MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

HANOI NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION

NGUYEN THI NGOC CHAU

ORGANIZATION OF SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY ACTIVITIES

TO DEVELOP VOCABULARY FOR 3 – 4 YEAR OLD
PRESCHOOL CHILDREN

Specialization: Education (Early Childhood Education)

Code: 9.14.01.01

SUMMARY OF THESIS OF EDUCATION SCIENCE

HANOI - 2022
1
 The work was completed at:
Hanoi National University of Education

Scientific supervisors: 1. Assoc.Prof.Dr. La Thi Bac Ly

2. Assoc.Prof.Dr. Bui Thi Lam

Respondent 1: Prof.Dr. Nguyễn Thị Hoàng Yến

Respondent 2: Assoc.Prof.Dr. Trần Thị Bích Trà
Respondent 3: Assoc.Prof.Dr. Hoàng Thị Mai

The thesis will be defended before the School-level Thesis Judging

Committee meeting at Hanoi National University of Education
on …..hour…day…month… 2022

The thesis can be found at: National Library, Hanoi or the Library of
Hanoi National University of Education

2
 LIST OF PUBLICATIONS
BY THE AUTHOR RELATED TO THE THESIS

1. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Chau (2017), “The reality of vocabulary

development for 3 – 4 year old children in some preschools in Thanh
Hoa city” Education Journal, (Special issue), pp.36-39.
2. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Chau (2018), “developing vocabulary for 3 – 4 year
old preschool children through exploring the plant world”, Education
Journal, (438), pp.23-27.
3. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Chau (2019), “developing vocabulary for 3 – 4 year
old preschool children through exploring natural phenomena”, Journal of
Education, (64), pp.122-130.
4. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Chau (2020), "Several studies on organizing
scientific discovery activities to develop vocabulary for preschool
children", Journal of Education, (Special issue), pp.41 - 45.
5. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Chau (2021), "The reality of organizing scientific
discovery activities to develop vocabulary for preschool children 3 – 4
years old", Journal of Scientific, Hanoi University of Education, (66), p.
197 – 206.”

3
 INTRODUCTION

1. Reason for choosing the topic

1.1. Language is a special signal system, the most important means
of communication, contributing to the cohesion among community
members and at the same time reflecting the cultural life of the nation.
Along with the communication function, language is also a tool for
thinking. These two functions are closely related. Language reflects the
thinking capacity as well as intellectual capacity of each person and is
also a means to express people's understanding of the world around
them. When human thinking develops, language also develops, and vice
versa; when language develops, it also means thinking develops.
Language education is an important task in early childhood
education. Language helps children become a member of society and
helps children express their aspirations and needs, which is a condition
for participating in all social activities, thereby, forming personality.
Through language activities, children are fully developed in terms of
thinking, intelligence, aesthetics, morality, and social skills. In the tasks
of language education for children, vocabulary development is the most
important task. vocabulary development helps children expand their
understanding and awareness of the world around them to develop
thinking. Children want to express their thoughts for others and to
understand others, which depends a lot on vocabulary.
1.2. Children at the age of 3 – 4 years have strong development in
all aspects. This is considered a "golden opportunity" for language
development. At this stage, children have the need to communicate,
perceive the world around them, assert themselves and participate in
activities. These needs motivate children to explore and provide
opportunities for rapid vocabulary growth. Children's vocabulary at this
4
stage develops rapidly in all aspects: the number of words, the structure
of words, and the ability to understand the meaning of words...
Therefore, together with the development of other elements such as
pronunciation and model learning sentence, teaching and learning are
important tasks in the process of language education for children,
especially preschool children (preschool) 3 – 4 years old.
1.3. In preschool, all activities can be used to educate children.
Each activity has its own advantages, in which scientific discovery is an
activity with many advantages. Through this activity, children not only
acquire knowledge about surrounding phenomena and know the names
of plants, flowers, animals, etc., but also expand their vocabulary with
improving variety, accurateness, and activeness. Children use words to
name and describe things and phenomena. When directly participating in
scientific discovery activities, children can touch, smell, hear, and feel
things as well as phenomena with their senses. Therefore, children's
acquisition of knowledge and understanding of vocabulary will be closer
to real life and become more effective.
1.4. In fact, at present, when organizing scientific discovery
activities, teachers often focus on cognitive development goals but pay
little attention to language development in general and child
development in particular. The vocabulary development has not been
placed in the system or in the combination of activities together.
Children do not have many opportunities to communicate, share and
express their ideas; thus, scientific discovery activities have not really
created a positive language environment for children. On the other hand,
most teachers still have difficulties in building methods for children's
development in scientific discovery activities. These disadvantages and
difficulties need to be studied to find remedial methods to improve the
quality of language education and language development for children.
1.5. Research on language development in general, and vocabulary
development in particular for children has been interested by many

