Certificate in Teaching Vocabulary

Course Overview

Building a strong vocabulary is essential for learners at every level, and this course gives you practical techniques to help introduce, explain and reinforce new language effectively. You’ll explore a wide range of ways to present vocabulary—from simple explanation and visual support to using real objects, mime and gesture—to make meaning clearer and more memorable for your students.

The course also looks at how to choose which vocabulary to teach, how to group language into useful lexical sets and collocations, and how to create activities that move beyond controlled practice into more natural, communicative use. You’ll learn how to prepare your students for a lesson by pre-teaching key items, how to check understanding through concept questions, and how to design tasks that keep the focus on the learners rather than the teacher.

Throughout the course, you’ll gather a selection of adaptable games, tips and classroom ideas that encourage students to engage with new language in enjoyable and meaningful ways. By the end, you’ll feel more confident selecting vocabulary, presenting it clearly, and helping your learners use it in authentic contexts.

This course covers the following topics:

• Definition
• Explanation
• Pictures and visual media
• Realia
• Mime and gesture
• Opposites
• Pre-teaching vocabulary
• Games, tips and hints
• Less restrictive practice
• Authentic practice
• Student centred presentation
• Concept questions
• Criteria for selection of vocabulary to reach
• Lexical sets/collocation