Read a section of a textbook, novel or short magazine article aloud to the class. Choose a couple of paragraphs that have words that your students probably do not encounter every day.
Choose two or three words as the targeted vocabulary words. Ask students to concentrate on these words while you read the selection again.
Look for definitions or restatements in the sentences preceding and following the targeted word. These can usually be found in textbooks, which often state a technical term, then follow with an explanation or example.
Point out synonyms located near the targeted word. For example, read the following sentences: "The man was bewildered by his son's actions. He could not understand why the boy was acting like this." The phrase, "could not understand," is a synonym for the vocabulary word, "bewildered."
Tell students to use other clues in the texts for clues. Encourage beginning readers to look at pictures in the book, which often depict the action being expressed by the vocabulary word. Remind older students to look at prefixes and suffixes of unknown words. Just knowing that the prefix "un-" means "not" can help them determine what the word is conveying even if they do not know the precise definition.