Top 100 Primary 2 Academic Vocabulary | 2nd Grade School Words

2nd grade academic vocabulary is the school language that helps children understand what teachers, books, worksheets and questions are asking them to do. This Top 100 Primary 2 Academic Vocabulary guide focuses on Grade 2 school words for reading, writing, math and science: words such as compare, explain, evidence, sequence, equal, measure, habitat, classify, record, reason and support.

Parents and teachers searching for academic vocabulary words for 2nd graders, school vocabulary for Grade 2, cross-curricular vocabulary, math vocabulary, science vocabulary, reading vocabulary or instruction words are often dealing with the same problem: a child may understand the topic but still miss the task because the command word, relationship word or evidence word is unclear.

This world-facing eduKateSG page therefore has a distinct job from the broad Primary 2 vocabulary flagship. It teaches one hundred high-utility words that travel across subjects, then shows how the same word changes slightly with context. The goal is not to make Primary 2 language sound artificially academic. The goal is to make school instructions, explanations, diagrams, problems and discussions easier to understand and use.

What Is Academic Vocabulary in Primary 2?

Academic vocabulary is the language used for learning. Some words are subject-specific, such as habitat in science or subtraction in mathematics. Others travel across subjects, such as compare, explain, record, result, example, reason and evidence. These cross-curricular words are especially valuable because one word supports several kinds of thinking.

A child who understands compare can compare characters in a story, numbers in mathematics, materials in science and designs in a project. The vocabulary becomes infrastructure for learning rather than one more list to memorise.

The Top 100 Primary 2 Academic Vocabulary Words

The list is organised around transfer rather than alphabetic order. Teach small groups, then reuse the same words in different subjects. The “where it transfers” column is the important one: a word becomes truly useful when the child can carry it across contexts.

#	Academic word	Meaning	Where it transfers	Example instruction
1	compare	look at two or more things to notice similarities and differences	English: compare two characters; Math: compare numbers; Science: compare materials	Compare the two leaves and explain one similarity.
2	contrast	show how things are different	English: contrast characters; Math: contrast methods; Science: contrast states	Contrast the two endings and explain how they differ.
3	classify	place things into groups using a rule	Reading: classify text types; Math: classify shapes; Science: classify animals	Classify the objects by material.
4	identify	recognise and name something	Reading: identify main idea; Math: identify shape; Science: identify part	Identify the character who solved the problem.
5	describe	tell what something is like using relevant details	Writing, oral language, science observation, geometry	Describe the object using shape, size and colour.
6	explain	make an idea clear by showing how or why	All subjects	Explain why the answer is correct.
7	predict	say what may happen using clues or knowledge	Reading, science, data patterns	Predict what might happen next.
8	estimate	make a sensible approximate judgement	Math, science measurement, time	Estimate how many counters are in the jar.
9	observe	notice carefully for information	Science, reading pictures, art	Observe the plant and record what changes.
10	investigate	study a question carefully to find out more	Science, problem solving, research	Investigate which material absorbs the most water.
11	evidence	information that supports an answer or idea	Reading, science, reasoning	Use evidence from the passage to support your answer.
12	result	what happens at the end of an action, test or calculation	Science, math, projects	Record the result after the second trial.
13	cause	something that makes another event happen	Reading, science, social learning	What was the cause of the flooded path?
14	effect	what happens because of a cause	Reading, science, writing	State one effect of the heavy rain.
15	process	a series of connected actions or stages	Science, writing, design	Describe the process from first step to last.
16	method	a way of doing something	Math, science, study skills	Which method did you use to solve the problem?
17	record	write or store information for later use	Science, math data, reading logs	Record the temperature in the table.
18	data	information collected for study	Math, science, surveys	The class collected data about favourite fruits.
19	detail	a small but useful piece of information	Reading, writing, observation	Which detail shows that the character was nervous?
20	example	a particular case that shows an idea	All subjects	Give one example of a material that can bend.
21	author	the person who writes a text	Reading and writing	What does the author want the reader to know?
22	narrator	the voice that tells a story	Reading	Who is the narrator in this story?
23	character	a person, animal or imagined being in a story	Reading and writing	Describe one important character.
24	setting	the time and place of a story	Reading and writing	Identify the setting in the first paragraph.
25	sequence	the order in which events or steps happen	Reading, writing, science, math procedures	Put the events in the correct sequence.
26	paragraph	a group of related sentences about one main part	Writing and reading	Write one paragraph about the experiment.
27	revise	improve writing by changing ideas, detail or order	Writing	Revise the ending so the solution is clearer.
28	edit	correct writing for grammar, spelling and punctuation	Writing	Edit the paragraph before sharing it.
29	summarize	state only the main points briefly	Reading, science, social studies	Summarize the passage in two sentences.
30	context	the words and situation around something that help explain it	Reading, vocabulary, problem solving	Use the context to work out the word meaning.
31	addition	the operation of combining quantities	Math	Use addition to find the total.
32	subtraction	the operation of taking away or finding a difference	Math	Use subtraction to find how many are left.
33	total	the whole amount when parts are combined	Math, data	What is the total number of pupils?
34	sum	the result of addition	Math	Find the sum of 7 and 8.
35	difference	how things are not the same; in math, the result of subtraction	Math and comparison	Find the difference between 15 and 9.
36	equal	having the same value or amount	Math, comparison	Both groups have an equal number of counters.
37	pattern	a regular arrangement that follows a rule	Math, language, art	Describe the rule in the number pattern.
38	shape	the form or outline of an object or figure	Math, art, design	Name the shape with three sides.
39	measure	find size, amount or quantity using a method or unit	Math, science	Measure the ribbon in centimetres.
40	diagram	a drawing that explains parts, relationships or a process	Math, science, reading	Use the diagram to label the plant parts.
41	habitat	the natural place where a living thing lives	Science	Describe the frog’s habitat.
42	environment	the surroundings and conditions in which living things exist	Science, geography	How can the environment affect the plant?
43	matter	anything that has mass and takes up space	Science	Air, water and rock are forms of matter.
44	material	the substance from which something is made	Science, design	Which material is best for the handle?
45	energy	the ability to make things move, heat, grow or change	Science	Food gives the body energy.
46	cycle	a series of stages that repeats	Science, time	Put the water-cycle stages in order.
47	temperature	a measure of how hot or cold something is	Science, math	Record the temperature every hour.
48	weather	outdoor conditions at a particular time	Science, geography	Describe today’s weather.
49	season	a recurring part of the year with typical patterns	Science, world knowledge	Which season is usually cold in this place?
50	change	become different or make something different	Science, math, writing	Describe one change you observed.
51	include	make something part of a whole	Instructions, writing, math	Include a title and two examples.
52	choose	select between options	All subjects	Choose the best answer.
53	complete	finish all required parts	All subjects	Complete the table before checking.
54	continue	keep going	All subjects	Continue the pattern for three more numbers.
55	arrange	put things in a useful order or pattern	Math, writing, science	Arrange the events from first to last.
56	label	add names to parts	Science, math, diagrams	Label the diagram clearly.
57	match	pair things that belong together	Language, math, science	Match each word to its meaning.
58	circle	draw a circle around a response	Instructions	Circle the correct answer.
59	underline	draw a line under something	Instructions, reading	Underline the clue that supports your answer.
60	check	examine for accuracy or completeness	All subjects	Check your answer using another method.
61	similar	alike in important ways but not exactly the same	Comparison across subjects	The two shapes are similar in size.
62	different	not the same	Comparison across subjects	Name one way the animals are different.
63	same	matching in the feature being discussed	All subjects	Both groups have the same total.
64	part	one piece or section of a whole	Math, science, reading	Which part of the plant absorbs water?
65	whole	all of something together	Math, systems	How many parts make the whole?
66	group	a set of things considered together	Math, science, classroom learning	Put the objects into three groups.
67	category	a class or group based on shared features	Science, vocabulary, data	Which category does the word belong to?
68	order	the arrangement of things in sequence or position	Math, writing, process	Put the steps in the correct order.
69	position	where something is located in relation to other things	Math, maps, diagrams	Describe the position of the red square.
70	relationship	a connection between two things or ideas	Reading, math, science	Explain the relationship between cause and effect.
71	question	something asked to get information or test understanding	All subjects	Read the question carefully.
72	answer	a response to a question or problem	All subjects	Explain how you found the answer.
73	discuss	talk about an idea with others	English, science, projects	Discuss your prediction with a partner.
74	present	show or explain work to an audience	All subjects	Present your group’s findings.
75	report	give information about what happened or was found	Science, English	Report the result in one sentence.
76	reason	a cause or explanation for a choice or answer	All subjects	Give one reason for your choice.
77	idea	a thought, plan or concept	Writing, design, discussion	Share one idea with the group.
78	information	facts or details learned or communicated	All subjects	Find two pieces of information in the text.
79	opinion	a view or belief that can differ between people	English, discussion	State your opinion and give a reason.
80	fact	a statement that can be checked against evidence	English, science, world knowledge	Which sentence states a fact?
81	before	earlier in time or order	All subjects	What happened before the plant was watered?
82	after	later in time or order	All subjects	What happened after the ice melted?
83	first	at the beginning of an order	All subjects	What should you do first?
84	next	following in order	All subjects	What happens next?
85	last	at the end of an order	All subjects	Which event happened last?
86	more	a greater amount or number	Math, comparison	Which group has more counters?
87	fewer	a smaller number of countable things	Math	Which basket has fewer apples?
88	enough	as much or as many as needed	Math, science, instructions	Do we have enough water for both cups?
89	each	every one considered separately	Math, instructions	Give each group three cards.
90	all	every member of a group	Math, instructions	Check that all answers are complete.
91	cooperate	work together towards a shared goal	Projects, classroom learning	Cooperate with your partner during the task.
92	responsibility	a duty or task someone is expected to handle	Classroom, social learning	Returning the materials is your responsibility.
93	rule	an instruction that guides what should or should not happen	All subjects, behaviour	Follow the safety rule.
94	choice	an act of selecting between possibilities	Problem solving, writing, social learning	Explain why the character made that choice.
95	leader	a person who guides a group	Projects, social learning	The group leader checked each task.
96	community	a group connected by place, purpose or shared life	World knowledge, social learning	How did the community solve the problem?
97	respect	treating people, ideas or things with suitable consideration	Discussion, group work	Show respect by listening to each speaker.
98	support	help that makes success or understanding easier	All subjects	Use one detail to support your answer.
99	improve	make or become better	Writing, design, learning	How could you improve the model?
100	practice	repeat an action in order to improve	All subjects	Practice the skill again tomorrow.

Ten Thinking Words That Travel Everywhere

The first ten words—compare, contrast, classify, identify, describe, explain, predict, estimate, observe and investigate—tell a learner what mental operation to perform. Misunderstanding the command can produce a wrong answer even when the child knows the content.

For example, “identify the material” may require only naming it. “Describe the material” needs relevant properties. “Compare the materials” requires a relationship. “Explain why the material is suitable” requires a reason. The topic stays the same while the academic verb changes the task.

Ten Evidence and Process Words

Evidence, result, cause, effect, process, method, record, data, detail and example help children connect claims to information. These words are early tools for disciplined thinking.

A learner who can separate a result from a cause, or an example from a definition, is better prepared for later science and comprehension work. At Primary 2, the explanations stay simple, but the relationships are real.

Ten Reading and Writing Words

Author, narrator, character, setting, sequence, paragraph, revise, edit, summarize and context let children talk about how texts work. These terms support both comprehension and composition.

They also prevent vague classroom language. “Fix your writing” becomes “revise the ending, then edit the spelling.” “Tell me about the story” becomes “summarize the main events in sequence.”

Ten Mathematics Words

Addition, subtraction, total, sum, difference, equal, pattern, shape, measure and diagram are foundational mathematical vocabulary. Several have everyday meanings too, so context matters.

Difference is especially important. In everyday comparison it names how things are not the same; in mathematics it can name the result of subtraction. Children need to recognise which sense the question requires.

Ten Science Words

Habitat, environment, matter, material, energy, cycle, temperature, weather, season and change package early scientific concepts. The words should be tied to observations, models and real examples rather than copied definitions alone.

A habitat is more than “where an animal lives”; it is the natural place that provides suitable conditions. Temperature is more precise than simply hot or cold because it can be measured. Academic vocabulary increases conceptual precision.

Ten Instruction Words

Include, choose, complete, continue, arrange, label, match, circle, underline and check appear across worksheets and classroom tasks. They may look simple, but weak instruction vocabulary can cause avoidable mistakes.

If a child knows the answer but circles when asked to underline, or labels when asked to explain, the problem is not subject knowledge. It is task-language control.

Ten Relationship Words

The next group—similar, different, same, part, whole, group, category, order, position and relationship—helps children describe how ideas or objects connect. These words are useful in every subject because learning often involves seeing structure rather than memorising isolated facts.

