In this guide
Cambridge Veritas · Original TESOL self-study resources
Understand the idea
Texts connect ideas through repeated key words, related vocabulary and broader terms. Uncontrolled synonym replacement can distort meaning. Teach learners to notice how a writer maintains a topic while introducing new information.
What you will practise
- Explain the key idea in “Lexical cohesion and word families” using a concrete example.
- Choose a teaching response that fits the learner and the purpose.
- Identify evidence you could collect to evaluate that response.
A closer look at the teaching
Lexical chains help a reader keep track of a topic while the text develops. Mark repeated items, broader labels and related expressions, then ask what each refers to. Distinguish a true connection from a merely similar word. This analysis can support revision when a learner changes vocabulary so much that the topic becomes difficult to follow.
A text must make sense as a message and guide a reader through its parts. Cohesion draws attention to the language that connects those parts; coherence draws attention to the ideas and their organisation. Analyse a short complete text so these two dimensions stay connected. Learners can then revise for a reader, checking reference, logical relationships and the information needed to achieve the text’s purpose rather than only adding connectors.
In the classroom
A paragraph introduces a community garden, then refers to the project and its volunteers.
Before choosing an activity, identify what the learner needs to understand or communicate. Separate the language demand from other demands such as reading instructions, managing equipment or speaking to a large group.
A teaching sequence you can adapt
Use these stages as a starting point for this topic. Keep the language goal visible, and change the support when learner responses show a different need.
- 01
Identify the text’s purpose, intended reader and overall message before looking at individual links.
- 02
Trace reference, lexical connections and logical relationships using a short passage.
- 03
Compare a clear version with one containing an ambiguity or organisational problem and discuss the reader’s difficulty.
- 04
Revise or create a new passage, then ask a reader to explain the message and locate essential information.
Check that a reader can connect each broader reference to the original specific topic.
A common mistake to avoid
Do not treat synonym variation as an end in itself or replace a precise term with an inaccurate alternative.
When reviewing the activity, distinguish what you observed from what you inferred. Use the task outcome and a fresh example to decide whether another explanation, a different scaffold or more independent practice is needed.
Adapt it for your learners
Make the task accessible.
Use short passages, visible referent links and a simple organisation map before working on longer texts.
Extend the thinking.
Compare two plausible text organisations and justify which serves a particular audience more effectively.
Keep the intended outcome consistent when comparing responses. Record which support was available so you do not confuse a supported performance with the same task completed independently.
Try it, then compare.
Take a moment to make your own decision. Compare your reasoning with the example, then adapt it for a teaching context you know.
Try it in a teaching context
Map the lexical links and explain their purpose.
Your questions, answered.
What is a common mistake with Lexical cohesion and word families?
Do not treat synonym variation as an end in itself or replace a precise term with an inaccurate alternative.
How can I check whether the teaching worked?
Check that a reader can connect each broader reference to the original specific topic.
How can I support learners who find the task difficult?
Use short passages, visible referent links and a simple organisation map before working on longer texts.
How can I add a useful extra challenge?
Compare two plausible text organisations and justify which serves a particular audience more effectively.
Quick revision
- The key idea: Texts connect ideas through repeated key words, related vocabulary and broader terms.
- The context to remember: A paragraph introduces a community garden, then refers to the project and its volunteers.
- A useful next step: Map the lexical links and explain their purpose.
For your teaching portfolio: keep a brief plan, a note of what learners actually did and one change you would make next time. Use anonymous examples.
Take the module self-checkSources and authorship
This module maps to the supplied syllabus PDF, Text and discourse (4 pages). The study notes, examples, application tasks and self-checks on these pages are original Cambridge Veritas resources.
View the supplied PDF ↗ · Publication reference: source chapter
Written by Cambridge Veritas. Updated .
Use these resources for preparation and reflection. Browser self-check results are for personal study and do not award a qualification or replace observed teaching practice.