Case Study
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STAR SHEET Comprehension & Vocabulary: Grades 3–5
Semantic Feature Analysis
About the Strategy A Semantic Feature Analysis (SFA) is a strategy that links a student’s prior knowledge with new information and new words by showing the relationships between words from a specific topic .
What the Research and Resources Say • Content teachers cannot leave development of vocabulary to chance (Greenwood, 2002) .
Difficulties in content area classes (e .g ., science, social studies) are common among students with a low vocabulary base (Pittelman, Heimlich, Berglund, & French, 1991) .
• Readers comprehend and learn when they are able to connect the new information in their reading material to what they already know (Greenwood, 2002) .
• Student discussion is essential when using a SFA (Bos & Anders, 1992) . • Discussion increases student participation, thus increasing their expressive language skills
(Pittelman, Heimlich, Berglund, & French, 1991) .
Types of Activities to Implement SFA Grid Pittelman et al . (1991) provide a seven-step process to develop a SFA: • Select a category that you will be teaching . • List three or four words or objects related to the category down the left side of the grid . • List three or four features in a row across the top of the grid . Discuss features with students
and encourage them to add other features . • Guide students through the matrix, having them determine if the words on the left side possess
the features listed . Students place a “+” if the word possesses the feature, a “-” sign if the word does not possess the feature, and a “?” if they are unsure of the relationship .
• Students suggest additional words and features . • Complete the grid by adding plus signs, minus signs, or question marks for the new words
and features . • Examine the grid and discuss relationships among the words .
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Types of Rocks
Igneous Metamorphic Sedimentary
Granite ? ? - Sandstone - - + Pumice + - - Shale ? - ?
Keep in Mind • Teachers must model how to complete a SFA prior to having students complete them
independently . • Completing SFAs as a group is a great activity to spark a great deal of discussion among
students . • Use SFAs to tap prior knowledge as well as to build vocabulary . • Allow students to recognize the relationships between features and words in the grid . Prompt
with questions as needed .
Resources Bos, C ., & Anders, P . L . (1992) . Using interactive teaching and learning strategies to promote text
comprehension and content learning for students with learning disabilties . International Journal of Disability, Development and Education, 39(3), 225–238 .
Greenwood, S . C . (2002) . Making words matter: Vocabulary study in the content areas . The Clearing House, 75(5), 258–264 .
Pittelman, S . D ., Heimlich, J . E ., Berglund, R . L ., & French, M . P . (1991) . Semantic Feature Analysis: Classroom Application. Newark, DE: International Reading Association .