5
domestic and foreign authors. However, there has not been systematical
research into the organization of scientific discovery activities as a
means of vocabulary development for 3 – 4 year old preschool children.
Stemming from the above reasons, I chose the research topic
"Organization of scientific discovery activities to develop
vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old preschool children".
2. Research purpose
The study proposes methods to organize scientific discovery
activities to develop preschool for 3 – 4 year old children, contributing
to help children develop language for communication and learning and
improve the quality of care and education for children at preschool.
3. Objects and research subjects
3.1. Research object
The process of vocabulary development education for 3 – 4 year old
children in preschool.
3.2. Research subjects
Methods to organize scientific discovery activities to develop
vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old children in preschool.
4. Scientific hypothesis
Scientific discovery activities are one of the effective means of
vocabulary development for children 3 – 4 years old. The organization
of scientific discovery activities to develop preschool for 3 – 4 year old
children has had certain results, but there are still many shortcomings,
and the children's vocabulary for expression and reception is still
limited. Children will be helped to develop vocabulary better, if building
and implementing measures to organize scientific discovery activities
for children 3 - 4 years old systematically based on goals of developing
vocabulary and creating opportunities for children to experience
language; designing a diverse scientific discovery environment to
6
stimulate children to learn words; organizing activities to experience and
explore with real objects so that children can accumulate vocabulary by
themselves; creating opportunities for children to use the vocabulary
learned in scientific discovery activities in daily activities; collaborating
with families for preschool children 3 - 4 years old in discovering
scientific to strengthen and positive vocabulary.
5. Research mission
5.1. Research on the theoretical basis of organizing scientific
discovery activities to develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old children in
preschool.
5.2. Survey on the actual situation of organizing scientific
discovery activities to develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old children in
preschools in Thanh Hoa province.
5.3. Propose and experiment with methods to organize scientific
discovery activities to develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old children in
preschool.
6. Limit the scope of research
6.1. Research subjects
Thesis research on vocabulary development for 3 – 4 year old
preschool children, including receptive vocabulary and expressive
vocabulary.
Methods to organize scientific discovery activities aimed at
developing vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old children are carried out at
preschool.
6.2. Objects and research area
- Survey of the situation:
+ 210 preschool teachers in 15 public preschools in Thanh Hoa
province
7
 + 120 children 3 – 4 years old in 04 schools (out of 15 schools
above)
- Experiment: 120 children 3 – 4 years old in 02 preschools (in the
above 15 schools)
7. Research approach and methods
7.1. Approach
- Activities approach: Children's development is only effective if
conducted through activities suitable to children's interests, abilities and
perceptions, especially experiences and communication between
children and friends as well as adults around. In preschool, scientific
discovery activities have their own advantages in creating an
environment, creating opportunities for children to observe, experience,
accumulate and communicate. Therefore, it is necessary to choose
activities with rich, diverse, and attractive objects suitable for 3 – 4 year
old children to help them with vocabulary development.
- Systematics approach: The process of organizing scientific
discovery activities is an integral part of the educational process in
preschools. This process includes many elements such as purposes,
content, methods, means, and evaluation. These elements have certain
positions and functions and interact with each other. The systematicity
required when instructing children on scientific discovery needs to be
placed in relation to other objective conditions that affect the process of
organization and operation such as economic and social conditions,
characteristics of the natural environment, local society, and conditions
of preschool.
- Integration approach: Applying an integrative approach, the
thesis researches the organization of scientific discovery activities for
child development with a combination of many different methods and
methods. vocabulary development for children needs to be integrated in
activities and daily activities of children. Through the organization of
8
scientific analysis activities, teachers create conditions for children to
directly contact objects with their senses, perceive vocabulary along
with the process of forming symbols about things and phenomena in the
surrounding world.
- Development approach: Child development is a continuous
process of inheritance. Research on methods to organize scientific
discovery activities for 3 – 4 year old children based on the general
development of the child, at each stage, measures to strengthen the
existing vocabulary, help them achieve a higher level of development.
On the basis of inheriting the achieved results, the thesis is looking for
ways to improve vocabulary of children 3 – 4 years old through
organizing scientific discovery activities at preschools.
7.2. Research Methods
- Group of theoretical research methods.
- Group of practical research methods.
- Statistical methods of data processing.
8. Defensive points
8.1. Children 3 – 4 years old can develop the spontaneous receptive
vocabulary and expressive vocabulary during the process of
participating in scientific discovery activities at preschool.
8.2. Vocabulary of 3 – 4 years old children is developed through
language experience. Scientific discovery is an activity with many
advantages in creating opportunities for children to directly interact with
objects, using language in meaningful contexts, and is a good
environment for development. Organizing scientific discovery activities
affects the development of children 3 – 4 years old.
8.3. Measures to organize scientific discovery activities have a
good impact on vocabulary development for 3 – 4 year old children
when they are designed with clear goals and conducted in a favorable
9
environment, creating opportunities for children to experience language
in a meaningful way that is natural, positive, and regular.
9. New contributions of the thesis
9.1. Supplementing and enriching the theory of vocabulary
development.
9.2. Provide information on the actual situation of organizing
scientific discovery activities to develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old
preschool children by teachers in some preschools in Thanh Hoa as a
scientific basis for researchers and managers of preschool education in
the area to advance a local preschool education development plan.
9.3. The methods to organize scientific discovery activities aimed
at developing vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old children proposed in the
thesis can be used as a reference for research, training and fostering of
preschool teachers in Thanh Hoa province. In addition, these methods
can be creatively applied in preschools with equivalent educational
conditions to contribute to improving the quality of children's education.
10. Thesis structure
In addition to the Introduction, Conclusions and
Recommendations, References and Appendixes, the content of the thesis
consists of 4 chapters:
Chapter 1: Overview and theoretical basis of the organization of
scientific discovery activities to develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old
preschool children.
Chapter 2: The reality of organizing scientific discovery activities
to develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old preschool children.
Chapter 3: Measures to organize scientific discovery activities to
develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old preschool children.
Chapter 4: Pedagogical experiment.

10
 Chapter 1
OVERVIEW AND THEORETICAL BASIS OF THE
ORGANIZATION OF SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY ACTIVITIES
TO DEVELOP VOCABULARY FOR 3 – 4 YEAR OLD
PRESCHOOL CHILDREN

1.1. Research problem overview

1.1.1. Studies on vocabulary development for 3 – 4 year old children
First: Studies on the rate of vocabulary development of children 3
– 4 years old: In this direction, there are typical authors such as Owens;
Gard. Gilman & Gorman; Linda & Catherine; Luu Thi Lan; Nguyen
Xuan Khoa; Nguyen Thi Phuong Nga; Nguyen Thi Hien and Nguyen
Thi Tuoi. The above authors all confirmed that at the age of 3 – 4,
children have a rapid growth in vocabulary. However, each author offers
different studies on the specific number of words that children acquire
and the quality of these words.
Second: Studies on the relationship between vocabulary
development and children's cognitive and language development: In this
direction, there are typical authors such as J. Piaget; L.S. Vygotsky; E.I.
Tikheeva; Justice, L. M., Meier, J., & Walpole, S… The above authors
all established the relationship between vocabulary, language, and
cognition development of children. In Vietnamese corpus, the authors
Nguyen Huy Can and Luu Thi Lan studied the children's pronunciation
characteristics, vocabulary, ratio of the used word types, sentence
characteristics, and common errors in speech… in relation to the
children's language development at preschool age; at the same time, they
affirmed that the development of each element of language is a condition
and a premise for the development of other elements.

