Tag Archives: building vocabulary/conceptual knowledge

Surrogate (n)

For the first time in about a week, I needn’t drive anywhere today. That’s a relief.

Here, if you can use it, is a context clues worksheet on surrogate in its use as a noun. I imagine this document could be easily converted to show this word’s use as an adjective as well.

If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

The Weekly Text, 9 August 2019: A Lesson Plan on the Latin Word Root Cent

This week’s Text, delivered from Vermont, the only place to be in this month, is a complete lesson plan on the Latin word root cent–which means, you will instantly recognize, and your students will before long, hundred. I use this context clues worksheet on the noun myriad to open this lesson–it gives students a hint about where to look for the meaning of cent. Finally, here is the scaffolded worksheet that is the mainstay of this lesson. It includes cognates, so if you’re working with Spanish-speaking students–or students who speak any or the other Romance languages–they will find words they already know in that list.

You are, I hope, enjoying your summer.

If you find typos in these documents, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

Taut (adj) and Taught (vi/vt)

Here are five homophone worksheets on the adjective taut (it’s also, interestingly, used as a transitive verb to mean mat and tangle in Scots English) and taught, the past tense and past participle of the verb teach, which is used both intransitively and transitively.

If you find typos in these documents, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

Mania

For social-emotional learning, here is a reading on mania and the vocabulary-building and comprehension worksheet that attends it. 

If you find typos in these documents, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

Solicit (vi/vt)

Here’s a context clues worksheet on the verb solicit, which is used both intransitively and transitively. This is a pretty commonly used word in English, so students should probably learn it before graduating high school.

If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

Word Root Exercise: Octa, Oct, and Octo

Here, on crisp and clear New England morning, is a worksheet on the Greek roots octa, oct and octo. You won’t be surprised to hear that they mean eight. These roots produce words across the curriculum, so a cursory review of them would be worthwhile.

If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

Bullying

I’m hard pressed to imagine a time and place in any high school where this reading on bullying and its accompanying vocabulary-building and comprehension worksheet  wouldn’t be of use.

If you find typos in these documents, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

Semantic (adj)

If you’re interested in teaching your students terms of art that represent concepts in learning, then this context clues worksheet on the adjective semantic might be useful. You could also use this document as a template for a context clues worksheet on the noun semantics. Either way, these words represent a concept–the use of language to create meaning–that students probably ought to know before they graduate high school.

If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

Cultural Literacy: Voucher

Because the United States Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos, has made school voucher programs the white paper in her policy brief, this Cultural Literacy worksheet on the concept of a voucher seems like something to put before my fellow educators. Public school parents and students should understand the implications of Secretary DeVos’s proposals for their communities and schools. The basic explanation on the attached worksheet is as good a place as any to start.

If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

The Weekly Text, August 2, 2019: A Reading and Comprehension Worksheet on Muckraker and Social Reformer Jacob Riis

The Weekly Text for this first Friday in August is this reading on muckraker Jacob Riis and its attendant vocabulary-building and comprehension worksheet. New York City teachers, nota bene: Riis’s name is on parks, monuments, and buildings in your town.

If you find typos in these documents, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.