Semantic Feature Analysis
Name of Strategy: Semantic Feature Analysis for Vocabulary
Purpose of Strategy: This strategy uses a grid to help students explore how sets of things are related to each other, and helps students understand the meaning of selected vocabulary words.
Supports Student Learning: This strategy enhances comprehension and vocabulary skills.
Reading Stage: Fluent Readers
Genre Focus: Non-fiction books
Materials Needed:
Chart/grid with vocabulary terms or concepts and features
Text to read
Step-by-Step Procedure:
- Find a text to read
- Decide on key vocabulary terms and features related to them (either prepare the chart for the students or help them fill it out with vocab words on the left side and features across the top)
- Model how to use the chart and fill it in (“+” if the feature goes with the vocab word “-“ if it does not)
- Review the vocab words and features
- Read text together or assign students to read the text alone
- As the students read they can fill out the chart, or they can fill out the chart as a review after reading the text
- Once the charts are filled out students should analyze their graphs by:
b. Discuss different results
c. Write a summary of what they learned
Advantages:
This strategy allows teachers and students to check for comprehension, vocabulary, and content retention. The chart allows students to examine similarities and differences in concepts or ideas. This helps students visualize connections, make predictions, and better understand important concepts. This strategy can be used with individual students, small groups, or whole groups. Teachers can check for understanding by looking at the students’ grids and tailor instruction based on what they find.
Disadvantages:
This is a way to review information and ensure comprehension. You could not use this strategy to actually teach something. It would be used at the end of the lesson.
Variations:
This strategy has so many variations to it. You can use it before, during, or after reading a text. It could be used for individual, small group, or whole group instruction. You can use it for any subject. For example, with Math you can use it for information about numbers or polygons. For Social Studies, you can use it to compare political parties of past presidents. For Science, you can teach students about types of dinosaurs and their characteristics. For Language Arts, you can genres of books by characteristics of stories. There are so many things you can use Semantic Feature Analysis with.
You can easily differentiate instruction with these charts by adding or taking away vocab terms and/or features depending on the student’s capabilities. You can use concrete words for students who struggle with abstract thoughts. You can begin with items that are easily distinguished and move towards items that have more subtle differences. Depending on the student, follow up instruction can vary from using information learned about one category to asking students to compare and contrast across categories.
These are the websites I found my information from:
http://www.adlit.org/strategies/22731/
http://www.readingrockets.org/strategies/semantic_feature_analysis