A child can compare two shapes and say how they are similar and different. In science, an animal is part of a habitat system. In reading, events have an order. In mathematics, position matters on a number line or diagram. Relationship vocabulary gives children language for structure.

Ten Communication Words

Question, answer, discuss, present, report, reason, idea, information, opinion and fact support classroom communication. They help children distinguish between something that can be checked, something believed, and something that must be explained.

A useful early distinction is fact versus opinion. A fact can be checked against evidence; an opinion is a view that people may reasonably differ about. At Primary 2, keep examples concrete and avoid turning the lesson into a philosophical debate.

Ten Time and Quantity Words

Before, after, first, next, last, more, fewer, enough, each and all appear everywhere. They control sequence, quantity and instructions. A child who misses each may solve a mathematics problem incorrectly even when the arithmetic is easy.

These words are often called simple because they are short, but their instructional value is enormous. “Give each group three cards” is different from “give all groups three cards” if the child misreads the relationship.

Ten Social and Learning Words

Cooperate, responsibility, rule, choice, leader, community, respect, support, improve and practice help children describe classroom learning and social participation. They also support reflection: What was your responsibility? How did you support your answer? How could you improve your work?

The same vocabulary can describe behaviour and academic thinking. Support may mean help a person, but in reading it can mean provide evidence for an answer. Context selects the sense.

Why Cross-Curricular Words Matter More Than Rare Words

A rare word may appear once in a story and never return for months. A high-utility academic word such as compare, reason, result or record may appear in many lessons. That makes it a better early investment.

The aim is not to avoid rich literature or subject vocabulary. It is to make sure children own the words that let them access instruction across the whole school day.

The Task-Word Problem

A child can know the science concept and still answer poorly because the task word is misunderstood. Imagine a picture of a plant. “Identify the roots” needs naming. “Describe the roots” needs features. “Compare the roots and stem” needs similarities and differences. “Explain why roots are important” needs a reason.

Teaching academic verbs therefore protects content knowledge. The question form no longer hides the topic.

Alicia: Knows the Topic, Misreads the Command

Alicia knows that wood and metal are materials. When the question says, “Compare wood and metal,” she writes two separate descriptions but never states a similarity or difference. Her science knowledge is fine; the task-language link is weak.

Her repair is a command-verb frame: compare = connect two things explicitly. She revises: “Both wood and metal can be used to make objects, but metal is usually harder than the piece of soft wood we tested.”

Tricia: Gives Answers Without Reasons

Tricia often identifies correctly but stops too soon when a question asks explain. If asked why a plant near a window grew taller, she writes “because of the window.” Her teacher asks for the missing relationship: what about the window mattered?

Tricia learns an explanation frame: answer + because + relationship. “The plant grew taller because it received more light near the window.”

Kai Kai: Confuses Evidence With Opinion

Kai Kai says, “The character is kind because I like him.” The statement gives an opinion about the character, not evidence from the text. He learns to separate the two: opinion = my view; evidence = detail from the passage.

He revises: “The character is kind because he shares his lunch with the new pupil.” Now the claim is supported.

Academic Word Pair 1 — Identify vs Describe

Identify asks for recognition or naming. Describe asks for relevant features. “Identify the shape” → triangle. “Describe the shape” → three sides, three corners, perhaps size or orientation if relevant.

A child who describes when asked to identify may write too much. A child who identifies when asked to describe may write too little.

Academic Word Pair 2 — Describe vs Explain

Describe tells what something is like or what happened. Explain tells how or why. “The ice became water” describes the change. “The ice became water because it gained heat” begins an explanation.

Children often confuse the two because both use full sentences. The difference is relationship: explanation connects event to reason or mechanism.

Academic Word Pair 3 — Predict vs Estimate

Predict concerns what may happen. Estimate concerns approximate quantity, size, time or value. “I predict the plant will grow taller.” “I estimate it is about twelve centimetres high.” Both involve uncertainty, but about different things.

This distinction is useful across science and mathematics.

Academic Word Pair 4 — Observe vs Record

Observe means notice carefully. Record means preserve what was noticed by writing, drawing, measuring or storing it. A learner may observe bubbles and then record “small bubbles formed after one minute.”

Observation happens in attention; recording creates evidence that can be checked later.

Academic Word Pair 5 — Result vs Evidence

A result is an outcome. Evidence is information used to support a claim or answer. The result “the plant near the window grew 4 cm” can become evidence for an explanation about light if the investigation was fair enough.

This is an early but important distinction: not every piece of information plays the same role.

Academic Word Pair 6 — Fact vs Opinion

A fact is checkable against evidence. An opinion is a view or judgement. “The bridge is 20 cm long” is checkable. “The bridge is beautiful” is an opinion unless beauty is defined by a specific agreed criterion.

Children should not be told that opinions are bad. The lesson is that facts and opinions need different kinds of support.

Academic Word Pair 7 — Example vs Evidence

An example illustrates a category or idea. Evidence supports a claim. One item can do both. “A whale is an example of a mammal” illustrates the category. “The character returned the wallet” can be evidence for the claim that the character is honest.

Context tells the word’s function.

Academic Word Pair 8 — Part vs Whole

Part names one component; whole names the complete system or object. In mathematics, parts combine to make a whole. In science, roots are one part of a plant. In reading, one paragraph is part of a larger text.

This pair is foundational for systems thinking.

Academic Word Pair 9 — Same vs Equal

Same is broad and can refer to matching in a feature. Equal is more precise for value or amount. Two groups can have equal numbers of counters but not the same colours. Two shapes can be the same type but unequal in size.

The distinction protects mathematical language.

Academic Word Pair 10 — More vs Fewer

More indicates a greater amount or number. Fewer is used for a smaller number of countable items. For young learners, concrete counters make the relationship visible. Later, the same words appear in word problems and data interpretation.

Instruction vocabulary should be tied to actual comparison, not memorised definitions.

Reading Transfer: One Word Across Three Subjects

Compare

In English: compare two characters. In mathematics: compare 37 and 42. In science: compare wood and plastic. The relationship stays: examine together to notice similarities and/or differences. The content changes, but the thinking operation travels.

Record

In English: record a new word in a vocabulary notebook. In math: record survey totals in a table. In science: record temperature after each trial. The core meaning is preserve information for later use.

Result

In mathematics: result of a calculation. In science: outcome of a test. In writing: result of a character’s action. The word maintains an outcome meaning across domains.

Pattern

In math: number or shape rule. In reading: repeated language or story event. In science: repeated observation. A pattern is a meaningful regularity, not just decoration.

Cross-Subject Sentence Frames

Compare: Both ___ and ___, but ___.
Explain: ___ happened because ___.
Evidence: I think ___ because the text/data shows ___.
Predict: I predict ___ because ___.
Result: The result was ___ after ___.
Describe: The ___ is ___, ___ and ___.
Sequence: First ___, next ___, then ___, finally ___.
Opinion: I think ___ because ___.
Fact: The information shows ___.
Improve: I could improve ___ by ___.

Frames reduce language load while children learn the relationship. They should fade as independence grows.

30 Command-Word Practice Questions

A question says identify. What kind of answer is usually needed?
A question says describe. What should you add beyond a name?
A question says explain. What relationship is usually needed?
A question says compare. Why is writing two separate descriptions not enough?
A question says classify. What must you decide?
A question says predict. What should support the answer?
A question says estimate. Is an exact measurement required?
A question says observe. What kind of attention is needed?
A question says record. What must happen to the information?
A question says summarize. Should every detail be included?
A question says label. What kind of response belongs on a diagram?
A question says arrange. What does the learner control?
A question says complete. What must be finished?
A question says check. What is the purpose?
A question says include. What mistake happens if the item is left out?
A question says discuss. Is one-word response usually enough?
A question says present. Who is the audience?
A question says support your answer. What should you add?
A question says give a reason. What should follow the answer?
A question says give an example. Should you repeat the definition?
A question asks for the result. Is it asking for the cause?
A question asks for the cause. Is it asking what happened afterwards?
A question asks for the effect. What direction of relationship is needed?
A question asks for the sequence. What must be ordered?
A question asks for a detail. Should the response be broad or specific?
A question asks for data. What kind of information might count?
A question asks for the method. Is it asking what you did or what happened?
A question asks for the process. Should one isolated step be enough?
A question asks for a fact. What should make it checkable?
A question asks for an opinion. Can different people reasonably answer differently?

English Reading Lab — One Passage, Ten Academic Words

Read this short passage: “Alicia found a small bird beneath a tree after a storm. She observed that one wing hung lower than the other. She did not touch the bird. Instead, she told an adult and explained what she had seen. The adult identified the bird as a young dove and contacted a wildlife helper. Later, Alicia summarized the event for her class.”

Academic vocabulary turns this small story into a reading lesson. Observe names purposeful noticing. Explain requires the relationship between what was seen and why help was requested. Identify names the bird. Summarize compresses the event. A detail such as the lower wing becomes evidence that something may be wrong.

Identify the setting.
Name the character who finds the bird.
Which detail becomes evidence that the bird may be hurt?
What did Alicia observe?
How is observe different from simply see?
What did the adult identify?
Why is Alicia’s explanation useful?
Summarize the passage in two sentences.
State one cause and one effect.
What information would you leave out of a one-sentence summary?

English Writing Lab — Academic Vocabulary for Revision

A Primary 2 writer can use academic vocabulary to think about the writing process. Draft: “We went to the park. It rained. We went home.” The sequence is clear but thin.

First, describe one useful detail: dark clouds gathered. Next, explain why the family went home: the rain became heavy. Then revise the paragraph by adding that relationship. Finally, edit spelling and punctuation.

Revised: “Dark clouds gathered while we were at the park. When heavy rain began, we packed our things and went home.” The academic words did not appear inside the final paragraph; they guided the writer’s actions.

Mathematics Lab — Vocabulary Controls the Operation

Consider the question: “There are 18 red counters and 12 blue counters. What is the total number of counters?” The word total signals combining. A child who does not understand total may know addition but not know which operation to choose.

Now change the question: “What is the difference between the number of red and blue counters?” The same numbers now require comparison/subtraction. The vocabulary changes the mathematical task.

Which word signals combining quantities?
Which word signals comparing how far apart the quantities are?
What is the sum of 18 and 12?
What is the difference between 18 and 12?
Are the two groups equal? Explain.
Which group has more?
Which group has fewer?
If each group receives 3 more counters, what changes and what stays the same?
Create a simple diagram showing the two groups.
Write one sentence comparing the groups.

Mathematics Lab — Same, Equal and Similar

Three squares can be the same type of shape while having different sizes. Two groups can contain equal numbers but different objects. Two patterns can be similar without being exactly the same. These words matter because mathematics depends on precise relationships.

Use physical counters or shapes. Ask: same in what way? Equal in what value? Similar in which feature? The question “in what way?” prevents vague agreement.

Science Lab — Observation, Measurement and Evidence

Alicia places one ice cube in sunlight and another in shade. Before starting, she predicts that the ice in sunlight will melt faster. She observes both cubes every two minutes, records the time, and compares the results.

The words mark different scientific actions. Prediction happens before the result. Observation gathers information. Recording preserves it. Comparison relates two conditions. The result is what happened. Evidence is the information used to support an explanation.

What is the prediction?
What is observed?
What is recorded?
What data could be collected?
What result would support Alicia’s prediction?
What result would not support it?
Why should the same size ice cubes be used?
Which word describes studying the question carefully?
How is evidence different from prediction?
Write a one-sentence explanation using because.

Science Lab — Material, Matter and Property

At this age, matter is a broad scientific idea while material is more practical: what an object is made from. A plastic spoon, metal spoon and wooden spoon are all matter, and each is made from a different material.

Ask children to classify objects by material, describe properties and explain a choice. “Metal is a suitable material for the spoon because it is strong” uses classify, describe, material, explain and reason in one lesson.

Science Lab — Habitat and Environment

A pond can be a frog’s habitat. The environment includes surrounding conditions such as water, temperature, plants, predators and human activity. The words overlap but are not identical.

Use a diagram. Label parts of the habitat, identify what the frog needs, and explain one relationship. Academic vocabulary becomes the language of the science model.

Instruction Lab — What Does the Worksheet Actually Ask?

Instruction: Circle the animal that lives in water. Language job: Circle controls how the answer is marked; identify controls the thinking.
Instruction: Underline the detail that shows the character was afraid. Language job: Underline controls response format; detail/evidence control selection.
Instruction: Match each shape to its name. Language job: Match asks for paired relationships.
Instruction: Label the plant diagram. Language job: Label asks for names placed beside parts.
Instruction: Arrange the events in sequence. Language job: Arrange controls order; sequence defines the relationship.
Instruction: Complete the table using the data. Language job: Complete means fill all required cells; data is the information source.
Instruction: Choose the best method. Language job: Choose requires selection; method means way of doing something.
Instruction: Include two examples. Language job: Include means both examples must appear in the response.
Instruction: Check the result using another method. Language job: Check requires verification, not simple repetition.
Instruction: Continue the pattern. Language job: Continue means extend the existing rule.

