Build a Rich Vocabulary and Bolster Reading Comprehension This Summer!

Words form the building blocks of our communication. For students to evolve into sophisticated communicators in our global world, it’s essential for them to develop strong vocabularies that bolster their reading, writing, and speaking. Here at VSA Future, we’re offering a virtual evening class this summer to ensure your student can build a robust vocabulary and strengthen their reading comprehension skills so they can confidently advance into the fall school year.

In Summer Reading Comprehension and Vocabulary, students in grades 3 through 9 boost their critical reading and vocabulary skills in intensive four-week sessions. Session 1 runs from June 26 to July 21, 2023. Session 2 runs from July 24 to August 18, 2023. Students can sign up for one or both sessions. Classes meet twice a week; refer to our website for class times.

With robust vocabularies, children learn to read confidently and comprehensively. By building rich vocabularies, young students can ensure success in future academic and professional settings. Expanding vocabularies allows students to better grasp word problems in math, tackle difficult works of literature, and competently face exams, texts, and books they encounter in any academic subject and everyday life.

But in recent years, many public schools have begun to move away from focused vocabulary lessons — to the detriment of their students. Low reading scores have plagued the nation, and research shows students who don’t have a strong grasp of vocabulary by fourth grade struggle to read in the years ahead.

Old-school vocabulary lessons, often still deployed in schools today, are dreaded. They’re full of repetitive drill assignments requiring students to study words on their own. Students view such traditional lessons as rote and boring, requiring students to devote vast amounts of time to pure memorization instead of skill development.

Here at VSA Future, we recognize the need to master vocabulary as a way of evolving writing and critical reading skills. We actively engage students in the building blocks of language to ensure they fully appreciate the texts they encounter as adults, whether those are intriguing essays and articles or captivating novels.

Our aim is to cultivate an expansive set of reading and vocabulary skills in our students, enabling them to succeed as learners, thinkers, and writers. Our summer Reading Comprehension and Vocabulary program takes on a scientific approach to ensure content mastery, using reading lessons to help students expand vocabulary while building connections with Greek and Latin roots. With a grasp on root words, our students can build off of their understanding to unlock new words with shared roots. VSA’s scholars also hone in on identifying synonyms and parts of speech and properly applying new words in their own writing.

In Reading Comprehension and Vocabulary, students learn to use a wider range of words while developing rigorous and complex sentences that offer context clues for even uninitiated readers. Students receive a set of words connected by a single root in each unit. Following this list, students work collaboratively in groups on exercises such as definition overviews, word webs, example sentences, analogies, matching, and fill-in-the-blanks. Our students also practice using the words in the correct contexts and engage in discussions on real-world connections.

Our skilled instructors facilitate a collaborative environment so students feel confident in sharing sentences, experiences, and visual associations that come to mind when they encounter the words they are studying. The VSA focus on peer interaction ensures our lessons are fun and engaging for all students as they build larger word banks.

We gather quantitative data on student improvement and success through short quizzes at the end of each chapter. We use these results to develop future lessons and tailor our instruction to each individual classroom.

In Reading Comprehension and Vocabulary, we also discuss reading strategies to help students grasp the aim of the texts they read. Our instructors guide young readers through each text, helping readers develop how to comprehend and explain the information contained in the passages, how to question the text, and how to analyze connections throughout the text. Our students learn how to read interactively, using their newly learned vocabularies in context.

Throughout this engaging process, our students develop a strong love for reading and the English process. Here at VSA, we’re prepared to provide the tools students need to remain lifelong readers and writers. Ready to sign up for a summer of learning and fun? Learn more and register for VSA’s Reading Comprehension and Vocabulary virtual classes online today!