How to Teach Vocabulary to Kids
Vocabulary is built from reading aloud and from everyday conversation. Flashcards are a last resort, not a first.
Vocabulary is the single strongest predictor of later reading comprehension. A child with a rich vocabulary at age 5 is almost always a strong reader at age 10. The bad news: vocabulary size at age 5 is largely determined by how much the child has been talked to before that. The good news: it can still be grown at any age.
The best method for building vocabulary is not flashcards — it's reading aloud to the child from books slightly above their independent reading level. Books contain a denser concentration of rare words than everyday speech. A child who hears a chapter book every night will hear thousands of rare words they would never hear in conversation.
The second best method is conversation. Real back-and-forth talking about topics of interest exposes the child to the words adults use for adult things. Screen time, by contrast, does almost nothing for vocabulary — even the good content. Words have to come from interactive humans to stick.
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Printable Worksheets to Go With This Guide
Frequently Asked Questions
How many words does a 5-year-old know?+
Typical vocabulary at age 5 is 2,500 to 5,000 words in receptive vocabulary (words they understand) and 2,000 to 2,500 in expressive vocabulary (words they use).
What's the best way to build vocabulary?+
Reading aloud to the child from varied, slightly-above-level books. Second best is rich conversation. Flashcards are a distant third and only work for specific vocabulary gaps.
Do screens help or hurt vocabulary?+
Passive video viewing does very little for vocabulary. Interactive, conversational activities — even on screens — do much better. Background TV is slightly negative (it displaces conversation).
Should I explain every new word my child asks about?+
Yes, briefly. Give a short definition and a quick example sentence, then move on. A child who's encouraged to ask about words will hit every rare word they encounter.