#VOCABULARY WORDS APP MOVIE#

Finally, they view the actual definition of the word to see if it matches the definition they created based on context clues. Then, they can click on each of the images to see a sentence using synonyms of the word to further build their understanding of how the word could be used. The app displays a vocabulary word alongside a set of pictures, which students examine for a common thread that can help them form a definition of the word. That lesson paved the way for the idea for InferCabulary. Instead, Lawrence put together a set of pictures that represented the word “prominent.” Within seconds the student told Lawrence that the word meant “standing out.”

No matter how Lawrence explained the words to the student, she still struggled to comprehend their definitions.Īfter analyzing the girl’s report, which showed that her nonverbal skills were in the genius range while her verbal skills were significantly lower, Lawrence had an epiphany: “Why was I using language to teach language to a student whose primary challenge was language?” She added that people need to know at least 95 percent of the words in a text to comprehend it. The primary hurdle for the student was the number of unknown vocabulary words, Lawrence said. Lawrence recalled working with an 8th grade girl who had been assigned to read George Orwell’s book “Animal Farm” for class but was having difficulty understanding the text. If you don’t have visuals in your mind, you can’t anchor the story.” “If you don’t have background knowledge, you don’t have visuals in your mind.

#VOCABULARY WORDS APP MOVIE#

“Our goal with reading comprehension is for kids to make a movie in their minds,” Lawrence said. InferCabulary, an app developed by speech and language pathologists Beth Lawrence and Deena Seifert, displays one vocabulary word at a time, accompanied by a collection of pictures, and has students infer a definition for that word based on context clues in the images.įrom Lawrence and Seifert’s experience, using visual representations of new words, as opposed to strictly oral or written tools, helps students better understand the context of those words. Image courtesy of InferCabulary.Ī visual vocabulary-learning app that is looking to change the way students learn and comprehend language recently received a $250,000 joint investment from the University System of Maryland’s Momentum Fund, which supports early-stage companies. An example of what users can find on the InferCabulary app, including a vocabulary word, related pictures and their accompanying captions.

Vocabulary words app