11
 Third: Research on factors affecting children's vocabulary
development: Many studies have analyzed the influence of factors on
children's vocabulary development. This direction of research can
mention authors Van Kleeck, A.; Hoff E; Catherine L. Taylor, Daniel
Christensen, David Lawrence, Francis Mitrou, Stephen R. Zubrick;
Hoang Thi Oanh; Luu Thi Lan... The authors have declared that there
are many factors affecting the development of children's vocabulary
such as cultural - educational environment or children themselves.
Fourth: Regarding the assessment of children's vocabulary:
Research results show that the assessment of children's vocabulary
should focus on the assessment of receptive vocabulary and expressive
vocabulary as well as the width (number of words) and the depth (degree
of understanding of the word's meaning). Pictures are a commonly used
vocabulary assessment tool.
Fifth: Research on methods and measures to develop vocabulary
for preschool children. There are many studies around proposing
methods and measures to organize activities to develop vocabulary for
children. Specifically, Daily communication and interaction with
children to develop vocabulary by authors Miller, P.H; Miller, P. J. &
Mehler, R. A; Penno, Wilkinson & Moore; Elaine Weitzman Zucker,
Piasta & Kaderavek, McKeown and Beck, Girolametto, Huttenlocher;
Typical methods of reading, telling stories, singing and playing games
by authors Miller, P.H; Miller, Christ, T. and Wang, C, Hoang Thi
Oanh....
1.1.2. Research on organizing scientific discovery activities for 3 – 4
year old preschool children
First: The role of scientific discovery activities in the development
of 3 – 4 year old preschool children.
Research in this direction has typical authors such as Pextalodi J.H;
Worth, K, Nguyen Thi Thu Hien... These authors emphasize the great

12
role of the process of observation and contact with nature and society in
the acquisition of knowledge, intellectual development, and language of
children.
Second: Research on guiding the organization of scientific
discovery activities for 3 – 4 year old children. Authors Marilyn Fleer &
Tim Hardy offer approaches to teaching preschoolers to explore science;
Mary & Susan offer preschool scientific discovery activities in the form
of play. Other authors like Thomas, Bloom have considered scientific
discovery as a means of comprehensive development education for
preschool children and built a "bank" of specific scientific discovery
activities to guide preschool teachers to organize scientific discovery for
children in a variety of ways to create opportunities for children to
participate effectively, thereby developing children's vocabulary.
1.1.3. Researches on organizing scientific discovery activities to
develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old preschool children
First: Research using exercises, games, experiments... in the
process of letting children explore science to develop vocabulary.
Author Tikheeva E. I. believes that the only way to expand vocabulary
of children is to regularly observe things and phenomena. Therefore,
children need to be exposed to real objects and know its properties. This
point of view is still valid so far in enriching vocabulary, developing the
content of words, and helping children know how to use words correctly
while speaking. Therefore, we will select and apply them to organize
scientific discovery activities for 3 – 4 year old children to acquire
vocabulary.
Second: Organizing experiential activities and discussing
activities in the process of scientific discovery to develop vocabulary for
children, with authors such as Smith, Lauren Lowry, Humphyryes, Luu
Thi Lan, Dinh Hong Thai, Nguyen Van Can, La Thi Bac Ly, Bui Thi
Lam... The above authors have focused on research on language
development, language development measures by using scientific
13
discovery activities as means for language development and then
proposed some measures to organize activities to develop language for
preschool children.
In summary, there are many studies on vocabulary and developing
vocabulary for preschool children 3 – 4 years old. In particular, research
on organizing activities of scientific discovery in general and scientific
discovery to develop children's vocabulary in particular have been
interested. Studies in this direction have also guided how to organize
scientific discovery activities for the comprehensive development of
children. However, there is still a gap in the research of organizating
scientific discovery activities to develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old
preschool children in Vietnam. Therefore, it is necessary to study how to
organize scientific discovery activities to develop children's vocabulary
in a methodical and systematic way, thereby building measures to
prepare scientific discovery activities to develop vocabulary for 3 - 4
year old children in preschool.
1.2. Theoretical basis of the topic
1.2.1. Words and vocabulary
- Vietnamese word: According to Do Huu Chau: "Vietnamese
word is one or a number of fixed, invariant syllables, bearing certain
grammatical features, in certain structural types, all corresponding to a
certain type of meaning, the largest in Vietnamese and the smallest to
create a sentence”.
- Vocabulary: According to Le Huu Tinh, "an individual's
vocabulary is all the words and word-equivalent units of the language
stored in the individual's mind and used by that individual in
communication activities".
1.2.2. Developing vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old preschool children

14
 - The concept of vocabulary of 3 – 4 year old preschool children:
A child's vocabulary is the total of words and equivalent word units in a
language, which are stored in the child's mind in the form of
receptiveness (understanding the meaning of words) or expressiveness
(using appropriate words).
- Vocabulary characteristics of 3 – 4 year old preschool children:
Vocabulary in terms of quantity; vocabulary in terms of word structure;
children's ability to understand word meanings.
- The word learning process of 3 – 4 year old preschool children:
Studies on the word learning process of children have shown that to
learn a word, children need to go through stages of listening #
understanding # imitating # speaking.
- Expression of vocabulary development of 3 – 4 year old
preschool children: Accumulating the number of words necessary for
linguistic communication; creating a reasonable word structure; the
ability to understand the meaning of words and the ability to use words
in meaningful communication contexts.
- Developing vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old preschool children:
+ Developing vocabulary for preschool children 3 - 4 years old is
a pedagogical process with a purpose and a plan to help children
increase the number of words, understand the meaning (receptive
vocabulary), and use words (expressive vocabulary) in different
communication contexts.
+ Developing children's vocabulary includes two aspects:
increasing the children's receptive vocabulary and expressive
vocabulary.
+ In this study, the content of vocabulary development for children
focuses on words related to the content of scientific discovery in