The Academic Vocabulary Diagnostic

When a child performs poorly across several subjects, instruction words can be a hidden bottleneck. Diagnose the language before assuming the content is weak.

Can the child explain common task verbs without a worksheet?
Can the child distinguish identify, describe and explain?
Can the child distinguish predict, observe, record and result?
Can the child distinguish same, similar and equal?
Can the child follow include, each, all, before and after accurately?
Can the child explain a reason using because?
Can the child point to evidence rather than give a personal opinion?
Can the child interpret diagrams and labels?
Can the child summarize rather than retell every detail?
Can the child transfer the same academic word into a different subject?

Diagnostic Task 1 — Command Meaning

Say the command without giving a subject question: “compare.” Ask the learner to explain what action is required. Repeat with identify, describe, explain, classify, predict, estimate and summarize.

If the child can answer only when the subject content is visible, the command meaning may not yet be independent.

Diagnostic Task 2 — Same Word, New Subject

Use compare in English, math and science. If the child understands it in one subject but not another, transfer is weak. Explicitly state the stable core: put two things into relation and notice similarities/differences.

Repeat with record, result, pattern, evidence and reason.

Diagnostic Task 3 — Response Length

Give three prompts on the same topic: identify the animal; describe the animal; explain how one feature helps it. Observe whether the learner changes response depth. If every answer is one word, the distinction between task verbs is not yet controlling performance.

Diagnostic Task 4 — Fact, Opinion and Evidence

Show three statements: “The tower is 30 cm high.” “The tower is beautiful.” “The second support made the tower stand longer.” Ask which is fact, which is opinion and which could be evidence for a design claim.

The goal is functional distinction, not philosophical perfection.

Diagnostic Task 5 — Quantity Language

Use counters to test more, fewer, equal, each, all and enough. These small words often create big mathematical errors. Ask the child to act out the instruction before solving a written problem.

Physical demonstration can reveal whether the issue is vocabulary or arithmetic.

Common Academic Vocabulary Errors

Error 1 — Identify Becomes Explain

The child writes a long paragraph when only a name is required. Repair: identify usually means recognise/name; stop once the requested item is clear.

Error 2 — Explain Becomes Identify

The child gives only the answer. Repair: add how or why; use because as temporary scaffolding.

Error 3 — Prediction Becomes Guessing

A prediction should be linked to clues or prior knowledge when possible. Ask, “What makes you think that?”

Error 4 — Result Becomes Prediction

The result is observed after the task. Prediction comes before. Put both on a timeline.

Error 5 — Data Becomes Opinion

Data is collected information. “I like apples best” is one person’s response; a table of 25 class responses becomes data for a survey.

Error 6 — Similar Becomes Same

Similar allows differences. Use two objects with shared shape but different colours or sizes.

Error 7 — Equal Becomes Identical

Equal concerns value/amount in the relevant comparison. Two equal groups can contain different objects.

Error 8 — Evidence Becomes Any Detail

A detail is evidence only when it supports the claim or answer. Relevance matters.

Error 9 — Summary Becomes Retell

A summary keeps the main points and removes many small details. Use a word or sentence limit during practice.

Error 10 — Check Becomes Look Again

Checking should use a purpose: verify calculation, compare with instructions, test with another method, or inspect for missing parts.

Academic Vocabulary and Reading Questions

Reading questions often hide their answer scope inside task words. “Who is the character?” requests identification. “Describe the character” requests traits or features with relevant evidence. “Explain why the character changed” requests a causal account. “Summarize what happened” requests compression.

Teach children to underline the task verb before answering. The habit is simple but powerful: know the job before doing the job.

Academic Vocabulary and Problem Solving

Problem solving is not only about finding an answer. Children need language for the stages: question, information, method, result, check, reason and improve. Naming the stages makes the process easier to inspect and repair.

Alicia reads a word problem. First she identifies the question. Next she finds the information. She chooses a method, calculates a result and checks it. If the answer is unreasonable, she revises the method. Academic vocabulary makes invisible problem solving visible.

Academic Vocabulary and Diagrams

Diagrams combine language and space. A child may need to identify, label, compare, measure or explain a diagram. The task word tells the learner what to do with the visual information.

For example, “label the diagram” asks for names. “Describe the diagram” asks for visible relationships or features. “Explain what the diagram shows” asks for meaning. The same picture can support several different tasks.

Academic Vocabulary and Oral Discussion

Oral discussion is an ideal place to rehearse academic words before writing. Use prompts such as: “What is your reason?” “Which detail is evidence?” “Can you compare your idea with Tricia’s?” “What result did your group record?”

Because speaking is faster than writing, pupils can practise the thinking relationship without carrying spelling and handwriting load at the same time.

Academic Vocabulary and Group Work

Cooperate, leader, responsibility, support, discuss, present and respect give language to collaborative learning. Rather than saying “work nicely together,” a teacher can specify the action: cooperate by sharing materials, respect each speaker, and complete your responsibility before the group presents.

Specific language makes social expectations more teachable.

Academic Vocabulary and Self-Correction

Words such as check, compare, revise, edit, improve, result and method help children talk about errors without reducing them to “wrong.” A learner can say, “My result is wrong because I used the wrong method,” or “I need to revise the explanation, not edit the spelling.”

This is the beginning of metacognitive vocabulary: language for understanding one’s own learning process.

Academic Vocabulary and Independence

Children become more independent when they can interpret school language without constant adult translation. A pupil who knows what underline the evidence, compare the groups and explain your reason mean can start work more confidently.

Independence therefore depends partly on vocabulary access, not only motivation or behaviour.

A 12-Week Cross-Curricular Academic Vocabulary Plan

Week 1 — Core Task Verbs

Teach identify, describe, explain, compare and classify. Use the same object or picture for all five so children see how the task changes while content stays stable.

Week 2 — Prediction and Observation

Teach predict, observe, investigate, estimate and measure. Use a simple science or classroom activity. Keep prediction separate from result.

Week 3 — Evidence Language

Teach evidence, detail, example, reason, result, cause and effect. Use a short story and a simple experiment so the same relationships appear in two domains.

Week 4 — Reading and Writing Structure

Teach author, narrator, character, setting, sequence, paragraph, summarize, revise, edit and context. Use a short text and a short writing task.

Week 5 — Mathematics Language

Teach addition, subtraction, total, sum, difference, equal, pattern, measure, shape and diagram. Emphasise words with multiple everyday meanings.

Week 6 — Science Language

Teach habitat, environment, matter, material, energy, cycle, temperature, weather, season and change. Connect every term to examples or observations.

Week 7 — Instruction Words

Teach include, choose, complete, continue, arrange, label, match, circle, underline and check. Use real worksheets from several subjects.

Week 8 — Relationship Words

Teach similar, different, same, part, whole, group, category, order, position and relationship. Use objects, diagrams and text structure.

Week 9 — Communication Words

Teach question, answer, discuss, present, report, reason, idea, information, opinion and fact. Practise orally before written responses.

Week 10 — Time and Quantity

Teach before, after, first, next, last, more, fewer, enough, each and all. Use instructions and mathematics word problems.

Week 11 — Social Learning

Teach cooperate, responsibility, rule, choice, leader, community, respect, support, improve and practice. Use group projects and reflection.

Week 12 — Mixed Transfer

Remove category labels. Mix English, math, science and project tasks. The learner identifies the academic word, states the job and completes the task.

Five-Minute Daily Academic Vocabulary Routine

Minute 1: retrieve one task verb from yesterday.
Minute 2: use it in a different subject.
Minute 3: contrast it with a nearby academic word.
Minute 4: answer one tiny task that uses the word.
Minute 5: explain what the word required you to do.

The transfer minute is critical. A word becomes academic infrastructure when it survives a subject change.

Parent Routine: Translate School Language Into Everyday Language

At home, ask the child to translate an instruction: “Compare the two pictures” becomes “look at both and say how they are alike or different.” “Summarize the story” becomes “tell only the main points.” “Estimate” becomes “make a sensible close guess.”

Then reverse the direction. Give the everyday explanation and ask for the school word. This builds flexible access both ways.

Teacher Routine: Keep Command Words Stable Across Subjects

If compare means one thing in English and seems to mean something else in science, children may store subject-specific fragments instead of a transferable operation. Teachers can help by stating the stable core: compare always places two or more things in relation, though the features compared change.

The same applies to record, result, pattern, evidence and reason.

Academic Vocabulary Notebook

Use five columns: word, everyday meaning, school job, subject examples, my sentence. Example: compare | look at together | find similarities/differences | English characters, math numbers, science materials | “I compared the two leaves.”

This format deliberately includes several subjects so the notebook does not trap the word inside one lesson.

Cross-Curricular Word Map: Compare

English: compare two characters’ choices.
Math: compare two numbers or quantities.
Science: compare materials or observations.
Art: compare colours, shapes or designs.
Social learning: compare two possible solutions.
Core operation: put things together mentally and notice relationships.

Cross-Curricular Word Map: Evidence

Reading: a detail that supports an answer.
Science: observations or measurements that support an explanation.
Math: working or representation that supports a solution.
Discussion: information used to support a claim.
Core operation: information connected to a conclusion.

Cross-Curricular Word Map: Pattern

Math: a sequence following a rule.
Reading: repeated words, events or structures.
Science: repeated observations across trials or time.
Art: repeated visual design.
Core idea: regularity that can be described.

Cross-Curricular Word Map: Record

Science: write a measurement.
Math: enter data in a table.
English: note a new word or reading response.
Project work: document what was completed.
Core idea: preserve information so it can be used later.

Cross-Curricular Word Map: Support

Social: help another person.
Reading: use text evidence to support an answer.
Writing: add reasons or examples to support an idea.
Design: a structure can support weight.
Core idea: help something stand, succeed or become stronger.

40 Cross-Curricular Practice Questions

What does compare ask you to do?
What does identify ask you to do?
What does explain require beyond an answer?
How is predict different from result?
How is observe different from record?
What is evidence in a reading question?
What is evidence in a science investigation?
What is the difference between a detail and an example?
What does method mean in a math problem?
What does process mean in a science explanation?
What is the difference between author and narrator?
What does sequence mean in a story?
What does sequence mean in instructions?
What is the difference between revise and edit?
What does summarize require you to leave out?
What is the difference between sum and total?
What does difference mean in subtraction?
How can two groups be equal but not the same?
What is a pattern?
Why is a diagram different from a decorative picture?
What is a habitat?
What is a material?
How is temperature more precise than saying hot or cold?
What does cycle tell you about stages?
What does change ask you to notice?
What does include mean in an instruction?
What does arrange require?
What does check require beyond looking again?
How are same and similar different?
How are part and whole related?
What is a category?
What does position describe?
What is the difference between fact and opinion?
What is the difference between reason and example?
What does each mean in “give each group two cards”?
What does all mean?
What is the difference between more and fewer?
What does cooperate look like during group work?
How can a learner support an answer?
What does improve mean in a revision task?

Worked Guide to the 40 Practice Questions

Put two or more things into relation and notice similarities/differences.
Recognise and name the requested item.
A how, why, mechanism or meaningful relationship.
Prediction is stated before the outcome; result is what actually happens.
Observe means notice carefully; record means preserve the observation as information.
A relevant detail from the text that supports the answer.
An observation, measurement or result that supports an explanation.
A detail is any specific information; an example is a case used to illustrate an idea.
A way of solving or working.
A connected series of stages or actions.
The author writes the text; the narrator is the voice telling the story.
The order of events.
The order of steps.
Revise improves ideas/structure; edit corrects accuracy and presentation.
Many small details that are not needed for the main point.
Sum is specifically the result of addition; total is the whole amount and may be found in several ways.
The result when one quantity is subtracted from another.
They can contain equal numbers but different objects or colours.
A regular arrangement or relationship that follows a rule.
A diagram is designed to explain parts or relationships.
The natural place where an organism lives and gets what it needs.
A substance from which something is made.
Temperature is measurable and gives a value on a scale.
The stages repeat or return to an earlier state.
A difference between an earlier and later state.
Make the named item part of the response.
Put things into a useful order or pattern.
Verify accuracy, completeness or fit using a purpose or method.
Same suggests matching in the chosen feature; similar allows some differences.
A part is one component; the whole contains all relevant parts together.
A group based on shared features.
Where something is located in relation to something else.
A fact is checkable; an opinion is a view or judgement.
A reason explains why; an example illustrates.
Every group separately receives two cards.
Every member/item in the relevant group.
More is greater amount/number; fewer is smaller number of countable things.
Sharing roles, materials, information and working towards the same goal.
Add evidence, reasons, examples or relevant working.
Make the work better by changing something useful.

Reading Task Set 1 — Character, Evidence and Reason

Passage: “Tricia saw a new pupil standing alone near the classroom door. She walked over, introduced herself and invited the pupil to sit with her group. At recess, Tricia showed her where the library was.”

