Mary
Ehrenworth
Speaker, Author, Teacher, Thought Partner to Educators
In this lively, student-centered work, Dr. Mary Ehrenworth presents a complete curriculum for vocabulary acquisition, one that can be embedded as a separate component or taught inside of any reading curriculum.
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Your students will learn to collect and apply literary vocabulary. They will learn a repertoire of writing about reading strategies for deepening literary vocabulary, close reading, and literary conversations. They will dive into a study of etymology, cognates, and compound words, as well as a deep study of morphology. These word conscious learners - budding linguists - will become flexible word solvers and creators as they learn to collect and apply domain vocabulary and develop expertise in attending to varied and subtle context clues not only to acquire domain vocabulary, but to comprehend more complex nonfiction texts.
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ABOUT ME
I work at the intersection of theory and practice. Focusing on helping teachers and students become more powerful and passionate readers, writers, and critical thinkers, I innovate curriculum, demonstrate practical pedagogies, and inspire confidence.
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My fascination with vocabulary acquisition began at the intersection of theory and practice. I admire the research linking vocabulary and reading success done by Elfrieda Hiebert, David Pearson, and Nell Duke, as well as the process of translanguaging fostered by Ofelia García, and the commitment to multilingual learners' critical literacy skills suggested by Elena Cárdenas-Hagan. I also love seeing classroom teachers innovate, find ways to teach morphology and word consciousness, tuck literary vocabulary into read aloud, explore expert domain vocabulary in content studies, so that theory becomes practice.
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Explore this site to find resources, ask me to join you as a workshop leader or thought partner, and share the joy of vocabulary acquisition with colleagues!​​
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B.A. Harvard University
M.A. Teachers College, Columbia University
Ed.D. Teachers College, Columbia University
SERVICES
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I have designed workshops, presented keynotes, created educational retreats, and worked alongside educators in classrooms - teaching, assessing, revising instruction in learning environments. I have worked with school and district leaders to study instructional goals, student data, and leadership structures, to help communities thrive together.
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