15
preschool (objects, natural phenomena, plants, animals, and parts of of
body).
1.2.3. Organize scientific discovery activities with vocabulary
development for 3 – 4 year old preschool children
1.2.3.1. The concept of scientific discovery activities
Scientific discovery activities of preschool children 3 - 4 years old
is the process where children directly participate in learning and
exploring the world around them with their senses through activities:
observation, comparison, classification, test, simple experimentation,
discussion...; thereby acquiring the right knowledge, skills and attitudes
towards these subjects.
1.2.3.2. Characteristics of scientific discovery activities of 3 – 4 year
old preschool children
Scientific discovery activities for children 3 – 4 years old are like
what for those at any other age. However, due to the influence of age,
scientific discovery activities for children aged 3 – 4 years are less
academic, complex, and novel than scientific discovery activities for
those at older ages. Scientific discovery of 3 – 4 year old children is to
explore and discover things and phenomena in the surrounding world so
that they can recognize and name and know how to use words in specific
situations.
1.2.3.3. Advantages of scientific discovery activities for vocabulary
development for 3 – 4 year old preschool children
- Scientific discovery activities create a diverse environment for
children to interact, observe, and recognize to accumulate vocabulary
- Scientific discovery activities stimulate children to interact and
exchange to use words in sentences
- Scientific discovery activities create opportunities for children to
expand the range of words used.
16
1.2.3.4. The process of organizing scientific discovery activities to
develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old preschool children
* Concept: Organizing scientific discovery activities to develop
children's vocabulary is the process by which teachers carry out
necessary tasks to create conditions and influence children to help them
become self-disciplined, positive, and independent in participating in
scientific discovery activities, through which children's receptive and
expressive vocabulary is increased.
*Objectives of organizing scientific discovery activities to develop
children's vocabulary
- Provide opportunities for children to interact, observe and
recognize the surrounding environment.
- Create opportunities for children to interact and use language in
the process of discovery.
- Bring newness, diversity and attractiveness of objects in the
surrounding environment to children, making them excited when
participating in scientific discovery activities.
* Content of organizing scientific discovery activities to develop
children's vocabulary
Scientific discovery is one of three contents in the field of
Cognitive Development Education (besides the content "Social
Discovery" and "Getting acquainted with some elementary concepts of
math"). Scientific discovery is considered as one of the means to
develop vocabulary for preschool children. Vocabulary needs to be
developed based on the content of the preschool education program.
*Methods and measures to organize scientific discovery activities
to develop children's vocabulary

17
 - Methods of organizing scientific discovery activities: group of
visual methods, group of verbal methods, group of practical and
experiential methods.
- Measures to organize scientific discovery activities: The method
of organizing scientific discovery activities to develop children's
vocabulary is a specific way between teachers and children working
together to carry out discovery activities to help children achieve the
development of receptive vocabulary (understanding the meaning of
words) and expressive vocabulary (using words in the right context).
The form of organizing scientific discovery activities: the form of
organizing scientific discovery activities for 3 – 4 year old children
mainly through learning, playing, and other activities (visiting,
picnicking, working...).
- Evaluation of the results of organizing scientific discovery
activities: Evaluation of the results of organizing scientific discovery
activities for 3 – 4 year old preschool children at preschool should be
based on educational goals, which includes both cognitive development
and vocabulary development goals.
- The process of organizing scientific discovery activities to
develop vocabulary for preschool children 3 - 4 years old: Step 1:
Design activities. Step 2: Prepare the operating environment. Step 3:
Perform the activity. Step 4: Evaluate the activity.
1.2.4. Factors affecting the organization of scientific discovery
activities to develop vocabulary for children 3 – 4 years old
There are 3 basic factors affecting the organization of scientific
discovery activities to develop vocabulary for children 3 - 4 years old:
Developmental characteristics of children 3 - 4 years old; children’s
working environment; and pedagogical competence of teachers.
Conclusion of Chapter 1

18
 The issue of language development for preschool children in
general, and vocabulary development for 3 – 4 year old preschool
children in particular has been studied extensively in the world and in
Vietnam. Organizing scientific discovery activities has many advantages
in developing children's vocabulary. When participating in scientific
discovery activities, children have many opportunities to directly
explore, observe, practice and experience, thereby developing language
skills as well as vocabulary. Organizing scientific discovery activities
helps children to hear, understand, imitate and use words correctly.
Teacher is the person who directly organizes activities of scientific
discovery, orientation, and pedagogical impact to develop children's
vocabulary according to educational orientations and goals. Children are
the subject of the educational process. In the educational environment, it
is needed to pay attention to the social environment and communication
between objects around the child. These factors have a reciprocal
relationship with each other. Therefore, it is necessary to combine the
above factors in the process of organizing scientific discovery activities
to develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old children in preschool.

19
 Chapter 2
THE STATUS OF ORGANIZING SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY
ACTIVITIES TO DEVELOP VOCABULARY FOR 3 – 4 YEAR
OLD PRESCHOOL CHILDREN

2.1. Organize a situation survey

2.1.1. The purpose of the survey: To find out and evaluate the actual
situation of organizing scientific discovery activities and the level of
physical development of 3 – 4 year old preschool children as a scientific
basis for proposing measures to organize scientific discovery activities.
Learning to develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old preschool children.
2.1.2. Survey object and area: 210 teachers of grades 3 – 4 years old
from 15 preschools in Thanh Hoa province. 120 children 3 – 4 years old
of 04 preschools (02 urban schools are Lam Son Kindergarten, Practice
Kindergarten - Hong Duc University, 02 rural schools are Hop Thang -
Trieu Son Kindergarten, Kindergarten School Luong Son - Thuong
Xuan).