Identify the main character.
Describe one action Tricia takes.
Give one detail that can be used as evidence that Tricia is welcoming.
Explain why inviting the pupil supports that idea.
Summarize the passage in one sentence.
What is your opinion of Tricia’s choice? Give a reason.

The task set deliberately uses several academic words on one simple passage. The content is easy enough that the language job becomes visible.

Reading Task Set 2 — Sequence, Cause and Effect

Passage: “Dark clouds gathered during PE. A strong wind began, so the teacher asked everyone to return indoors. Five minutes later, heavy rain covered the field.”

Put the events in sequence.
What happened first?
What happened next?
What happened last?
What was one cause of moving indoors?
What was one effect of the weather change?
Predict what might happen to outdoor activities later and give a reason.

Reading Task Set 3 — Fact, Opinion and Context

Passage: “The town library opened in 1998. It has three floors and a children’s reading room. Alicia thinks the reading room is the most comfortable place in the building.”

Identify one fact.
Identify one opinion.
What information can be checked?
What detail shows Alicia’s personal view?
Use the context to explain what “the building” refers to.

Mathematics Task Set 1 — Quantity and Comparison

There are 24 red beads and 17 blue beads.

Which group has more?
Which group has fewer?
Find the total.
Find the difference.
Are the groups equal?
Compare the groups in one sentence.
If each group receives 3 more beads, what are the new amounts?

Mathematics Task Set 2 — Pattern, Order and Position

Consider the pattern 5, 10, 15, 20, __, __.

Identify the rule.
Continue the pattern.
What number comes after 20?
What number comes before 15?
What is the position of 15 in the sequence?
Explain how you know the next number.
Create a similar pattern with a different starting number.

Mathematics Task Set 3 — Shape and Diagram Language

Draw a square and a rectangle of different sizes.

Identify each shape.
Describe one feature of each.
Compare the shapes.
State one way they are similar.
State one way they are different.
Are they the same shape type? Explain carefully.
Label the diagram with side and corner if those terms are being taught.

Science Task Set 1 — Habitat and Environment

A frog lives near a pond with water plants, insects, shade and muddy banks.

Identify the habitat.
Describe two parts of the environment.
Give one example of something the frog may need.
Explain one relationship between the frog and its habitat.
What change might happen if the pond dries?
Predict one effect on the frog and give a reason.

Science Task Set 2 — Materials Investigation

A class tests paper, plastic and cloth to see which absorbs the most water.

What is the question being investigated?
What materials are being compared?
What could the pupils observe?
What could they measure?
How should they record the data?
What is the result?
Which result could become evidence for the claim “cloth absorbs more water”?
What method should stay the same for each material?

Science Task Set 3 — Temperature and Change

Two cups of water begin at different temperatures. One is placed near a sunny window and one in shade.

What should pupils measure?
What unit or tool might be used, if available?
What can they record?
What change might occur over time?
What could they predict before measuring again?
How would they compare the two cups?
What evidence would support the explanation?

Writing Task Set — From Idea to Paragraph

Prompt: Write about a time a character solves a small problem.

State the main idea.
Put three events in sequence.
Write one paragraph.
Include one useful detail.
Give the character a reason for one choice.
Revise the paragraph so cause and effect are clear.
Edit spelling and punctuation.
Check that all prompt requirements are complete.

Oral Task Set — Academic Speaking

Use a simple picture of a playground, classroom or market.

Describe what you see.
Identify one important object.
Compare two people or objects.
Give one opinion about what is happening.
Give one reason.
Use one detail as support.
Predict what may happen next.
Listen to a partner and discuss one difference in your predictions.

Project Task — Design a Mini Classroom Garden

This project lets many academic words work together. Pupils choose a small plant, plan its location, consider light and water, make a labelled diagram, record observations and present what they learn.

Choose the plant.
Identify what the plant needs.
Describe the environment.
Create a labelled diagram.
Predict what will happen in one week.
Measure one feature if appropriate.
Record data.
Compare observations across days.
Report the result.
Present one improvement for the next week.

The project shows why cross-curricular vocabulary matters: the same language links science, mathematics, English and collaborative learning.

Academic Vocabulary Error-Repair Profiles

Profile 1 — Too Little Answer

The child identifies when asked to explain. Repair with answer + because + relationship. Do not simply demand “more detail”; name the missing academic operation.

Profile 2 — Too Much Answer

The child writes a paragraph for identify or label. Repair by matching answer length to task verb. Precision includes knowing when to stop.

Profile 3 — Right Idea, Wrong Format

The learner knows the answer but circles when told to underline, or writes beside a diagram instead of labelling parts. Repair instruction vocabulary explicitly.

Profile 4 — Knows Word in One Subject Only

Compare works in English but not math. Repair through cross-subject examples using the same sentence frame.

Profile 5 — Evidence Is Irrelevant

The learner gives a detail that does not support the claim. Repair by asking, “How does this detail prove your answer?”

Profile 6 — Fact and Opinion Collapse

The learner treats personal preference as fact or thinks opinions need no reason. Repair with checkability and evidence questions.

Profile 7 — Sequence Words Are Fragile

Before/after/first/last cause errors. Use physical event cards and move them into position before written tasks.

Profile 8 — Quantity Words Are Fragile

Each/all/more/fewer cause math errors. Act out with counters and groups.

Profile 9 — Academic Words Are Recognised but Not Retrieved

The child understands when shown but cannot use the word in speech. Use short oral retrieval prompts and delayed recall.

Profile 10 — Academic Language Makes the Child Freeze

Translate once into everyday language, complete the task, then return to the academic wording. The aim is to build a bridge, not replace school language permanently.

Academic Vocabulary Retrieval Prompts

Name the word meaning “put into groups using a rule.”
Name the word meaning “tell how or why.”
Name the word meaning “make a sensible close guess.”
Name the word meaning “notice carefully for information.”
Name the word meaning “information that supports an answer.”
Name the word meaning “what happened at the end of a test.”
Name the word meaning “something that made another event happen.”
Name the word meaning “what happened because of a cause.”
Name the word meaning “a way of doing something.”
Name the word meaning “information collected for study.”
Name the word meaning “the order in which events happen.”
Name the word meaning “state only the main points.”
Name the word meaning “correct writing for accuracy.”
Name the word meaning “improve ideas or structure in writing.”
Name the word meaning “the result of addition.”
Name the word meaning “having the same value.”
Name the word meaning “a repeating rule or arrangement.”
Name the word meaning “the natural place where an organism lives.”
Name the word meaning “what an object is made from.”
Name the word meaning “a series of stages that repeats.”
Name the instruction meaning “put names beside parts.”
Name the instruction meaning “draw a line under.”
Name the instruction meaning “finish all required parts.”
Name the relationship meaning “alike but not identical.”
Name the relationship meaning “one component of a whole.”
Name the communication word meaning “a view people may differ about.”
Name the communication word meaning “a checkable statement.”
Name the quantity word meaning “a smaller number of countable things.”
Name the social-learning word meaning “work together towards one goal.”
Name the learning word meaning “make better.”

Possible answers: classify, explain, estimate, observe, evidence, result, cause, effect, method, data, sequence, summarize, edit, revise, sum, equal, pattern, habitat, material, cycle, label, underline, complete, similar, part, opinion, fact, fewer, cooperate, improve.

Academic Vocabulary and Question Design

Well-designed questions make the academic operation visible. A teacher can deliberately vary the verb while keeping content stable: identify the material; describe the material; compare two materials; explain which is better for a handle. This sequence helps pupils feel the change in cognitive demand.

Parents and tutors can do the same at home without creating extra worksheets. One object, several task verbs.

Academic Vocabulary and Error Feedback

Feedback is more useful when it names the language problem: “You identified the answer, but the question asked you to explain.” “You gave a detail, but it does not support the claim.” “You described both objects but did not compare them.”

This tells the learner what to change next time.

Academic Vocabulary Depth: Knowing More Than a Definition

A child may correctly define compare but still fail to compare in writing. Deep academic vocabulary includes meaning, task behaviour, sentence patterns and transfer. The learner should know what the word asks, what a successful answer looks like, and where else the operation can be used.

That is why this page repeatedly moves words across subjects. Cross-curricular transfer is part of word knowledge, not an optional extra.

Multiple Meanings in Academic Vocabulary

Several school words have everyday senses. Record can be a verb meaning write/store information or a noun meaning stored information. Result can describe an experimental outcome or a calculation. Difference can mean a general contrast or a subtraction result. Support can mean help a person, hold up an object, or provide evidence for a claim.

Teach children to ask, “What does this word mean in this subject and sentence?” The known word may still need a new sense.

Word Sense Lab — Difference

Everyday: “One difference between the birds is beak colour.” Mathematics: “The difference between 14 and 9 is 5.” The core idea of separation remains, but mathematics gives the word a technical operation/result sense.

A learner who knows only the everyday sense may understand the word but not the task. Subject context narrows meaning.

Word Sense Lab — Pattern

Math: 2, 4, 6, 8 has a numerical pattern. Art: red-blue-red-blue has a visual pattern. Reading: a repeated event may form a story pattern. Science: repeated observations across days may reveal a pattern.

The core is regularity or recurrence that can be described.

Word Sense Lab — Support

Social: “Tricia supported her friend.” Structural: “The beam supports the roof.” Academic: “Use evidence to support your answer.” These senses are related by the broad idea of helping something stand, succeed or become stronger.

This is a powerful example of how academic vocabulary grows from ordinary language without being identical to it.

Word Sense Lab — Record

Verb: “Record the temperature.” Noun: “Check the reading record.” In some contexts, record can also mean a best-ever performance. Primary 2 pupils only need the relevant school senses, but they should know one word can change role.

Grammar and context help select the meaning.

Word Sense Lab — Present

In this article present means show or explain work to an audience. The same spelling can also mean current time or a gift, with different pronunciation in some uses. Academic language therefore benefits from contextual reading, not isolated lists.

A sentence such as “Present your findings to the class” clearly selects the verb sense.

Sentence Frames by Academic Operation

Identify

“The ___ is ___.” Keep the response short unless more is requested.

Describe

“The ___ has/is ___, ___ and ___.” Choose relevant details, not every visible feature.

Compare

“Both ___ and ___, but ___.” A comparison should connect the items explicitly.

Explain

“___ happens because ___.” Or “___ is suitable because ___.”

Predict

“I predict ___ because ___.” The reason should use clues or knowledge.

Evidence

“I think ___ because the text/data shows ___.”

Summarize

“The main point is ___.” Or “First ___; then ___; finally ___,” using only major events.

Opinion

“I think ___ because ___.” Opinions can be supported even though they are not facts.

Result

“The result was ___ after ___.”

Improve

“I could improve ___ by ___.”

Frames are temporary. Once the relationship is stable, allow natural variation.

Academic Word Transfer Passage 1 — The Paper Bridge

Kai Kai’s group built a paper bridge between two books. Before testing it, they predicted that folded paper would hold more weight than flat paper. They measured the gap, recorded the number of counters each bridge held and compared the results. The folded bridge supported twelve counters; the flat bridge supported five.

The group used the data as evidence for a simple conclusion about their models. They did not claim that every folded paper bridge would always be stronger. Their explanation stayed close to the result they had actually observed.

What was the prediction?
What was measured?
What data was recorded?
What was the result?
Which evidence supports the group’s conclusion?
Why is compare an important action?
What claim would be too broad?
How could the group improve the investigation?

Academic Word Transfer Passage 2 — The Two Characters

In a story, Alicia reads about Mina, who returns a lost wallet, and Tom, who keeps a toy he finds. The question asks her to compare the characters’ choices. Alicia first writes, “Mina returned the wallet. Tom kept the toy.” Her teacher says she has described each action but has not yet compared them.

Alicia revises: “Both characters find something that belongs to someone else, but Mina returns the wallet while Tom keeps the toy.” The comparison makes the relationship explicit.

What did Alicia do correctly in the first answer?
What academic operation was missing?
Which word creates the contrast in the revised answer?
How could one detail become evidence about honesty?
Write one sentence comparing the characters.

Academic Word Transfer Passage 3 — Class Survey

The class asks each pupil to choose a favourite fruit. They record every answer in a table. Twelve pupils choose apples, eight choose bananas and five choose oranges. The responses become data.

The pupils calculate the total, identify which category has more responses and which has fewer, then present the result in a simple chart.

What is the data?
What is the total number of responses?
Which fruit has more responses?
Which has fewer?
What does category mean here?
How is record used as a verb?
What result could be reported?
Which statement would be an opinion rather than a fact?

Academic Word Transfer Passage 4 — The Weather Record

For five days, Tricia records the morning temperature and describes the weather. She notices a pattern: the two cloudiest mornings are also cooler than the sunniest mornings. She does not immediately say clouds caused the lower temperatures because many factors can affect weather.

Instead, she reports the pattern she observed. This is a valuable academic habit: describe the evidence before making a stronger causal claim.

