Vocabulary Development

The words in these lists are the focus of vocabulary development throughout this theme's oral language, listening comprehension, and small-group activities. The list includes a wide variety of academic and content area words as well as everyday conversational words that children add to their vocabularies through interactions with families, teachers, and peers.

Theme Vocabulary

Core Words

  • calendar
  • celebrate, celebrations
  • change(s) (n./v.)
  • cold, colder
  • cooler/warmer
  • fall
  • holidays
  • lightning
  • nature
  • rain
  • season(s)
  • shelter
  • snow
  • spring
  • storm(s)
  • summer
  • thunder
  • weather
  • winter
  • year

Basic Words

  • hotter
  • mittens
  • sun
  • together

Story/Poetry Vocabulary

  • autumn
  • blowing
  • dress (v.)
  • drifting
  • dry
  • Earth Day
  • Fourth of July
  • frost
  • harbor
  • pouring
  • Presidents' Day
  • raindrop
  • robin
  • rumble
  • shining
  • store (v.)
  • storm(s)
  • swan
  • swirling
  • Thanksgiving
  • warming
  • wear

Basic Words

  • fair
  • falling
  • gather
  • hot
  • mittens
  • ripped
  • sparks
  • squeezed
  • stretched
  • sun

Challenge Words

  • cormorants
  • dragonflies
  • Earth
  • gliding
  • graceful
  • hibernate
  • icy
  • irises
  • misty
  • prepare
  • sunfish
  • water lilies

Math Vocabulary

Time Words

  • date
  • time

Number Words

  • zero
  • six
  • seven
  • eight
  • nine
  • ten

Order Words

  • first/middle/last
  • second
  • third
  • fourth
  • fifth

Number Concept Words

  • combine/separate
  • count/in all
  • equal/same
  • fewer/more
  • how many
  • left
  • match
  • none
  • number
  • set

Science Vocabulary

Oral Language Card 22

  • calendar
  • fall
  • season
  • spring
  • summer
  • winter

Oral Language Card 24

  • air
  • blow
  • fly
  • kite
  • wind
  • windy

Oral Language Card 26

  • eat
  • fur
  • sleep
  • summer
  • winter

Oral Language Card 27

  • season
  • summer
  • temperature
  • thermometer
  • weather

Social Studies Vocabulary

Oral Language Card 23

  • cold
  • gloves
  • hat
  • jacket
  • mittens
  • season
  • winter

Oral Language Card 25

  • animal
  • forest
  • grow
  • plant
  • summer
  • tree

Oral Language Card 28

  • apple
  • fall
  • gather
  • orchard
  • season
Core Words
Teach and reinforce these words with all children.
Basic Words
Three-year-olds, English language learners, and children with limited vocabulary experience may need reinforcement of these words.
Challenge Words
Introduce these words as children's interests indicate.