What are the most effective ways to teach and learn collocations and idioms based on word frequency?

1 Why word frequency matters

Word frequency refers to how often a word or a phrase appears in a language. It is a useful measure of how common and familiar a word or a phrase is. Research has shown that word frequency affects vocabulary acquisition, comprehension, and retention. Generally, the more frequent a word or a phrase is, the easier it is to learn and remember. However, word frequency is not the only factor that influences vocabulary learning. Other factors include word length, word form, word meaning, word context, and learner characteristics.

2 How to find word frequency data

There are many sources of word frequency data available online, such as corpora, dictionaries, and word lists. Corpora are large collections of texts that represent a language or a genre. They can be searched and analyzed to find out how often and how words and phrases are used. Dictionaries often provide information on word frequency based on corpus data or other criteria. Word lists are compilations of words that are ranked or categorized according to their frequency or difficulty. Some examples of word frequency sources are the British National Corpus, the Collins COBUILD Dictionary, and the Academic Word List.

3 How to teach collocations based on word frequency

Collocations are essential for fluent and natural language use. They can also help learners expand their vocabulary and express themselves more precisely. However, collocations can be challenging to teach and learn, because they are often unpredictable and idiomatic. One way to teach collocations based on word frequency is to use a graded approach. This means introducing collocations that are more frequent and familiar first, and then moving on to less frequent and more specialized ones. For example, you can start with basic collocations such as make a decision or do homework, and then progress to more advanced ones such as make an impression or do research.

4 How to learn collocations based on word frequency

Learning collocations based on word frequency requires exposure, practice, and feedback. Exposure means encountering collocations in authentic texts and contexts, such as books, articles, podcasts, or videos. Practice means using collocations in meaningful and communicative tasks, such as writing, speaking, or games. Feedback means getting correction and guidance from teachers, peers, or self-study tools, such as dictionaries, corpora, or apps. Some examples of learning activities based on word frequency are reading graded readers, writing summaries or reviews, playing collocation quizzes, or checking collocations with online tools.

5 How to teach idioms based on word frequency

Idioms are another important aspect of vocabulary acquisition, as they enrich language and culture. However, idioms can be difficult to teach and learn, because they often have a non-literal meaning that cannot be inferred from the individual words. One way to teach idioms based on word frequency is to use a thematic approach. This means grouping idioms according to their topic or function, such as animals, colors, or emotions. For example, you can teach idioms related to animals, such as a black sheep or a dark horse, and then ask learners to match them with their meanings or use them in sentences.