What is measured?
What is described?
What pattern is observed?
What claim would be stronger than the evidence allows?
What is the difference between a pattern and a cause?
How could more data improve the investigation?

Academic Word Transfer Passage 5 — Revising a Paragraph

Kai Kai writes: “The puppy was lost. We looked. We found it.” The sequence is present, but the paragraph lacks useful detail. During revision, he adds where they searched and how they found the puppy. During editing, he fixes punctuation and a spelling error.

The final paragraph is clearer because he performed two different academic operations. Revising changed meaning and detail. Editing corrected language accuracy.

What problem did revision repair?
What problem did editing repair?
Why is adding a new event revision rather than editing?
Why is fixing a capital letter editing?
Summarize the difference in one sentence.

Academic Word Transfer Passage 6 — Community Choice

A small community garden has space for either a bench or two more planting boxes. The project leader asks everyone to discuss the options. Some people think a bench would help older visitors rest; others want more space for vegetables.

The group considers both ideas and makes a choice. Each member has a responsibility during the project, and everyone is expected to show respect while others speak.

What makes the people a community?
What does discuss require?
What is the choice?
What could a responsibility be?
What behaviour shows respect?
How might the leader support the group without making every decision alone?

Academic Vocabulary and Background Knowledge

Some academic words are easy to define but hard to use without topic knowledge. A child may know evidence means supporting information but still fail to choose evidence in a passage about an unfamiliar topic. The vocabulary is not the only variable.

Teach the word and the concept together. If the subject background is weak, provide enough knowledge to make the academic operation meaningful.

Academic Vocabulary and Multilingual Learners

A multilingual learner may understand compare or explain in another language but not retrieve the English term quickly. Connect the known operation to the English label, then practise across subjects. This is more efficient than reteaching the entire thinking skill as if it were new.

Translation can help initially, but the learner also needs English sentence frames and collocations.

Academic Vocabulary and Dyslexia or Reading Difficulty

When decoding is effortful, short academic words can still be missed because attention is consumed by reading. Oral pre-teaching can separate meaning from print load. Say and explain compare, result or evidence before asking the learner to decode a complex instruction.

Then reconnect spoken and written forms so the vocabulary becomes accessible in both channels.

Academic Vocabulary and Attention

Long instructions can hide the key academic word. Teach children to find the action first: circle the command verb, then read the object and conditions. “Compare the two diagrams and give one difference” becomes action = compare; objects = diagrams; output = one difference.

This is a practical reading strategy, not a shortcut around understanding.

Academic Vocabulary and Assessment

A vocabulary test that asks only definitions does not show whether the learner can execute the academic operation. Assessment should include definition, choice, production and transfer.

Define compare.
Choose which answer actually compares.
Write a comparison sentence.
Use compare in a new subject.

Four tasks reveal different depths of knowledge.

A Four-Level Academic Vocabulary Rubric

Level 1 — Recognition: understands the word when shown with options or examples.
Level 2 — Explanation: can state the meaning in everyday language.
Level 3 — Execution: can perform the academic operation in a familiar subject.
Level 4 — Transfer: performs the operation independently in a new subject or task.

A word is truly cross-curricular only when it reaches Level 4.

Academic Vocabulary Error Log

Use four columns: task word, what I did, what the word required, next test. Example: compare | described each object separately | connect them with similarities/differences | compare two new shapes tomorrow.

The next-test column matters. A correction becomes learning when the child can succeed later without the answer visible.

A 20-Word High-Priority Core

If one hundred words feel too large, begin with twenty that unlock many tasks: compare, identify, describe, explain, predict, observe, evidence, result, cause, effect, detail, example, sequence, summarize, equal, pattern, measure, record, reason, check.

These words cover task interpretation, evidence, sequence, quantitative thinking and self-correction. Add subject terms around them.

Parent Implementation: Academic Vocabulary Without Extra Homework

Parents do not need to create a second school day at home. Use existing homework, reading and conversation. When a task says compare, ask the child what compare means before starting. When a science book says result, ask how result differs from prediction. When a math question uses each, act it out with small objects if the instruction is unclear.

The goal is not constant questioning. One academic word discussed well can unlock many later tasks.

Teacher Implementation: Reuse the Same Academic Language

Consistency helps transfer. If the classroom uses compare in English, use the same word explicitly in math and science. Say, “This is the same compare operation we used yesterday, but now the objects are numbers.”

Repeated cross-subject naming helps the child build one general concept rather than three separate subject-specific meanings.

Tutor Implementation: Diagnose Language Before Re-Teaching Content

When a pupil gets a question wrong, ask whether the content was known. If the learner can explain the topic orally but misread classify or summarize, reteaching the whole topic is inefficient. Repair the task language and retry.

This is especially important in small-group teaching, where targeted diagnosis can save significant practice time.

Building an Academic Word Wall That Children Actually Use

A useful wall is organised by function: thinking words, evidence words, reading/writing words, math words, science words, instruction words. Keep the number visible at one time manageable. Add examples from current lessons.

A wall full of one hundred words becomes background. Rotate smaller sets, then retrieve older words without displaying them.

Academic Vocabulary Flashcards That Go Beyond Definitions

Front: compare. Back: “look at two or more things together; say similarities/differences; frame: Both ___ and ___, but ___; subjects: English/math/science.” The card stores operation and transfer, not just a dictionary line.

For evidence, include “detail/data that supports an answer” plus one reading example and one science example.

Mixed Review Set 1 — Same Word, New Subject

Use compare with two characters.
Use compare with two numbers.
Use compare with two materials.
Use record in science.
Use record in a reading log.
Use pattern in mathematics.
Use pattern in a story.
Use support as help for a person.
Use support as evidence for an answer.
Use result for a calculation.
Use result for an investigation.
Use reason in a personal choice.
Use reason in an explanation.
Use detail in a story.
Use detail in an observation.

Mixed Review Set 2 — Which Task Word?

You need to name the animal in the picture. Which word: identify, explain or compare?
You need to tell what the animal looks like. Which word: describe, classify or estimate?
You need to say why a feature helps the animal. Which word: explain, record or label?
You need to group leaves by shape. Which word: classify, summarize or predict?
You need to state what may happen tomorrow using today’s clues. Which word: predict, result or edit?
You need to make a close guess of how many counters are in a jar. Which word: estimate, measure or record?
You need to find the exact length with a ruler. Which word: measure, estimate or compare?
You need to write down the measurement. Which word: record, observe or identify?
You need to tell only the main points of a passage. Which word: summarize, describe or include?
You need to fix spelling and punctuation. Which word: edit, revise or classify?

Answers: identify, describe, explain, classify, predict, estimate, measure, record, summarize, edit.

Mixed Review Set 3 — Quantity and Sequence

What does each require in “give each pupil two cards”?
What does all require in “check all answers”?
What does fewer compare?
What does more compare?
What does enough depend on?
What does before tell you?
What does after tell you?
What does first tell you?
What does next tell you?
What does last tell you?

These words look small, but they organise action. “Enough” is especially context-dependent: enough for what purpose? Ten blocks may be enough for one model and not enough for five models.

Mixed Review Set 4 — Evidence and Reasoning

Claim: “The character is generous.” What kind of detail could be evidence?
Claim: “The plant near the window grew taller.” What measurement could be evidence?
Opinion: “This is the best story.” What reason could support it?
Fact: “The table is 90 cm long.” How could it be checked?
Prediction: “The ice in sunlight will melt faster.” What clue or knowledge supports it?
Result: “The ice in sunlight melted first.” How is this different from the prediction?
Cause: “Heavy rain fell for hours.” Give one possible effect.
Effect: “The path flooded.” Give one possible cause.
Example: “A whale.” What category could it illustrate?
Detail: “The character returned the wallet.” What claim could it support?

Mixed Review Set 5 — Writing and Reading

What does author name?
What does narrator name?
What does setting include?
What does character name?
What does paragraph organise?
What does context help explain?
What does revise improve?
What does edit correct?
What does sequence organise?
What does summarize remove?

Unseen Task 1 — English

Passage: “Tom forgot his lunch. Mina shared half of her sandwich with him. Later, Tom helped Mina carry a heavy box to the classroom.”

Identify the two characters.
Describe one action by Mina.
Give evidence that Mina is helpful.
State one effect of Tom forgetting his lunch.
Compare Mina’s and Tom’s helpful actions.
Summarize the passage in one sentence.
Give one opinion about their choices and a reason.

Unseen Task 2 — Mathematics

A shelf has 16 storybooks, 9 science books and 5 poetry books.

Find the total.
Which category has more books?
Which category has fewer books?
Find the difference between storybooks and science books.
Compare science books and poetry books.
If each category receives two new books, what changes?
Create a simple diagram or table to record the data.

Unseen Task 3 — Science

Two identical pieces of paper towel are tested. One absorbs 15 mL of water before dripping; the other absorbs 8 mL.

What is being compared?
What data is recorded?
What is the result?
Which towel absorbed more?
What evidence supports that answer?
What method condition should remain the same?
What could be investigated next?

Unseen Task 4 — Instructions

Instruction: “First, label each container. Next, measure 50 mL of water into all three containers. After that, add one material to each container. Record the result.”

What happens first?
What happens next?
What does each mean?
What does all three mean?
What must be measured?
What must be recorded?
Why does sequence matter?

Unseen Task 5 — Group Project

A group must build a poster about recycling.

Choose one leader responsibility.
Give each member one responsibility.
Explain how the group can cooperate.
What information should be included?
How can the group check facts?
How can they improve the layout?
How should they present the final poster?
What behaviour shows respect during discussion?

Academic Vocabulary Review by Function

Thinking

compare, contrast, classify, identify, describe, explain, predict, estimate, observe, investigate

Evidence and Process

evidence, result, cause, effect, process, method, record, data, detail, example

Reading and Writing

author, narrator, character, setting, sequence, paragraph, revise, edit, summarize, context

Mathematics

addition, subtraction, total, sum, difference, equal, pattern, shape, measure, diagram

Science

habitat, environment, matter, material, energy, cycle, temperature, weather, season, change

Instructions

include, choose, complete, continue, arrange, label, match, circle, underline, check

Relationships

similar, different, same, part, whole, group, category, order, position, relationship

Communication

question, answer, discuss, present, report, reason, idea, information, opinion, fact

Time and Quantity

before, after, first, next, last, more, fewer, enough, each, all

Social Learning

cooperate, responsibility, rule, choice, leader, community, respect, support, improve, practice

Why Category Review Helps

Grouping words by function reduces memory load. Compare and contrast sit together because they perform related thinking operations. Record, data and result form an evidence network. Before, after, first and last form an ordering network.

The categories should eventually become flexible. A word can belong to more than one network depending on use.

Academic Vocabulary Retrieval Without Definitions

Instead of asking “What does evidence mean?”, give a situation: “You say the character is honest. What do you need from the story to support that?” The learner retrieves evidence from function. This is closer to real use.

Do the same with compare, reason, result, method and summarize.

Academic Vocabulary in Real Books

When reading nonfiction, stop occasionally at task-like language: examples, results, reasons, comparisons, diagrams. Ask the child to name the relationship. Do not turn every page into a quiz. One or two high-value discussions are enough.

Wide reading supplies authentic contexts that worksheets cannot fully reproduce.

Academic Vocabulary in Everyday Life

Academic words are not trapped in school. Families compare prices, estimate travel time, follow a sequence in a recipe, record appointments, discuss choices, explain reasons and check results. Showing these uses helps children see the language as practical rather than artificial.

Real-life use strengthens memory because the word attaches to meaningful action.

A Complete Parent–Child Academic Vocabulary Session

Choose one homework page rather than creating new material. Before the child starts, find three task words. Ask the child to translate each into everyday language. If the page says compare, explain and label, the child might say: compare = say how two things are alike/different; explain = say how or why; label = write names beside parts.

Let the child complete the task. Afterwards, revisit only one word that caused trouble. Ask for a fresh example in another subject. This keeps the session short and targeted.

A Complete Teacher Mini-Lesson

Select one cross-curricular word, such as evidence. Begin with an everyday scenario: “How do we know it rained last night?” Puddles, wet grass and a weather record can be evidence. Then move to reading: which detail supports the claim? Then science: which measurement supports the explanation?

The word stays stable while contexts change. End by asking pupils to define evidence in their own words and give one example from a new subject.

A Complete Tutor Diagnostic Cycle

Give one familiar subject question with a known task word.
Give the same content with a different task word.
Observe whether the answer changes appropriately.
Ask the learner to define the task word.
Translate it into everyday language if needed.
Retry the original question.
Move the word to another subject.
Schedule a delayed retrieval check.

This cycle isolates whether the difficulty belongs to content, task language or transfer.

Academic Vocabulary for Independent Homework

Children often ask for help before reading the instruction completely. Teach a three-step independence routine: find the task word, identify the object, identify the output.

Example: “Compare the two animals and give one similarity.” Task word = compare. Objects = two animals. Output = one similarity. The child can now start without adult translation.

