Science Vocabulary

 

Which vocabulary is most useful?

Tier 1: most basic words which typically appear in oral conversations, e.g. table, chair, girl, walk. Pupils are exposed to these words frequently, from a very young age, so readily become familiar with them.

Tier 2: words which are of high utility for mature language users and are found across a variety of subjects, e.g. precede, systematic, conclude. As these words are characteristic of written text, and used more rarely in conversation, pupils are less likely to learn the words independently.

Tier 3: Subject or topic specific words such as meander, photosynthesis and are best learnt when a specific need arises.

The focus should, therefore, be on tier 2 and tier 3 words and, as the words are unlikely to come up in everyday contexts, the words should be explicitly taught rather than caught in the course of everyday conversation.

science vocabulary progression