20
2.1.3. Survey content: The reality of teachers' perceptions of the need,
goals, and tasks of vocabulary development for children 3 – 4 years old.
Reality of organizing scientific discovery activities to develop children's
vocabulary. Professional support from managers in the scientific
discovery organization. Status of 3 – 4 year old children’s vocabulary.
2.1.4. Survey methods and tools: Using polls for preschool teachers;
attend and observe scientific discovery activities; group discussion and
in-depth interview; measuring vocabulary including receptive
vocabulary and expressive vocabulary of 3 – 4 year old children using
the tools of Pham, G., & Tipton, T. (2018); processing survey data using
SPSS and Microsoft Excel 2010.
2.1.5. Investigation period: January 2019 to April 2019.
2.1.6. Survey progress:
* Prepare for the survey: Making a poll of teachers' opinions on
organizing scientific discovery activities to develop vocabulary for 3 – 4
year old preschool children; developing content for group discussions
and in-depth interviews with teachers at preschools; building
observation sheets; organizing scientific discovery activities; preparing
scorecards and picture sets for children's vocabulary assessment tools.
* Conduct a situation survey: Distributing teacher surveys;
conducting group discussions and in-depth interviews with teachers at
preschools; studying teachers' records and books; attending activities at
preschool; using assessment tools and the scale of Pham, G., & Tipton,
T. (2018) to measure the vocabulary of children 3 – 4 years old;
processing the survey results.
2.2. Survey results
2.2.1. The reality of teachers' awareness about organizing scientific
discovery activities to develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old preschool
children.

21
 a. About the necessity of developing vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old
preschool children.
7.14

92.86

Rất cần thiết Cần thiết Không cần thiết

Figure 2.1: Teachers' perception of the necessity of developing

vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old preschool children
b. Regarding the goal of vocabulary development for 3 – 4 year
old preschool children: Teachers believe that the goal of vocabulary
development is to help children increase the number of words with the
highest percentage (210/210, accounting for 100.00%). Next is the goal
of helping children understand the meaning of words (197/210,
accounting for 93.81%); objective helping children use words in
appropriate communication situations (181/210, accounting for
86.19%). 38.09 % of teachers believe that the goal of vocabulary
development is correct pronunciation.
c. Teachers' perception of the task of developing vocabulary for
children 3 – 4 years old: 85% surveyed teachers have chosen all 4 tasks.
In particular, 100% teachers believe that increasing the number of words
is the task of developing vocabulary for children 3 – 4 years old.
2.2.2. The reality of organizing scientific discovery activities by
teachers to develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old preschool children
a. The degree of integration of vocabulary development goals for 3
– 4 year old preschool children when organizing scientific discovery

22
activities: The integration of vocabulary development goals for 3 – 4
year old children when organizing scientific discovery activities is done
by teachers at the level of “frequently” or “sometimes”; there is no
teacher who does not fulfill the goal of developing vocabulary when
organizing scientific discovery activities. However, most teachers
believe that developing vocabulary through organizing scientific
discovery activities is first to achieve the goal of increasing the number
of words in children, followed by children understand the meaning of
words, then it is the last that children know how to use words in
meaningful communication situations.
b. The content of vocabulary development for children 3 – 4 years
old in the topics of scientific discovery activities: Most teachers ensure
the goal of vocabulary development through the content of scientific
discovery. However, the content of the topic of animals is carried out by
the teacher to the highest degree of integration of vocabulary
development; then in turn, the topic of objects, plants, parts of the
human body, a number of natural phenomena.
c. Measures used by teachers in organizing scientific discovery
activities to develop vocabulary for children 3 – 4 years old: The most
frequently used measures are the organization of experiential activities
associated with each discovery topic, followed by strengthening for
children to observe objects combined with using open-ended questions
and using games to develop vocabulary. Thus, teachers know how to
apply measures suitable to age characteristics and features of scientific
discovery activities.
d. About the form of organizing scientific discovery activities to
develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old preschool children: Form of
organizing scientific discovery activities to develop vocabulary for 3 – 4
year old preschool children through learning is used the most by
teachers, followed by the following form: Play activities and labor

23
activities; The form that is least used by teachers is activities in daily
life: eating, sleeping.
e. Regarding the advantages and disadvantages of teachers when
organizing scientific discovery activities to develop vocabulary for 3 – 4
year old preschool children. Advantages: teachers are enthusiastic and
dedicated to their profession, loving children, understanding children,
knowing how to organize activities to develop children's language;
children enjoy participating in scientific discovery activities; abundant
physical facilities; family education and school education work closely
together. Difficulties: teachers are not flexible when using methods of
organizing scientific discovery activities; in addition, “work pressure of
a preschool teacher in a day; lack of time to prepare to organize
scientific discovery activities” and “teachers are not fully aware of the
nature and meaning and task of developing children’s vocabulary”.
These are the difficulties that teachers face when organizing scientific
discovery activities to develop children's vocabulary.
g. Regarding the factors affecting the organization of scientific
discovery activities to develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old preschool
children: Teachers believe that the factors that greatly affect the
development of children's vocabulary are the methods and measures of
organizing and guiding activities, which are the biggest difficulties
being followed by facilities, equipment, documents, and educational
environment at preschools; also, the cooperation between school and
families. Finally, teachers believe that the content of educational
activities is a factor that has little influence on the development of
children's vocabulary.
h. About professional support from managers in organizing
scientific discovery activities to develop gradual capital for 3 – 4 year
old preschool children. Content: offering contests on organizing
scientific discovery activities or vocabulary development for children 3
– 4 years old accounts for the highest percentage; then turn to the

