Florida’s B.E.S.T. ELA Standards V.1.1, V.1.2,  V.1.3 for grades 6-12 address academic language, morphology, context and connotation. Vocabulary.com supports all in the following ways: B.E.S.T. and Core Curriculum ready made coordinated list of word; rigor of lists can be adjusted to assist in differentiating instructional levels for all learners; multiple strategies and activities allowing students to engage in mastery-building in different contexts; dictionary entries that use student-friendly blurbs illustrate usage examples across different contexts, emphasizing varied connotations; and multiple application examples elucidate connotations and contextual clues associated with each word.

Vocabulary.com aligns with all three sects of our FL BEST ELA standards addressing Vocabulary, V.1.1 Academic Vocabulary, V.1.2 Morphology, and  V.1.3 Context and Connotation. This would help with our flagging data in this area. Over the past two school years, our district has shown a need to address these three benchmarks directly. Looking at the data by grade level and schools, we are showing this need most drastically at our lowest-performing schools, but all students will benefit from this course of instruction as Vocabulary is a critical component of reading comprehension. This edification will assist instruction in other subject areas as well. 

Based on FAST data for grades 7-12 in Reading Across Genres & Vocabulary, specifically Context and Connotation and Morphology, the district scores have shown this to be an area of need. While ELA PM3 proficiency levels increased across the district for secondary schools, this standard continues to be an opportunity for growth. Intensive Reading classes showed growth with a reduction of level 1 students. This instructional opportunity would provide additional support to continue moving students forward.

The expected outcome of implementing Vocabulary.com in grades 7-12 is to significantly improve ELA students' proficiency rates and boost our District proficiency scores, specifically in Morphology and Context and Connotation. By intentionally targeting instructional lessons that align with the Tier 1 curriculum in ELA and Intensive Reading, we will allow students the additional opportunity to apply vocabulary skills addressed in classroom instruction. Teachers will be able to use ongoing progress monitoring to identify individual student needs and intentionally plan small-group instruction.

The literacy department will intentionally plan the implementation of Vocabulary.com to align with the current Tier 1 curriculum in both ELA and Intensive Reading classes. This will afford students multiple opportunities to apply vocabulary in multiple contexts. Research indicates that students must interact with vocabulary in multiple contexts to consistently apply learned vocabulary skills. For Intensive Reading, students will build their Morphology skills to broaden their vocabulary in all subject areas. 

The Clay County School Board approves the purchase of the Vocabulary.com site, student licenses, and professional development for grades 7-12 for the 2024-2027 school years.