The PRIMALS Compendium of Teaching Resources

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Literacy Compendium Kit

E NG LISH L E S S O N PL A NS F I LI P I N O LESSO N P LAN S LI T ER AC Y ST R AT EGIES

Reader-Text Interaction

Semantic Mapping
The creation of meaning in reading This guide described
results from the interaction between the Semantic Mapping, a
reader and the text. Comprehension strategy teachers can use
can vary based on text and question before, during, and after
types. Higher order cognitive skills, reading.
including the ability to make inferences

INTERACTION
READER-TEXT
and to plan and organize information,
contribute to comprehension of more
complex text and question types and
are important components of reading.
Teachers guide reader-text interactions
through instructional strategies that
they use and reading guidance that
they provide.

Table of Contents:

Background/Research Base 2
Purpose/Benefits 3
Description/Procedure 4
How Teachers Can Make
the Strategy Work 6
Applications Across
the Curriculum 6
 Reader-Text Interaction

Semantic Mapping

Background / Research Base

Semantic maps are graphic organizers that help us-

ers visualize relationships between and among words
or concepts crucial to the understanding of a read-
ing selection. The term semantic pertains to mean-
ing; thus semantic mapping entails linking words
and concepts related by some sort of association of
meanings.

Usually, semantic mapping relate them to the new ideas

(SM) functions as a vocabulary
building strategy where students
relate new words to their own
experiences and prior knowledge
(Johnson and Pearson, 1984)
through the use of synonyms,
associations, collocates or word
families.
It is also used as a schema
activation strategy, when
teachers ask students to tap on
their schema and activate prior
knowledge about key concepts
in the reading text. The graphic
organizer helps students recall
ideas previously learned and
they are about to read. As such,
semantic maps enable teachers to
gauge students’ schemata by giving
them a glimpse of what students
already know about the topic at
hand.
More than a schema activation
strategy, SM also functions as an
active reading or text processing
strategy where students take note
of key ideas and supporting details
as they complete a semantic map.
Through the use of semantic maps,
students visually represent key
words and relate them with other
details in the reading selection.

