading Rockets, 2017)
Semantic Gradient placed on a continuum (Example):
Students will be given list of words on index cards with the left and right antonyms
already determined. The students will then place the rest of words in order listed
below.
Good- favourable, wonderful, exceptional, marvelous, excellent
Bad-unkind, mean, unpleasant, awful, terrible
Size- microscopic, tiny, small, average, big, massive, gigantic
Note: Students can come up with their own list of words from the book they read
after they are familiar with the gradients through some of the teacher guided
activities.
Evidence-Based Research:
Based on this research, our group chose the evidence based strategy Semantic
Gradient from the Reading Rockets site because it meets the criteria of our research
in the following ways:

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1. Semantic gradient improves students vocabulary, which then also improves
reading comprehension.
2. It helps students to be creative and imaginative in writing.
3. It helps students to differentiate between a variety of word meaning, which
results in positive benefits of creative and imaginative writing. (Reading
Rockets,2017)
Learning words via naturally occurring context is important but not
terribly efficient (Stahl & Nagy, 2006).
It reinforces the use of semantic gradients because it is a great way to provide
context to understand and discuss the words on continuum. The context is created
by giving some words or by reading a book and then developing their own set of
words.
It is helpful and reinforcing to teach words in interrelated groupings
(Stahl & Nagy, 2006)
Semantic gradients require children to think about and explain shades of
meaning. When students must persuade their classmates or group
members, they deepen and broaden their understanding of these words.
We have found that students willingly use dictionaries and thesauruses in
order to solve these puzzles.(Greenwood, 2007)
This strategy helps provides opportunities for the students talk about the words as
well as the problem solving skills. They learn how to deal with a conflict when it
comes and come to a common solution. If they disagree about the word order, the
give their onion, ask the teacher about her suggestion, look in the dictionary or
thesaurus and then come to decision keeping both parties feel satisfied. There is no
perfect order and there could be some variations in the continuum according to the
group decisions.
In conclusion, we would only repeat the words of Greenwood and Flanigan :
..helping them bridge the divide between vocabulary and
comprehension. Remember that you're not the only teacher in your
classroom. Your own students can run with a variety of strategies if given
the time, opportunity, and initial instruction. (Greenwood,2006)

References:
Fitzgibbon, A. (2017). Intellectual Sensory and LD EDUC 15436( PPTs). Sheridan
College. Trafalgar.
Semantic Gradients. (n.d.) retrieved from
http://www.readingrockets.org/strategies/semantic_gradients

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Solving Word Meanings: Engaging Strategies for Vocabulary Development. (2017)
retrieved from http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-
plans/solving-word-meanings-engaging-1089.html?tab=1#tabs
Stahl, S.A., & Nagy, W.E. (2006). Teaching word meanings. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Greenwood, S.C., & Flanigan, K. (2007, November). Overlapping Vocabulary and
Comprehension: Context Clues Complement Semantic Gradients. The Reading
Teacher, 61(3), 249-254.etrieved from
https://edc448uri.wikispaces.com/file/view/Greenwood+Vocab+Meanings.pdf
Comprehension: Context Clues Complement Semantic Gradients. The Reading
Teacher, 61(3), 249-254.etrieved from
https://edc448uri.wikispaces.com/file/view/Greenwood+Vocab+Meanings.pdf
Barber K, & Fitzgerald H, & Pontisso R. (2006). Oxford Canadian Thesaurus of
Current English, Oxford, Canada: Oxford University Press.
Barber K, & Fitzgerald H, & Pontisso R. (2005).Oxford Canadian Dictionary of Current
English, Oxford, Canada: Oxford University Press.
Appendix:

List of words taken from www.readingrockets.org/content/docs/Semantic-Gradients-

handout.doc

Topic/Them Words Related To Topic In Varying Degrees (not in

e any particular order)

Anger furious, red-faced, upset, bothered, unhappy, irate, livid

Tired exhausted, sleepy, weary, worn-out, drowsy, pooped out

To Like adore, love, admire, look up to, fond of, enamored

Huge big, large, massive, hefty, colossal

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Happy joyous, giddy, pleased, elated, happy, unhappy, glum,
sad, disappointed

Size tiny, average, small, massive, bulky, hefty, humongous,

gigantic, miniscule, microscopic

To Gab chatter, whisper, talk, shout, scream, pronounce, state

Temperatu cool, steamy, scorching, balmy, freezing,

re lukewarm, hot, boiling, chilled, warm, icy,
bone-chilling, sweltering

Movement dawdle, stroll, strut, jog, race, sprint

Emotion bawl, sob, sniffle, chuckle, giggle, laugh,

roar

Rocks pebble, clay, sand, silt, boulder, gravel

Strength weak, wimpy, frail, strong, buff, scrawny,

burly, feeble, powerful

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Intelligenc intelligent, dumb, dim-witted, average,
e gifted, bright, genius

Boredom boring, dull, humdrum, amusing, interesting,

dreary, captivating, fascinating

Semantic Gradients Worksheet taken from

http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/lesson_images/lesson1089/semantic_g
radients.pdf

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