24
following contents: providing materials for teachers on organizing
activities to explore science or develop vocabulary for children 3 – 4
years old; creating conditions for teachers to attend inter-class, inter-
school, and inter-classroom time in organizing activities to explore
science or develop vocabulary for children 3 – 4 years old; making
opportunities for teachers to participate in specialized training courses
on organizing scientific discovery activities or developing vocabulary
for children 3 – 4 years old.... Contents of inviting experts to the school
to train teachers on organizing scientific discovery activities or
developing vocabulary for children 3 – 4 years old, is the issue that has
received the least attention.
2.2.3. Status of vocabulary development of children 3 – 4 years old
The average vocabulary of 3 – 4 year old children is not high.
Children's receptive vocabulary reaches an average of 28.55/40 words.
The average expressive vocabulary of children is 47,70/ 80 words.
Regarding gender: There is a difference between the mean values of
girls and boys, but it is not significant. About the region: Children in the
city have a higher vocabulary than children in the countryside.
General assessment of the current situation of organizing scientific
discovery activities to develop vocabulary for children 3 - 4 years old in
preschool: Through survey, observation, attendance, exchange, group
discussion, we find that teachers were aware of the relationship between
scientific discovery activities and the vocabulary development of
children 3 - 4 years old; but they did not know how to integrate scientific
discovery activities into learning contents to develop children's
vocabulary. Therefore, the results of children's vocabulary are not high,
especially expressive vocabulary.
Conclusion of chapter 2
Through studying the actual situation of organizing scientific
discovery activities to develop vocabulary for children 3 – 4 years old,

25
we found that preschool teachers were aware of the need to develop
vocabulary for children. However, they are only aware of children's
vocabulary development mainly in terms of quantity. The survey results
show that children's receptive vocabulary and expressive vocabulary are
not high and uneven between urban and rural areas. Most children have
better receptive vocabulary than expressive vocabulary. The limitations
in the actual situation of organizing scientific discovery activities to
develop children's vocabulary are teachers are not flexible when
organizing scientific discovery activities, and teachers have not yet
exploited the advantages of scientific discovery activities for the
development of vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old children. These limitations
stem from many reasons such as teachers have not correctly identified
the goals of developing children's vocabulary; teachers have not created
many opportunities for children to directly participate in scientific
discovery activities; and teachers lack of experience in organizing
scientific discovery activities to develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old
children.
Chapter 3
METHODS OF ORGANIZING SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY
ACTIVITIES TO DEVELOP VOCABULARY FOR 3 – 4 YEAR
OLD PRESCHOOL CHILDREN

3.1. Principles of building measures

- Ensure the implementation of common educational goals and
vocabulary development goals for 3 – 4 year old preschool children
- Make sure to match the characteristics of 3 – 4 year old preschool
children
- Ensure to promote children's positivity in scientific discovery
activities, enhance experiences to develop vocabulary

26
 - Make sure it is suitable for practical conditions
- Ensure inheritance and development
3.2. Proposing measures to organize scientific discovery activities to
develop vocabulary for children 3 – 4 years old
3.3.1. Measure 1: Design scientific discovery activities based on the
goal of developing vocabulary and creating opportunities for children
to experience language
Designing scientific discovery activities based on goal vocabulary
development for preschool children 3 - 4 years old is to build integrated
scientific discovery activities to develop vocabulary age-appropriate to
program content of early childhood education, which helps children not
only perceive the world around them, but also have many opportunities
to develop vocabulary. Designing scientific discovery activities is a
content in the process of making a scientific discovery plan. In the
process of designing scientific discovery activities, teachers need to
combine knowledge and skills on language so that children have
opportunities to memorize new words, pronounce them, understand their
meanings, and know how to use words in specific situations.
Designing scientific discovery activities based on goals developing
vocabulary by providing opportunities for children to experience
language includes the following contents: Designing goal-based
activities for developing vocabulary; choosing activities to increase
opportunities for children to develop vocabulary.
3.2.2. Measure 2: Build a diverse scientific discovery environment to
stimulate children to learn words
Building the physical environment: Determine the area of
operation in accordance with the goal of developing vocabulary; prepare
a variety of tools and materials; design and arrange corners/areas to
organize scientific discovery activities.

27
 Building a psychological environment: Create a friendly, stable,
and safe environment for children; create many opportunities for
children to communicate verbally; observe and consider children's
reactions and attitudes to know what children like and fear and make
adjustments in the process of preparing to organize scientific discovery.
3.2.3. Measure 3: Organize experiential and discovery activities with
real objects so that children can accumulate their own vocabulary
*Enhancing opportunities for children to participate in
experiences in scientific discovery activities: teachers increase
opportunities for children to directly interact with real objects. As a
result, children will get a real sense of the object, gain a lot of
information, and form new experiences. This is the basis for children to
develop vocabulary in particular and develop language skills in general.
* Take advantage of all times and activities of the day for children
to observe and explore thematic objects:
With the same theme, teachers can create opportunities for children
to observe and experience activities at many different times during the
day: classroom time, outdoor discovery time, mealtime, playtime…
Thereby, children with their senses can observe and discover interesting
things and phenomena in the surrounding. Appropriate times of the day
that teachers can take advantage of for children to have the opportunity
to observe, explore and experience real objects can be mealtimes
(observing utensils, eating utensils, vegetables, tubers, fruits, meat,
fish...); outdoor activities (observing ornamental plants, fruit trees,
flowers, vegetables, animals, etc. in the school garden, vehicle parking
area, etc.). Children can learn vocabulary at all times with real objects.
3.2.4. Measure 4: Create opportunities for children to use the
vocabulary learned in scientific discovery activities in daily activities.
Integrating and creating opportunities for children to consolidate their
learned vocabulary through exercises, games, and new situations in
28
various activities. As a result, children have conditions to develop their
vocabulary while promoting their imagination and creativity. In order to
effectively develop vocabulary, the organization of the above games and
situations will be an opportunity for children to apply the experiences
gained from scientific discovery activities into other activities. With
each activity, children will have new experiences, so their vocabulary is
strengthened and increased.
3.2.5. Measure 5: Coordinate with families for 3 – 4 year old preschool
children to explore science to strengthen and activate vocabulary
Teachers directly and indirectly discuss and agree with young
parents on the content, methods, and measures of organizing scientific
discovery activities to develop children's vocabulary; organize
discussions and contests... to exchange content on developing
vocabulary for children; encourage the participation of parents.
3.3. The relationship between the measures
The proposed measures follow the process of organizing scientific
discovery activities to develop children's vocabulary. Each measure is
built in a logical sequence, closely linked in goals, meanings, contents,
methods and conditions for implementation, but all are towards the
common goal of developing children's vocabulary.