2 The PRIMALS Compendium of Teaching Resources | LITERACY STRATEGY GUIDES

Finally, as a post-reading strategy,
SM allows students to modify their
initial understanding of key concepts
as they prepare semantic maps
after reading the text. The class
can either enhance the prereading
semantic map or prepare a new one
before they compare the two graphic
organizers focusing on how students’
knowledge of the topic has been
enriched after reading the selection.
Semantic maps differ from mind
maps in terms of structure since a
semantic map provides a network
of related concepts; whereas a mind
map focuses on ideas related to
a parent concept. A mind map is
hierarchical as it starts from a single
concept and grows out to show
relationships with other smaller
concepts. Moreover, mind maps
make use of branches that expand
into smaller twigs and nodes, while
semantic maps make use of lines or
arrows.
Research on Semantic Mapping
reveals that it works as a vocabulary
building strategy, schema activation,
text processing study strategy, and
a post-reading activity. Duffy (2009)
underscores the importance of SM in
building a wider vocabulary. Through
SM, teachers can demonstrate
how students can categorize
word meanings by identifying key
attributes of words and distinguishing
one word from another.
Johnson, Pittelman and Heimlich
(1986) state that teachers across
levels have used SM successfully to
motivate and actively involve learners
in the thinking-reading-writing
process (p. 778). This is largely
because SM can be used not only in
diagnosing students’ schema, but
also in active reading and processing
of the text through prereading,
during-reading, and post-reading
SMs.
As a prereading activity, SM affords
students the opportunity to recall,
organize, and graphically represent
information pertinent to the topic
(Johnson, Pittelman and Heimlich,
1986). As a during-reading activity,
SM has been found to increase
reading comprehension (Mozayan
et al.,2012). Finally, as a post-reading
task, SMs provides representations
that stimulate in-depth text
comprehension among readers
(Schewel, 1989).
Purpose / Benefits
Semantic mapping helps students
from various ability groups, especially
struggling students and those with
disabilities, to identify, understand, and
recall the meaning of words they read
in the text (Zorfas & Gray, 2014).
In pre-reading, semantic mapping
helps in schema activation and
vocabulary building. During reading,
it can be used as an active-reading
strategy for note-taking key words and
related details. In post-reading. SM can
be used to enrich the completed pre-
reading semantic map as students add
what they have understood from the
reading selection after they finished
reading it.
Reader-Text Interaction | Semantic Mapping 3
 SM lends itself best to individual,
dyadic or small group activity,
since the students can work on the
SM preparation either individually,
in small, or in big groups.
Description / Procedure
Listed below are the steps in
semantic mapping for activating
prior knowledge:
Step 1. Select the most important
word or concept in the selection.
Show the key concept on the
board and ask students what they
know about the topic. Ask: What
are you reminded about when you
see or hear the word ‘courage’?
Courage
bravery
heart
Courage
daring
guts
fearlessness
Figure 1. Sample Semantic Map on the Concept of Courage
4 The PRIMALS Compendium of Teaching Resources | LITERACY STRATEGY GUIDES
Step 2. Ask students to recall words
related to the concept. They can
write these words near the concept
and connect them with lines or
arrows. Most often, the words
that students recall are synonyms.
Direct the students to recall more
related ideas by asking other
prompts:
• Who are you reminded of when
you see the word?
• Where do you usually see the
word?
• What experiences are you
reminded of given the word?
Step 3. Encourage as many students
to share their ideas. A good way to
do so would be to use metacards,
sticky notes or colored strips of
paper where students can write
their ideas. These strips can be
easily posted on the board (see
Figure 1).
valor
heroes
soldiers
problems
Step 4. Next, invite students to
explain why they associated the
words they wrote to the key concept.
As students present their reasons,
pick out other related words from the
students’ explanations to expand the
semantic map. As students explain
their answers, gauge their overall
schemata on the topic, i.e. note
those who have ample background
knowledge and those who need
additional support in understanding
the text.
Prereading Semantic Map for Sharks
Figure 3 shows another example of a semantic map with
categories and elaborations.
Step 5. For semantic maps that
are complex because of the
many related ideas, ask students
to cluster similar words and
label them under one group or
category. Study the prereading
semantic map shown in Figure
2. Note that the various words
related to the concept of
sharks has been categorized
under kinds/species of sharks,
characteristics, structures, size,
habitat, and even movie.
Figure 2. Semantic
Map with clustered
concepts
Source: Johnson,
D., Pittelman, S. &
Heimlich J. (1986).
Figure 3. Semantic map
with clustered concepts
Source: https://www.
upperelementary
snapshots.com/2017/
06/23-effective-
vocabulary-activities.
html
Reader-Text Interaction | Semantic Mapping 5
 How Teachers Can Make The Strategy Work
To make the strategy work, teachers
have to be clear about the purpose for
the semantic map.
For Schemata Activation
Stress the importance of recalling prior
knowledge related to the main word.
Prompt students to list as many related
words as they can think of before asking
them to cluster the words in categories.
• With young learners or with challenged
readers, facilitate the clustering of
words in a whole class discussion. On
the other hand, with older and higher
ability students, form groups and ask
each group to cluster the words under
specific headings. This makes for more
interaction among students.
• After completing the semantic map,
ask students to explain the words they
associated with the key concept and the
clusters they arrived at.
• During the discussion of the
comprehension questions, refer to the
semantic map to connect students’
prior knowledge with the information in
the reading selection. Remind students
of the value of using background
information in understanding what one
reads.
For During-Reading Activity
As a while-reading activity, ask students
to underline key words as they read the
selection and come up with a semantic
map to show the relationship between and
among the key words they have noted.
• For young learners, prepare the
semantic web for students to complete.
The details in the mind map should
already match the details in the text,
so the young learners will just complete
a puzzle of sorts when they fill out the
semantic map.
• Ask older and higher ability students to
work on the semantic mapping activity
either individually, dyadically or in small
groups.
• Use a reading selection that matches
the reading and thinking ability of the
students. A highly complex text will
be challenging even for older or even
high-ability students, so choose the text
judiciously.
6 The PRIMALS Compendium of Teaching Resources | LITERACY STRATEGY GUIDES
For Post-Reading Activity
• Show the pre-reading semantic map and
invite students to add to it based on what
they have learned from the reading selection.
• Ask the students to study the initial semantic
map prepared in the prereading exercise. Ask
the following questions:
• Based on what you have understood
from the reading selection, how has your
knowledge of the topic been enriched?
• What words or categories about the topic
should we add? Why?
• Are there ideas you wish to revise after
having read the selection? Why?
• Have the students come up with a
postreading semantic map which already
incorporates the information in the reading
selection.
• Place the pre and postreading semantic
maps side by side and compare students’
knowledge of the topic before and after
reading the selection. Have students explain
how much they have learned about the topic
judging from the contents of the postreading
semantic map.
Applications Across The Curriculum
Semantic maps can also be used
effectively in other content areas like
Mathematics, Science, Social Studies and
the Humanities among others. Wolfinger
(2015), in a web news article titled, A New
Use for Semantic Maps, contends that
semantic maps are more advantageous
because they “can cover a range of
information within a topic, involve the
entire class at once, help reveal students’
misconceptions, and provide a written
record of the students’ ideas.”
Semantic mapping is also widely
recognized in Science as a tool for
structuring information in graphic form.
It comes in many names like concept
 mapping, webbing, networking, and plot
maps. Just like in the case of the Language
Arts and Reading, SM is also used as a science
vocabulary (concept) building strategy; a pre
and postreading strategy; and as a science
study skill strategy.
Examples of semantic maps used in various
content areas appear in Figure 4 and Figure 5.
Rock Types
Sedimentary Igneous
References
artofteachingscience.org (n.d.) Semantic
map for rock types. Retrieved from
artofteachingscience.org/mos/8.5d.html
Duffy, G. G. (2009). Explaining reading, second
edition: A resource for teaching concepts,
skills, and strategies. New York: Guilford
Press.
International Literacy Association (n.d.).
Strategy guide: Using guided reading to
develop student reading independence.
Read Write Think. Retrieved from http://
www.readwritethink.org/professional-
development/strategy-guides/
using-guided-reading-develop-30816.
html#related-resources on 23 January 2019.
Metamorphic
Johnson, D. & Pearson, P. (1984). Teaching
Reading Vocabulary (2nd Ed.). New York:
Holt, Rinehart Winston.