This routine should not prevent asking for help when needed. It simply gives the learner a first move.

Academic Vocabulary for Tests

Under time pressure, misunderstanding one short instruction can waste a correct concept. Train the child to pause briefly at the task verb. A one-second check—identify? explain? compare?—can protect the answer scope.

At Primary 2, this should remain low-stress. The goal is accurate interpretation, not exam anxiety.

Academic Vocabulary for Digital Learning

Online platforms use words such as submit, select, drag, drop, match, continue, complete and review. Some sit outside the Top 100 list but belong to the same instruction-language system. When digital wording is unfamiliar, teach it like any other task word: action + object + expected result.

Interface vocabulary should not become an invisible barrier to content learning.

Academic Vocabulary for Projects and Making

Design tasks naturally use plan, choose, material, method, measure, compare, improve, present and result. Instead of treating project work as separate from vocabulary, name the operations while pupils perform them.

This creates embodied meaning. Measure becomes something done with a ruler, not only a definition copied into a book.

Academic Vocabulary and Memory

Words become durable when they are retrieved after gaps. Reusing compare in English, then mathematics two days later, then science the following week creates spaced and varied retrieval. The subject change strengthens transfer.

Avoid reviewing only by rereading the list. Ask the child to produce the word from the operation or use it in a fresh task.

Academic Vocabulary and Cumulative Review

Old words should return while new ones are introduced. Week 6 science can still ask pupils to compare, record and explain. Week 9 discussion can still use evidence and reason. Cumulative review prevents earlier academic language from disappearing once the unit ends.

A growing school vocabulary should behave like a network, not a stack of completed weeks.

The 80-Question Final Mixed Assessment

Define compare in your own words.
Define classify.
Define identify.
Define explain.
Define predict.
Define estimate.
Define observe.
Define investigate.
Define evidence.
Define result.
Define cause.
Define effect.
Define process.
Define method.
Define data.
Define detail.
Define example.
Define author.
Define narrator.
Define setting.
Define sequence.
Define paragraph.
Explain revise versus edit.
Define summarize.
Define context.
Define total.
Define sum.
Define difference in mathematics.
Define equal.
Define pattern.
Define measure.
Define diagram.
Define habitat.
Define environment.
Define material.
Define temperature.
Define cycle.
Define include.
Define arrange.
Define label.
Define check.
Explain same versus similar.
Explain equal versus same.
Define category.
Define position.
Define relationship.
Define fact.
Define opinion.
Define reason.
Define information.
Define each.
Define all.
Explain more versus fewer.
Define enough.
Define cooperate.
Define responsibility.
Define support in a reading answer.
Define improve.
What task verb asks only for a name?
What task verb asks for features?
What task verb asks how or why?
What task verb asks similarities/differences?
What word names a future expectation based on clues?
What word names the actual outcome?
What word names information used to support an answer?
What word names stored measurements or responses?
What word tells you to state only main points?
What word tells you to put names beside diagram parts?
What word tells you to verify your work?
What word means a group based on shared features?
What word means one component of a whole?
What word names where something is located?
What word means every one separately?
What word means every member?
What word means a smaller number of countable things?
Use compare in an English sentence.
Use compare in a mathematics sentence.
Use compare in a science sentence.
Use evidence in a reading sentence.
Use record in a science sentence.

Final Assessment Answer Guide

Examine two or more things together to notice similarities/differences.
Put things into groups using a rule.
Recognise and name.
Make clear by showing how or why.
Say what may happen using clues or knowledge.
Make a sensible approximate judgement.
Notice carefully for information.
Study a question carefully to find out more.
Information that supports an answer or claim.
What happens as an outcome.
Something that makes another event happen.
What happens because of a cause.
A connected series of actions or stages.
A way of doing something.
Collected information for study.
A specific piece of information.
A case that illustrates an idea or category.
The person who writes the text.
The voice that tells the story.
The time and place of a story.
The order of events or steps.
A group of related sentences about one main part.
Revise improves content/structure; edit corrects accuracy/presentation.
State only the main points briefly.
The surrounding words/situation that help explain meaning.
The whole amount.
The result of addition.
The result of subtraction in mathematics; more broadly, a way things differ.
Having the same value or amount.
A regular arrangement following a rule.
Find a size/amount using a method or unit.
A drawing that explains parts or relationships.
The natural place where an organism lives and gets what it needs.
The surrounding conditions in which living things exist.
The substance something is made from.
A measure of how hot or cold something is.
A repeating series of stages.
Make something part of the response or whole.
Put things in a useful order/pattern.
Write names beside parts.
Verify accuracy or completeness.
Same means matching in the relevant feature; similar allows differences.
Equal focuses on value/amount; same is broader.
A group based on shared features.
Where something is located relative to other things.
A connection between things or ideas.
A statement that can be checked against evidence.
A view or judgement people may differ about.
An explanation for why something is so or why a choice was made.
Facts/details learned or communicated.
Every one separately.
Every member/item.
More is greater number/amount; fewer is smaller number of countable items.
As much or as many as needed for a purpose.
Work together towards a shared goal.
A duty or task someone is expected to handle.
Use evidence/details to make the answer stronger or justified.
Make or become better.
Identify.
Describe.
Explain.
Compare.
Predict.
Result.
Evidence.
Data/record depending wording; data is information, record is preserve it.
Summarize.
Label.
Check.
Category.
Part.
Position.
Each.
All.
Fewer.
Answers vary; check explicit comparison.
Answers vary; check number/value relationship.
Answers vary; check material/observation comparison.
Answers vary; evidence should support a reading claim.
Answers vary; record should preserve observation/measurement.

Scoring the Final Assessment

Do not turn the total into a fixed ability label. Look at patterns. Strong definitions but weak transfer suggest that the child needs cross-subject execution. Strong execution but weak retrieval suggests the terms are understood implicitly but not yet easily named.

Meaning: does the child understand the core academic word?
Execution: can the child perform the operation?
Discrimination: can the child separate near-neighbours?
Transfer: can the word move to another subject?
Independence: can the learner use it without prompts?

A 20-Word Final Transfer Challenge

Compare two characters and state one similarity.
Compare 36 and 42.
Compare two materials you can see.
Identify one detail in a reading passage that could be evidence.
Predict what might happen to ice in sunlight.
Estimate how many pencils are in a box.
Observe a classroom object and record two details.
Classify six objects using one rule.
Explain why one material is useful for a container.
Summarize a short paragraph.
Measure one object.
Create a simple diagram and label it.
Put four events in sequence.
State one fact and one opinion about a familiar place.
Give one reason for a choice.
Use data from a tiny survey to report a result.
Use each correctly in an instruction.
Use fewer correctly in a comparison.
Explain one responsibility in group work.
State one way to improve a piece of work.

The Primary 2 Academic Vocabulary Standard

By the end of this route, a learner should be able to hear or read common school words, translate them into an understandable action, perform that action, and reuse the same word in another subject. The strongest evidence is not a memorised definition. It is correct behaviour under a changed task.

A pupil who can compare characters, compare numbers and compare materials owns compare more deeply than a pupil who can recite “to find similarities and differences” but cannot execute it.

Final Self-Check for the Learner

I know what identify asks me to do.
I know how describe is different from explain.
I know how compare is different from two separate descriptions.
I know prediction comes before result.
I can observe and then record.
I know evidence must support an answer.
I can find a cause and an effect.
I can summarize without retelling every detail.
I know revise and edit are different.
I understand total, sum, difference and equal.
I can follow label, arrange, include and check.
I understand same, similar and equal.
I can separate fact from opinion in simple examples.
I can use before, after, each, all, more and fewer accurately.
I can use the same academic word in more than one subject.

Cross-Subject Phrase Bank

Single words become easier to use when children meet them inside natural phrases. The following combinations appear repeatedly across school tasks.

compare two ideas
compare the results
identify the main character
identify the shape
describe the setting
describe the change
explain your answer
explain the result
predict what happens next
predict the outcome
estimate the number
estimate the time
observe carefully
observe a change
investigate a question
collect evidence
use evidence
record the result
record the data
give a reason
give an example
support your answer
support your idea
summarize the passage
revise the paragraph
edit the sentence
find the total
find the sum
find the difference
equal groups
number pattern
measure the length
label the diagram
classify the objects
arrange in order
complete the table
check your work
state a fact
give an opinion
present your findings
report the result
work cooperatively
take responsibility
improve the design
practice the skill

Teaching phrase partnerships reduces the grammar burden because the learner does not have to build every combination from scratch.

Academic Vocabulary Through Questions Children Hear Every Day

Classroom questions are repeated language experiences. Adults can make the academic word visible without adding a separate lesson.

“What do you observe?” instead of only “What do you see?”
“Can you compare these?” instead of only “What is different?”
“What evidence supports that?” instead of only “How do you know?”
“What was the result?” instead of only “What happened?”
“What method did you use?” instead of only “How did you do it?”
“Can you summarize the passage?” instead of only “Tell me the story.”
“What should you revise?” instead of only “Make it better.”
“Can you estimate first?” before exact counting or measurement.
“Which detail matters most?” during reading.
“What is your reason?” during discussion.

Everyday wording remains useful. The strongest teaching pairs the familiar phrase with the academic label until the label becomes independently understood.

A Weekly Academic Vocabulary Review Sheet

A simple weekly sheet can contain six sections rather than fifty repetitive questions.

Meaning: explain five words in everyday language.
Difference: distinguish two near-neighbours such as identify/describe.
Subject transfer: use one word in English, math and science.
Execution: complete one tiny task using the command word.
Error repair: correct one answer that misunderstood the task.
Retrieval: produce three academic words from definitions without a word bank.

This format measures usable control, not only matching.

A Monthly Academic Vocabulary Review

At the end of four weeks, mix old and new words. Do not review by the original category order. Interleave compare, habitat, result, paragraph, each and evidence. Mixed retrieval forces the learner to identify the language job instead of relying on topic cues.

Include one new subject context for several familiar words. Transfer is the main test.

Academic Vocabulary for Reading Instructions Independently

A learner can mark instructions with three symbols: underline the task word, box the object, circle the required amount or format. Example: “Compare [the two diagrams] and give (one difference).”

This small annotation routine reduces working-memory demands and makes the instruction structure visible.

Academic Vocabulary for Multi-Step Tasks

Long tasks may contain several commands: “Read the passage, underline two details, compare the characters and explain one difference.” Children should break the instruction into steps rather than trying to remember the whole sentence at once.

Read.
Underline two details.
Compare characters.
Explain one difference.

Academic vocabulary and executive function meet here. Clear task language helps children organise action.

Academic Vocabulary and Answer Scope

Some words signal answer length. Identify may need one word. Describe may need one or two relevant details. Explain usually needs a relationship. Summarize requires compression. Discuss often invites more than one idea or viewpoint.

Teaching answer scope prevents both under-answering and unnecessary writing.

Academic Vocabulary and Precision in Feedback

Instead of “not enough,” feedback can say “You identified the result but did not explain the cause.” Instead of “too much,” say “The question asked you to identify, so the extra paragraph was not needed.”

The child learns the task category and can transfer the correction to future questions.

Academic Vocabulary and Confidence

Children often become more confident when the task language becomes predictable. The content may still be challenging, but the instruction no longer feels mysterious. A familiar compare/explain/record structure creates cognitive room for the actual topic.

Confidence should come from growing control, not from pretending every task is easy.

Academic Vocabulary and Curiosity

Academic words can also support curiosity. Investigate gives a name to finding out systematically. Predict gives a name to a reasoned future guess. Observe turns noticing into evidence gathering. The language can make inquiry feel like something the child knows how to do.

Use the words during genuine questions, not only assessed tasks.

Academic Vocabulary and Creative Work

Even art and creative projects use academic language: choose, arrange, compare, pattern, shape, material, improve, present. Academic vocabulary does not mean dry or non-creative. It names operations that help creative work become deliberate.

A child can compare two colour arrangements, explain a design choice and revise a model.

Academic Vocabulary and Physical Education

PE can reinforce sequence, position, rule, practice, improve, result, compare and cooperate. “First stand behind the line; next pass the ball; each player takes a turn.” Short instructions give concrete experience to time and quantity words.

Cross-curricular vocabulary becomes stronger when the body experiences the relationship.

Academic Vocabulary and Music

Music can use pattern, sequence, repeat, compare, listen, identify, part, whole and present. Pupils identify a rhythm, compare two patterns, practise a sequence and present a short performance.

These experiences broaden the contexts attached to familiar academic words.

Academic Vocabulary and Art

Art can use material, shape, pattern, position, arrange, compare, describe, choose, revise and present. Ask children to describe why a material was chosen or compare two compositions.

The word keeps its core operation while the content changes.

Academic Vocabulary and Library Skills

Library work can use author, title, category, information, fact, opinion, summarize, record and check. Children can classify books, identify authors, record a title and summarize one main idea.

The library becomes another transfer environment.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is academic vocabulary too advanced for Primary 2?