29
 Design scientific discovery activities based on the goal of developing vocabulary
and creating opportunities for children to experience language

Building a diverse Organize activities to Create opportunities for

scientific discovery experience and explore children to use the
environment to stimulate with real objects so that vocabulary they have learned
children to learn words children can accumulate in scientific discovery
their own vocabulary activities in daily activities

Collaborating with families for preschool children 3 – 4 years old to explore science
to strengthen and activate their vocabulary

Conclusion of chapter 3
The thesis has proposed 5 measures to organize scientific
discovery activities to develop vocabulary for children 3 – 4 years old:
(1) Design scientific discovery activities based on the goal of developing
vocabulary and creating opportunities for children to experience
language; (2) Build a diverse scientific discovery environment to
stimulate children to learn words; (3) Organize activities to experience
and explore with real objects so that children can accumulate vocabulary
by themselves; (4) Create opportunities for children to use the
vocabulary learned in scientific discovery activities in daily activities;
(5) Collaborate with families for 3 – 4 year old preschool children to
explore science to consolidate and activate vocabulary. The measures
have a close relationship with each other, following the process of
30
organizing scientific discovery activities. Measures 1 and 2 will create a
basis and conditions for organizational activities to take place smoothly
and effectively. Teachers use method 3 to create opportunities for
children to experience and talk to each other about the object of
discovery. Measure 4 will help children once again strengthen their
learned experiential vocabulary and use it in other conditions and
circumstances. Measure 5 helps children use vocabulary in more diverse
communication situations, not only at school but also at home. The
measures are towards the common goal of developing vocabulary for
children 3 - 4 years old.

Chapter 4
PEDAGOGICAL EXPERIENCE

4.1. Overview of the experimental organization process

31
4.1.1. Experimental purpose: To verify the effectiveness of the
proposed measures of organizing scientific discovery activities to
develop vocabulary for preschool children aged 3 – 4 years; thereby,
determining the agreement between the research results and the
proposed scientific hypothesis.
4.1.2. Subjects, time, and location of the experiment
- Subjects and locations: 120 children in 2 preschools in Thanh
Hoa province (Lam Son Kindergarten and Hop Thang Kindergarten,
Trieu Son).
- Period: From July 2019 to December 2019.
4.1.3. Experimental content and requirements
4.1.3.1. Experimental content: With the experimental group, applying
measures to organize scientific discovery activities to develop
vocabulary for children has been proposed, but the activities still ensure
the correct program. With the control group, implementing educational
contents and activities in the current Early Childhood Education
Program of the Ministry of Education.
4.1.3.2. Experimental requirements: Children in the experimental group
and the control group are similar in development. The teachers of the
control group and the experimental group are qualified and have
experience in the profession for 5 years or more. Each class has 02
teachers in charge and follow the current preschool education program.
The classroom facilities, tools and toys are relatively complete according
to the regulations of the Ministry of Education and Training.
4.1.4. Experimental process:
Select experimental and control subjects, develop a plan to organize the
experiment and train teachers, measure the vocabulary input of 3 – 4
year old children, organize the implementation of activities according to
the experimental plan, evaluate result, and process data.

32
4.2. Analyze experimental results
4.2.1. Results of measuring vocabulary of 3 – 4 year old children
before the experiment
Statistical results showed that there was not much difference between
the children in the control group and the experimental group before the
experiment.
4.2.2. Results of measuring children's vocabulary after the experiment
4.2.2.1. General results on vocabulary of children in the experimental
group
Children's receptive vocabulary reached an average of 33.65/40
words. Among them, some children reached the maximum level of
understanding 40/40 words. Children achieve a minimum of 30/40
words. Expressive vocabulary of children reached an average of
67.16/80 words. Among them, some children reached the maximum
level of speaking 76/80 words. Children achieve a minimum of 60/80
words. The standard deviations in the receptive vocabulary and
expressive vocabulary were lower than before the experiment. For the
receptive vocabulary is 2.38 and for the expressive vocabulary is 3.32.
This shows that the difference in children's vocabulary is shortened.
To check the reliability and effectiveness of the proposed
measures, the study examined the difference between the scores before
and after the experiment using SPSS 20.0 software and the T-test
formula (Pair Sample T Test).
The test by the Pair Sample T Test shows a substantial difference
between the pre-experiment and post-experiment evaluation results at
the 95% significance level of the research subjects. The value sig =
0.000 < 0.05 in both the receptive vocabulary and the expressive
vocabulary shows that there is a difference in the mean score before and
after the experiment. Mean = 8.16667 and Mean = -25.55000, there is a

33
difference in this value before the experiment and after the experiment,
showing that after the experiment, children have more progress in
vocabulary. The application of the proposed measures in the topic has
helped children improve their vocabulary significantly. The value sig =
0.000 (< 0.05) in the Paired Sample Correlations table shows that the
data are correlated.
Thus, the test results show that the difference in the mean score
between the results before and after the experiment is significant. From
that, it can be concluded that the measures proposed and applied in the
thesis have created changes in children's vocabulary.
4.2.2.2. Compare the vocabulary of children in the control group and
the experimental group
After the experiment, the vocabulary of the experimental group was
higher than that of the control group. For receptive vocabulary, the
experimental group achieved an average of 33.65 words while the
control group achieved an average of 27.56 words. For expressive
vocabulary, the experimental group achieved an average of 67.16 words
while the control group achieved an average of 45.28 words. Direct
observation of the control group after the experiment showed that the
children's vocabulary was more advanced than before the experiment.
However, this progress was only found in a few outstanding children in
the class, while the rest of the children's vocabulary did not change
much. For the control group, children did not actively participate in
activities, not enthusiastically answer teachers' questions, and not boldly
voice their thoughts. For the experimental group after the experiment,
children's vocabulary has changed a lot. Most children increased their
word count. In addition, children actively participated in activities,
enthusiastically answered the teacher's questions, and often asked their
own questions.
- Analyze experimental results through case studies