Johnson, D., Pittelman, S. & Heimlich J. (1986).

The Reading Teacher, Vol. 39, No. 8, The
Extrusive High Temp. Low Temp.
Clastics Non-clastics Intrusive Reading-Writing-Thinking Connection (Apr.,
(sandstone) (gypsum) (granite) (obsidian) (gneiss) (slate)
1986), pp. 778-783.

Mozayan, et al. (2012). The role of semantic

Figure 4. Semantic Map for Rock Types
Source: artofteachingscience.org/mos/8.5d.html
mapping as a while- reading activity in
improving reading comprehension ability of
the Iranian University students in General
English (GE) courses. Theory and Practice
in Language Studies, Vol. 2, No. 11, pp. 2422-
2429.

Novak, Joseph D. (1998). Learning, creating,

and using knowledge: Concept maps
as facilitative tools in schools and
Fossils Characteristics corporations. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

ice age Pinnell, G. & Fountas, I. (2010). Research Base

meteor long tails for Guided Reading as an Instructional
big
archaeologist Approach. Retrieved from www.scholastic.
bones enormous ferocious com/guidedreading on 23 January 2019.
rocks
teeth laid eggs ate meat Upper Elementary Snapshots (2017). 23 Effective
extinct voabulary activities. Retrieved from
killer sharp teeth http://www.upperelementarysnapshots.
com/2017/06/23-effective-vocabulary-
Dinosaur activities.html

birds Victoria State Government. (n.d.) Literacy

Stegosaurus Teaching Toolkit: Guided Reading.
Land Before Time T rex
turtles Retrieved from https://www.education.vic.
Jurassic Park raptors gov.au/school/teachers/teachingresources/
Triceratops
Flinstones sharks discipline/english/literacy/readingviewing/
Alligators
Dinosaur Pterodactyl Pages/teachingpracguided.aspx on 23
Brachiosaurus January 2019.
Mammoths
Brontosaurus
Wolfinger, D. M. (2005). A new use for semantic
Movies Types maps. NSTA Web News Digest. Retrieved on
12 December 2018 from https://www.nsta.
org/publications/news/story.aspx?id=51350.

Zorfass, J. & Gray, T. (2014). Semantic mapping.

Figure 5. Semantic Map on Dinosaur Reading rockets. Retrieved on 12 December
Source: Wolfinger, D. (2005). 2018 from http://www.readingrockets.
org/article/connecting-word-meanings-
through-semantic-mapping.

Reader-Text Interaction | Semantic Mapping 7