Not when the concepts are age-appropriate. Children already compare, explain, record, choose and check. The goal is to attach useful labels to operations they perform.

Should children memorise all 100 definitions?

No. Teach small sets, reuse them in real tasks and retrieve them over time. Execution and transfer matter more than verbatim definitions.

Are math and science terms academic vocabulary?

Yes. Subject-specific words are one part of academic vocabulary. Cross-curricular words such as compare and evidence are another especially powerful part.

Which words should be learned first?

Prioritise words that recur across the learner’s actual lessons. Compare, identify, describe, explain, predict, observe, evidence, result, detail, sequence, measure, record, reason and check are strong starters.

What if my child knows the word but still gets the question wrong?

Check whether the child can execute the operation. Definition knowledge and task performance are different depths of word knowledge.

What if the child knows the operation but not the English label?

Connect the known action to the English word, then practise retrieval. This is common for multilingual learners and children who learned the concept informally.

Should I translate academic words?

Translation can help establish meaning, but return quickly to English examples and sentence frames so the learner controls the word in the school language.

How often should academic words be reviewed?

Across days and subjects. A word revisited in different contexts becomes more flexible than one repeated many times in the same worksheet.

How can I tell if the word is truly mastered?

Give the learner a fresh task in another subject without reminding them of the word’s meaning. Correct independent execution is strong evidence of mastery.

Do academic words improve writing?

Yes, both directly and indirectly. Words such as sequence, reason, example, evidence, revise and edit help pupils plan, explain and improve writing.

Do academic words improve mathematics?

Yes. Quantity words, comparison language, command verbs and representation words can determine which operation or response is required.

Do academic words improve science?

Yes. Science depends on observation, prediction, measurement, recording, data, results, processes and explanations.

Should task verbs be displayed in class?

A small active display can help, especially with everyday translations and sentence frames. Fade support by testing retrieval without the display.

What is the biggest mistake in teaching academic vocabulary?

Treating it as a definition list rather than a system of actions and relationships.

Ecosystem Boundaries

This page is the world-facing owner for Top 100 Primary 2 academic vocabulary across reading, writing, mathematics and science. It does not replace the broad Top 100 Primary 2 vocabulary flagship, which owns the general word-list intent.

It also does not replace the What Is Primary 2 Vocabulary apex, which explains the complete Grade 2 vocabulary system. This page has a narrower job: school language that travels across subjects.

For reading inference, use the context-clues route. For writing action words, use the action-verbs route. For morphology, use the word-families route. For semantic precision, use the synonyms-and-antonyms route.

The sibling eduKateSingapore Primary 2 practice and revision owners remain protected; this page does not duplicate those practice systems. Return to the Vocabulary Learning Hub for the wider Primary 1 to Junior College architecture.

Final Principle: School Language Is Part of the Subject

A child cannot fully access a task if the words that define the task are unclear. Compare, explain, record, result, evidence, each, fewer, sequence and support are not decorations around the curriculum. They are part of how the curriculum becomes actionable.

Teaching these words does not lower subject difficulty. It removes avoidable ambiguity. The learner can then spend attention on the real mathematics, science, reading, writing or project problem.

The long-term aim is simple: when a new task appears, the child recognises the academic operation, carries it out, checks the result and can use the same language somewhere else. That is vocabulary transfer functioning as educational infrastructure.

A 30-Minute Cross-Curricular Academic Vocabulary Workshop

Minutes 1–5 — Translate the Task Words

Write five words: identify, describe, compare, explain, summarize. Ask the learner to translate each into everyday language without using a subject example. The goal is to see whether the operation itself is known.

Possible translations: identify = name it; describe = tell what it is like; compare = put two things together and say how they are alike/different; explain = tell how or why; summarize = give only the main points.

Minutes 6–10 — One Object, Five Operations

Use one ordinary object such as a water bottle. Identify it. Describe it. Compare it with another bottle. Explain why its material is useful. Summarize the discussion in one sentence. The content remains stable while the task language changes.

This is one of the fastest ways to make command words concrete.

Minutes 11–15 — Switch Subjects

Take compare. English: compare two characters. Math: compare 28 and 35. Science: compare paper and plastic. Ask what stays the same about the operation. Repeat with record or result.

The child should begin to say, “The subject changes, but the word still asks me to do the same kind of thinking.”

Minutes 16–20 — Evidence and Reason

Give a simple claim: “The character is helpful.” Ask for evidence. Then give a science claim: “The cloth absorbed more water.” Ask for evidence. Then ask for one reason supporting a personal choice. This distinguishes evidence, result and reason across contexts.

Minutes 21–25 — Quantity and Sequence

Use counters and event cards. Practise each, all, more, fewer, first, next, before and after. Have the child act out instructions before reading them silently.

Minutes 26–30 — Retrieval

Hide every word. Give definitions or mini-tasks and ask the child to produce the academic term. Finish with one completely new subject example. Transfer is the exit test.

Subject-Switching Drill: Compare

English: Compare two characters’ choices.
Math: Compare 54 and 45.
Science: Compare two materials.
Art: Compare two colour patterns.
PE: Compare two throwing methods.
Music: Compare two rhythms.
Daily life: Compare two routes home.
Project work: Compare two design ideas.

After every item, ask: What did compare require that did not change? Answer: placing things in relation and noticing similarities/differences.

Subject-Switching Drill: Explain

English: Explain why the character left.
Math: Explain how you found the answer.
Science: Explain why the ice melted.
Art: Explain why you chose that material.
PE: Explain why a warm-up is useful.
Music: Explain how the rhythm changes.
Daily life: Explain why you chose the earlier bus.
Project work: Explain why the second design is stronger.

The stable core is how/why reasoning. The evidence and concepts change by subject.

Subject-Switching Drill: Record

English: Record a new vocabulary word.
Math: Record survey totals.
Science: Record the temperature.
Art: Record which colours were mixed.
PE: Record the number of successful throws.
Music: Record practice time.
Daily life: Record an appointment.
Project work: Record each trial result.

The stable core is preserving information so it can be used later.

Subject-Switching Drill: Pattern

Math: 2, 4, 6, 8.
English: repeated sentence openings.
Science: temperature falls every evening.
Art: red-blue-red-blue.
Music: repeated beat sequence.
PE: repeated movement routine.
Daily life: traffic is heavier every weekday morning.
Project work: the model fails at the same joint each trial.

The stable core is a regular relationship or recurrence that can be described.

Subject-Switching Drill: Support

Reading: support an answer with text evidence.
Writing: support an idea with a reason or example.
Science: support an explanation with data.
Math: support a solution with working or a diagram.
Social: support a classmate who needs help.
Design: a beam supports weight.
Discussion: support your opinion with a reason.
Daily life: information supports a decision.

The senses vary, but all involve helping something stand, succeed or become stronger.

Twenty Academic Vocabulary Mini-Scenarios

A teacher asks for the animal’s name only. Academic word: identify.
A pupil must say three features of a leaf. Academic word: describe.
Two solutions must be examined together. Academic word: compare.
A pupil must say why a bridge collapsed. Academic word: explain.
A pupil states what may happen before the test. Academic word: predict.
A pupil makes a close guess of 100 buttons. Academic word: estimate.
A child watches a plant carefully for changes. Academic word: observe.
A class tests which material absorbs most water. Academic word: investigate.
A reader points to a sentence that proves an answer. Academic word: evidence.
A class writes the temperatures in a table. Academic word: record.
A survey table contains collected responses. Academic word: data.
A story event makes another event happen. Academic word: cause.
The later event happens because of the first. Academic word: effect.
A child states only the main events. Academic word: summarize.
A child changes the ending to make it clearer. Academic word: revise.
A child fixes spelling and punctuation. Academic word: edit.
A math question asks how much altogether. Academic word: total.
Two groups contain the same number. Academic word: equal.
A picture shows parts and labels. Academic word: diagram.
A group works together towards one task. Academic word: cooperate.

Twenty More Academic Vocabulary Mini-Scenarios

A child places animals into groups by habitat. Academic word: classify.
A child says wood is one material in a chair. Academic word: material.
A thermometer gives a value for hotness or coldness. Academic word: temperature.
The water stages repeat over time. Academic word: cycle.
A pupil writes names beside plant parts. Academic word: label.
A pupil draws a line under a clue. Academic word: underline.
A pupil finishes every required table cell. Academic word: complete.
A pupil verifies an answer with another method. Academic word: check.
Two shapes look alike but have different sizes. Academic word: similar.
A root is one component of a plant. Academic word: part.
The entire plant contains roots, stem and leaves. Academic word: whole.
A set is formed using a shared feature. Academic word: category.
A red square is above a blue circle. Academic word: position.
A statement can be checked using evidence. Academic word: fact.
A pupil says which book they like best. Academic word: opinion.
A pupil explains why they chose one route. Academic word: reason.
Every group receives three cards. Academic word: each.
Every answer must be checked. Academic word: all.
One basket contains a smaller number of apples. Academic word: fewer.
A pupil repeats a skill to become better. Academic word: practice.

Academic Vocabulary Self-Explanation Prompts

Why is compare not the same as describe?
Why is evidence not the same as any detail?
Why is prediction not the same as result?
Why is estimate not the same as measure?
Why is similar not the same as equal?
Why is fact not the same as opinion?
Why is revise not the same as edit?
Why is record not the same as observe?
Why is example not the same as explanation?
Why is each not the same as all?
Why can support mean different things in reading and social contexts?
Why does context matter for the word difference?
Why can one task need both identify and explain?
Why can a result become evidence?
Why can one academic word work in several subjects?

Academic Vocabulary and Transfer Failure

A transfer failure happens when the learner knows the word in one context but does not recognise the same operation elsewhere. For example, compare is secure in reading but ignored in mathematics. This can happen because the word was learned as part of a topic rather than as a general operation.

Repair transfer failure by making the stable core explicit and moving rapidly across two or three subjects during one short practice session.

Academic Vocabulary and Overgeneralisation

Transfer can also go too far. A child may think difference always means subtract, even in “What is one difference between the animals?” The academic word has multiple related senses. Transfer must preserve context.

Teach the learner to carry the core idea while allowing subject-specific narrowing.

Academic Vocabulary and Reading Fluency

When common school words become automatic, instructions consume less attention. The learner does not have to stop and decode the meaning of compare or label every time. More working memory remains for content.

This is one reason repeated exposure across subjects matters: fluency in task language supports fluency in learning.

Academic Vocabulary and Written Fluency

Sentence frames can initially help production, but the long-term goal is flexible phrasing. A learner may begin with “I predict ___ because ___,” then later write “Because the sky is darkening, I think rain will begin soon.” The academic operation survives even when the exact academic word disappears from the sentence.

Mastery means controlling the thinking, not mechanically inserting terminology.

Academic Vocabulary and Question Asking

Children should learn to use the words not only when answering but when asking questions: “What evidence do we have?” “Can we compare these?” “What result did we get?” “Which method should we use?”

Question generation is a strong sign that academic vocabulary has become active.

Academic Vocabulary and Reflection

After a task, ask: What method worked? What result did you get? What evidence supported your answer? What would you improve? Which part was difficult? These questions help children describe learning in precise terms.

Reflection vocabulary makes future planning more specific.

A One-Page Academic Vocabulary Planning Template

Target words: choose five to ten.
First subject: introduce through current content.
Everyday translation: child-friendly meaning.
Sentence frame: one temporary scaffold.
Second subject: transfer within the week.
Retrieval day: test without display.
Error to watch: identify likely confusion.
Final transfer: unseen task in a third context.

The Long View: Why These Words Matter Later

Older students still compare, classify, explain, support, summarize, evaluate results, interpret evidence, report data and justify choices. The concepts become more complex, but the early academic verbs remain part of the language of education.

A Primary 2 child who learns that explain means connect answer to reason is beginning a pattern that later expands into scientific explanation, mathematical reasoning, literary analysis and argument. The foundation is small but durable.

Closing Standard for the World-Facing Primary 2 Learner

A strong Grade 2 learner does not need adult academic jargon. The learner needs reliable access to the language that school actually uses. When the instruction changes from identify to describe to explain, the answer should change. When compare moves from a story to a math problem, the learner should recognise the operation. When evidence moves from text detail to measurement, the support relationship should remain visible.

That is the purpose of this Top 100 academic vocabulary route: make school language transparent enough that children can spend their attention on learning, reasoning and communicating.

Final Transfer Case 1 — The Same Word in English and Science

English question: “Use one detail to support the idea that the character is responsible.” Science question: “Use the recorded temperature to support your explanation.” The surface content is different, but support performs the same academic job: add relevant information that makes a claim stronger.

A learner who sees the stable relationship can transfer. A learner who memorised “support = help a friend” needs an additional academic sense. This is vocabulary depth in action.

Final Transfer Case 2 — Compare Without a Worksheet

Alicia is choosing between two routes to the library. One is shorter but crosses a busy road; the other is longer but uses a quiet footpath. She compares them by considering distance and safety. No worksheet is present, but the academic operation is the same.

