Optimized Learning | 2 Frayer Model Templates for Middle & High School ELA and for Any Content Area

Are you tired of using a boring vocabulary list organized in alphabetical order? Your kids hate them. And so they should! 

Frayer Model Vocabulary Direct Instruction

Put rigor into your daily ELA, Social Studies, Science, and Mathematics vocabulary instruction with middle and high school students. Implement Frayer models. It’s a dynamic way to teach vocabulary in context. Do you want your students to learn academic vocabulary related to any topic? Do students find boring worksheets insufficient to help them remember vocabulary?

Features Included in the Resource:

• Available as PDF and Google Workspace
• Teacher’s Note for Teaching with Frayer Models
• Anchor Chart for “How to Create Frayer Models”
• 2 Versions of a Frayer Model Template for use with any word or term
  • Word
  • Concept
  • Idea
  • Term
  • Item
  • Symbol
  • Emblem
  • Material
  • Image
• Useful Research Guide for Vocabulary Instruction and Learning
• Fully Completed Student Example Frayer Model

Using the Frayer Method to Teach and Model Vocabulary Instruction

The Frayer Model is a graphic organizer that can be used in a classroom when students are learning vocabulary in context. The basic feature of the model is that students must break apart the meaning of any word into four different quadrants — meaning, essential characteristics, examples, and non-examples. I also added the opportunity for students to add and label an illustration.

Research shows that teaching vocabulary in context is the best practice for long term retention. Using Frayer models is a proven method to do this effectively in the classroom when teaching literature and non-fiction texts. Get your students actively engaged with vocabulary — and have them proudly display their creations!

Original Content and Copyright Notice:

N.B. This product is original and was made with love by Stones of Erasmus. Please handle with care. If you enjoy this educational resource, please consider sharing the store link with your friends and colleagues. Also, drop me a line. I’d love to read your feedback. This product is protected by a commercial non-distribution license. The product is intended for use in an educational setting. © 2019-2020. 

N.B. Frayer Model adapted from Frayer, D. A., Frederick, W. C., & Klausmeier, H. G. (1969). A schema for testing the level of concept mastery (Technical report No. 16). Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Research and Development Center for Cognitive Learning.