RIVET

1
RIVET

• A Vocabulary/Pre-reading strategy

2
Rivet A vocabulary/pre-reading strategy

• Rivet is a pre-reading activity.
• Its purpose is to expose students to
  unfamiliar vocabulary terms that might affect
  reading fluency and thus inhibit comprehension
  when reading the text. It can be used across all
  disciplines.
• Students typically love this activity!

3
Instructions for Rivet(Download the Rivet
Activity document)

• The teacher will choose approximately 6 - 8
  difficult vocabulary words or important names
  from a text that may inhibit students from
  comprehending the text when they read
• The teacher puts blanks on board, chart paper or
  transparency representing the number of letters
  in each vocabulary word
• (newspaper/magazine article, excerpt from
  textbook, poem, on-line article or some other
  supplemental text)

4

• Teacher fills in one letter at a time for
  students to guess the first word from left to
  right. Teacher encourages students to guess the
  word
• Students shout out possible words
• NOTE Unlike Hangman, students are NOT
  guessing the letters. Their eyes are riveted
  to the board as you write the letters, and they
  are trying to guess the word based on the letters
  you have written and the number of remaining
  blanks.

5

• When a student guesses the word, finish writing
  it. (ask students to try to finish spelling it
  for you)
• Collaboratively talk about its meaning once word
  is discovered
• Repeat process until all words are identified
• (if students do not know the word, give
  examples, use word in a sentence, or discuss root
  word/suffix/prefix try to let the students tell
  you a meaning instead of you telling them)

6

• Then, give students the title of the story or
  chapter being introduced
• In journals, ask students to write a summary
  predicting what the text will be about using 6 or
  more of the vocabulary words

7

• Read predictions aloud
• List predictions on chart paper
• Read text
• Have students compare and contrast their
  predictions with text as they progress through
  the reading
• (they can write down their notes and/or
  discuss in small groups or whole class)

8
Final Product for Lesson

• Choose a text in your discipline to use for a
  lesson that incorporates the Rivet activity
  (Download the Rivet Activity document)
• Submit the lesson plan, a copy of the text
  (including a list of the words used), a
  professional reflection (what went well, what
  could be improved, etc...), and a sample of
  student work (Download Teacher Reflection
  document)