Real-life examples show that school vocabulary names useful thinking rather than artificial test behaviour.

Final Transfer Case 3 — Evidence Without a Reading Passage

Kai Kai thinks it rained during the night. The wet pavement, droplets on leaves and weather record become possible evidence. He does not need a comprehension passage to use the concept. The word refers to information connected to a conclusion.

Moving evidence into daily reasoning deepens the concept before later subjects demand more formal standards.

Final Transfer Case 4 — Estimate Before Measure

Tricia looks at a ribbon and says it is about 30 centimetres long. That is an estimate. She then uses a ruler and finds 27 centimetres. That is a measurement. The first answer does not become “wrong” simply because it is approximate; it served a different purpose.

Understanding the academic labels prevents children from confusing approximation with inaccuracy.

Final Transfer Case 5 — Revise, Edit and Improve

Kai Kai writes a paragraph, moves one sentence to improve order, fixes two spelling errors and then adds a clearer title. He has performed several operations. Moving the sentence is revision. Correcting spelling is editing. The overall work is improvement.

These words overlap in the broad idea of making work better, but they name different parts of the process.

Final Transfer Case 6 — Fact, Opinion and Reason

Statement 1: “The park has three slides.” This can be checked and functions as a fact. Statement 2: “The red slide is the best.” This is an opinion. Statement 3: “I think it is the best because it is the longest.” The opinion is now supported by a reason.

The language gives children tools for discussion without pretending opinions and facts are the same kind of statement.

Final Transfer Case 7 — Each, All and Enough

A teacher says, “Give each table two markers and make sure all tables have enough paper.” Each distributes something separately to every table. All checks the whole set. Enough depends on purpose: enough paper for the planned task.

These small words control logistics and mathematical relationships. Their size on the page does not reflect their importance.

Final Transfer Case 8 — Similar, Same and Equal

Two bags can be similar because both are blue and rectangular. They are not the same bag. If both contain five books, the numbers are equal. One real situation therefore uses three academic relationship words with different meanings.

The ability to maintain those distinctions is a strong sign of vocabulary depth.

Final Transfer Case 9 — Method, Process and Result

In a paper-towel test, the method is the way the class conducts the test: same water amount, same towel size, same timing. The process is the connected sequence of actions. The result is what happens at the end. These words describe different levels of the same activity.

Primary 2 learners do not need formal research methodology. They do benefit from seeing that “how we did it” and “what happened” are different questions.

Final Transfer Case 10 — Practice and Improvement

Alicia reads aloud every day. The repeated action is practice. After several weeks, her phrasing becomes smoother; that is improvement. Practice describes the repeated learning action; improvement describes positive change in performance.

Not every practice attempt produces immediate improvement, so the words should not be treated as synonyms.

Final Independent Mastery Challenge

Choose any five academic words from different categories.
Explain each in everyday language.
Use each in a sentence from a different subject.
For one word, name a common confusion and correct it.
For one word, give a sentence frame.
For one word, show an everyday-life use outside school.
For one word, explain how the meaning changes slightly by subject.
Create one two-step instruction using two academic words.
Create one question that asks for evidence.
Create one question that asks for comparison.
Create one simple science task using predict, observe and record.
Create one math task using total, difference and equal.
Create one reading task using character, detail and summarize.
Create one group-work task using cooperate, responsibility and present.
Explain which academic word was hardest to transfer and why.

Mastery Is Transfer, Not Recitation

If a child can define compare but cannot compare two unfamiliar objects, the word is not fully functional. If a child can compare in mathematics but does not recognise the same word in reading, transfer is incomplete. The endpoint is flexible execution.

This is why the article repeatedly uses words across several subjects. A cross-curricular word should behave cross-curricularly.

A Final Checklist for Adults

Teach the operation, not only the definition.
Use the same academic word across subjects.
Translate into everyday language when needed, then return to the academic term.
Use sentence frames temporarily.
Distinguish near-neighbour words explicitly.
Act out quantity and sequence language.
Ask for evidence and reasons in simple contexts.
Check whether a wrong answer is actually a task-language error.
Review old academic words cumulatively.
Test transfer in an unseen context.
Keep subject-specific meanings accurate.
Do not overload young learners with jargon they do not need.
Use oral practice before written production when helpful.
Reward precise interpretation, not merely longer answers.
Make academic vocabulary part of ordinary classroom talk.

Closing: The Vocabulary That Makes School Legible

A school day is full of invisible language demands. Compare. Explain. Record. Result. Each. Fewer. Evidence. Sequence. Material. Summary. Children who control these words can see more clearly what a task is asking and what kind of response will succeed.

That does not guarantee every answer will be correct. It does something more fundamental: it lets the learner engage the real problem instead of fighting the wording around it.

For a world-facing Primary 2 or 2nd grade learner, this is one of the most useful forms of vocabulary growth. Academic words become a shared operating language across reading, writing, mathematics, science, projects and discussion. Once that language is secure, learning can move faster because the instructions themselves stop being the obstacle.

A Final 20-Minute Transfer Check

This final check uses no vocabulary list. The learner receives four tiny tasks: one reading passage, one mathematics problem, one science observation and one group-work scenario. The adult watches whether the child notices the academic language independently rather than being told which word to focus on.

For reading, ask: “Compare the two characters and use one detail as evidence.” A secure learner recognises that compare requires a relationship and evidence requires a relevant textual detail. For mathematics, ask: “Find the difference, then check your result.” The learner understands both the operation and the verification step.

For science, ask: “Predict what will happen, observe for five minutes, then record the result.” The learner should keep prediction, observation, recording and result in the correct sequence. For group work, ask: “Choose a leader, give each member one responsibility, cooperate, and present the final idea.” The learner should translate the instruction into actions without needing every term explained again.

If one word causes hesitation, diagnose that word rather than reteaching the whole task. If the child understands the word but fails after the subject changes, practise transfer. If the word is retrieved quickly and the operation is performed correctly in all four contexts, it has become part of the learner’s usable academic vocabulary.

The Next Hundred Words

After this Top 100 is secure, the next academic words should come from real reading and current subjects rather than an arbitrary list of harder terms. Keep the same selection test: does the word recur, does it name an important operation or concept, can the child understand the underlying idea, and will the word transfer into more than one useful context?

Examples of later extensions may include analyze, evidence, conclusion, source, infer, justify, represent, variable, structure, function and more specialised subject vocabulary. Those words belong later because the concepts and task demands become deeper. The Primary 2 foundation is the habit of connecting school language to action, evidence and meaning.

Keep the progression cumulative. New academic vocabulary should sit on top of compare, explain, record, result, reason, sequence and the other core words rather than replacing them. The same foundational language continues to operate as the learner moves into more complex texts, problems, investigations and explanations.

Ten Final Cross-Subject Review Moves

Compare: compare two characters, then compare two numbers, then compare two materials. State what the operation keeps in common.
Explain: explain a character’s choice, explain a mathematical method, then explain a science result. Notice that every explanation needs a relationship rather than a label alone.
Record: record a reading title, survey data and a science measurement. In every case, information is being preserved for later use.
Evidence: use a story detail, a calculation or a measurement to support an answer. Ask why the chosen information is relevant rather than merely nearby.
Pattern: identify a number pattern, a repeated story event and a repeated observation. Describe the regular relationship instead of simply saying that a pattern exists.
Sequence: order story events, instructions and stages in a process. Use first, next, after and last accurately.
Measure: distinguish an estimate from a measurement, then record the measured value with an appropriate unit when the lesson requires one.
Support: help a classmate, support a reading answer with evidence and support a model with a stronger base. Explain what broad meaning connects the three uses.
Improve: improve a paragraph, a mathematical method and a design. State exactly what changed and why the new version is better.
Check: check spelling, check a calculation, check an observation table and check whether an instruction has been fully completed. Verification always needs a purpose.

These ten moves are a compact test of the whole article because they require more than definition recall. The learner must keep a stable core meaning while changing subject, object and sentence. If the word survives those changes, the vocabulary is becoming transferable.

Use the review slowly. One or two words per day is enough. Ask the child to explain what stayed the same across subjects and what changed because of the new context. That comparison builds a stronger mental model than repeating the same definition several times.

The final goal is automatic access with accurate judgement. When a worksheet says compare, the child should not need to translate the word every time. When a science task asks for evidence, the child should know to look for observations or measurements that actually support the claim. When a reading question asks for a reason, the response should move beyond naming the answer. This automaticity frees attention for the subject itself.

Keep academic vocabulary connected to genuine learning. A word becomes durable because it helps solve a problem, understand a text, communicate an idea, perform an investigation or improve a piece of work. That is the standard that makes this Top 100 useful beyond the page.

Keep one final habit after the article is finished: whenever a child gets a school question wrong, check the task language before assuming the subject knowledge is weak. Ask what the command word required, what information the child used, and whether the response matched the requested operation. A small vocabulary repair can sometimes unlock work that looked like a much larger learning problem.

Likewise, when a learner succeeds, name the academic operation: “You compared those clearly,” “You used evidence,” “You checked the result,” or “You summarized without unnecessary detail.” This makes successful thinking visible and gives the child language to repeat it independently in another lesson.

Return to these words during ordinary lessons rather than waiting for a vocabulary period. When compare, evidence, result, each, sequence or support appears naturally, use it, explain it briefly when needed, and let the child act on it. Frequent purposeful use is what turns school language into independent academic language.

Continue the Primary 2 Vocabulary Network

Return to the Grade 2 flagship vocabulary list or the Primary 2 conceptual gateway. Connect academic school words to action verbs, word families, and reading comprehension vocabulary.

Top 100 Primary 2 Academic Vocabulary | 2nd Grade School Words for Reading, Writing, Math & Science

What Is Academic Vocabulary in Primary 2?

The Top 100 Primary 2 Academic Vocabulary Words

Ten Thinking Words That Travel Everywhere

Ten Evidence and Process Words

Ten Reading and Writing Words

Ten Mathematics Words

Ten Science Words

Ten Instruction Words

Ten Relationship Words

Ten Communication Words

Ten Time and Quantity Words

Ten Social and Learning Words

Why Cross-Curricular Words Matter More Than Rare Words

The Task-Word Problem

Alicia: Knows the Topic, Misreads the Command

Tricia: Gives Answers Without Reasons

Kai Kai: Confuses Evidence With Opinion

Academic Word Pair 1 — Identify vs Describe

Academic Word Pair 2 — Describe vs Explain

Academic Word Pair 3 — Predict vs Estimate

Academic Word Pair 4 — Observe vs Record

Academic Word Pair 5 — Result vs Evidence

Academic Word Pair 6 — Fact vs Opinion

Academic Word Pair 7 — Example vs Evidence

Academic Word Pair 8 — Part vs Whole

Academic Word Pair 9 — Same vs Equal

Academic Word Pair 10 — More vs Fewer

Reading Transfer: One Word Across Three Subjects

Compare

Record

Result

Pattern

Cross-Subject Sentence Frames

30 Command-Word Practice Questions

English Reading Lab — One Passage, Ten Academic Words

English Writing Lab — Academic Vocabulary for Revision

Mathematics Lab — Vocabulary Controls the Operation

Mathematics Lab — Same, Equal and Similar

Science Lab — Observation, Measurement and Evidence

Science Lab — Material, Matter and Property

Science Lab — Habitat and Environment

Instruction Lab — What Does the Worksheet Actually Ask?

The Academic Vocabulary Diagnostic

Diagnostic Task 1 — Command Meaning

Diagnostic Task 2 — Same Word, New Subject

Diagnostic Task 3 — Response Length

Diagnostic Task 4 — Fact, Opinion and Evidence

Diagnostic Task 5 — Quantity Language

Common Academic Vocabulary Errors

Error 1 — Identify Becomes Explain

Error 2 — Explain Becomes Identify

Error 3 — Prediction Becomes Guessing

Error 4 — Result Becomes Prediction

Error 5 — Data Becomes Opinion

Error 6 — Similar Becomes Same

Error 7 — Equal Becomes Identical

Error 8 — Evidence Becomes Any Detail

Error 9 — Summary Becomes Retell

Error 10 — Check Becomes Look Again

Academic Vocabulary and Reading Questions

Academic Vocabulary and Problem Solving

Academic Vocabulary and Diagrams

Academic Vocabulary and Oral Discussion

Academic Vocabulary and Group Work

Academic Vocabulary and Self-Correction

Academic Vocabulary and Independence

A 12-Week Cross-Curricular Academic Vocabulary Plan

Week 1 — Core Task Verbs

Week 2 — Prediction and Observation

Week 3 — Evidence Language

Week 4 — Reading and Writing Structure

Week 5 — Mathematics Language

Week 6 — Science Language

Week 7 — Instruction Words

Week 8 — Relationship Words

Week 9 — Communication Words

Week 10 — Time and Quantity

Week 11 — Social Learning

Week 12 — Mixed Transfer