34
 Case 1: LMT is the first child in a family of cadres living in Thanh
Hoa city. The three year old baby has just gone to preschool. LMT is
quiet, shy, or afraid. He did not play with the friends in class and only
looked out the door waiting for grandparents to come and pick him up.
Although he did not play by himself nor play with friends, LMT still
listened to the teacher. Before the experiment, the child understood
30/40 words and spoke 35/80 words. After the experiment, the child
understood 40/40 correct words and spoke 70/80 words.
Case 2: LSP is the second child in a freelance family in Tinh Gia
district. She went to school from the age of 2; and when she came home,
she mainly played with her brother. LSP is active and bold, and she likes
to participate in activities, likes to talk, likes to assert herself, likes to go
to school, likes to flatter, likes to help others, but she is short-tempered
and cannot concentrate for long. Before the experiment, the child
understood 23/40 words and spoke 35/80 words correctly. After the
experiment, LSP understood 40/40 words and spoke 72/80 words
correctly.
Conclusion of Chapter 4
Experiments were conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of
measures to organize scientific discovery activities to develop
vocabulary for children, thereby proving the scientific hypothesis of the
thesis. The content of the experimental program is built on the results of
theoretical and practical research, closely follows the preschool
education program, the characteristics of 3 – 4 year old preschool
children and the educational conditions for children in preschool
nowadays. Experimental results show that: After the experiment, the
vocabulary of 3 – 4 year old children has developed better than before
the experiment and also the control group. The children's receptive
vocabulary and expressive vocabulary both increased, in which the
expressive vocabulary increased higher; even there are some words
before the experiment almost no children could say, but after the

35
experiment more than 70% of the children spoke well. In the
experimental group, children's vocabulary increased of which children in
urban areas increased more than children in rural areas. Experimental
results have confirmed the effectiveness of measures to organize
scientific discovery activities to develop children's vocabulary. The
experimental results are tested by the Pair Sample Test formula,
confirming the significant difference between the post-experiment
evaluation results and the pre-experiment evaluation results. These
different results show that measures in the process of organizing
scientific discovery activities have had an impact on the development of
vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old children in preschool.

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

1. Conclusion

36
 1.1. Developing vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old preschool children
plays an important role in helping children develop language. Scientific
discovery activities are effective means of developing children's
vocabulary. In the process of organizing scientific discovery activities,
teachers need to create many opportunities for children to hear and
directly feel, so that children can understand, imitate, and use words
appropriately.
1.2. Scientific discovery is the process by which children actively
participate in exploring and discovering the unknown through
manipulations: observation, comparison, classification, prediction,
inference, discussion... Scientific discovery activities for vocabulary
development have many advantages; the biggest advantage is creating a
diverse environment for children to directly explore, observe, practice,
and experience, thereby developing language skills as well as
vocabulary. Organizing scientific discovery activities helps children
hear, understand, imitate, and use words. Through this, children enrich
their vocabulary, improve their ability to understand meanings, and
know how to use words to suit different communication situations.
1.3. Research results on the actual situation of organizing scientific
discovery activities to develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old children
show that: Teachers understand the importance of vocabulary
development for children, but only focus on providing word quantity.
There are many factors affecting the organization of this activity;
however, the teacher's pedagogical capacity is the most influential
factor.
1.4. From theoretical research and practical survey at some
preschools in Thanh Hoa, the thesis proposes specific measures to
organize scientific discovery activities to develop vocabulary for
children: (1) Design scientific discovery activities based on the goals of
developing vocabulary and creating opportunities for children to
experience language; (2) Build a diverse scientific discovery

37
environment to stimulate children to learn words; (3) Organize activities
to experience and explore with real objects so that children can
accumulate vocabulary by themselves; (4) Create opportunities for
children to use the vocabulary learned in scientific discovery activities in
daily activities; (5) Collaborate with families for 3 – 4 year old
preschool children to explore science to consolidate and activate
vocabulary. Measures are built to ensure the following principles:
implementing common educational goals and vocabulary development
goals for 3 – 4 year old children; being suitable for the characteristics of
children in this age group; and promoting children's positivity in
discovery activities.
1.5. Based on the proposed measures, the thesis conducts
experiment organization. The experimental results of the proposed
measures have a good effect on the development of vocabulary of
preschool children 3 - 4 years old. The children's vocabulary after the
experiment increased significantly compared to that before the
experiment, in which the expressive vocabulary increased higher. After
the experiment, children's vocabulary difference was narrowed between
urban area and rural area. Experimental results have confirmed the
effectiveness of measures of organizing scientific discovery activities to
develop children's vocabulary, which the thesis proposes.
2. Recommendations
2.1. To all levels of preschool education management
2.1.1. To the Ministry of Education and Training: It is necessary to
encourage the organization of cooperative activities between schools and
families and step up the work of guiding and educating parents in the
care and education of children at home.
2.1.2. To departments and divisions of education and training:
Hold professional training courses on organizing scientific discovery
activities to develop vocabulary for preschool children.

38
 2.1.3. To the Board of Directors of preschool educational
institutions: Create conditions for preschool teachers to promote their
initiative, flexibility, and creativity in implementing the preschool
education program in general and organizing scientific discovery
activities in particular to develop children's vocabulary.
2.2. To preschool teachers
- Regularly self-educate, cultivate and train to be able to design
and apply measures of organize scientific discovery activities to develop
vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old preschool children at preschool.
- Actively learn, self-research to improve understanding, thereby
being proactive and creative in determining goals, selecting content,
using methods, and coordinating educational measures to organize
scientific discovery activities to develop vocabulary for 3 – 4 year old
preschool children.

39