Curated OER
Word Origins
Understanding a word's etymology can really help with decoding and building vocabulary skills. Readers compare and contrast words of similar origins but with different difficulty levels. They focus on prefixes, suffixes, and affixes....
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Etymology Adventures
Students use the internet to research the field of Etymology. Using this information, they create a list of words they were unfamiliar with along with their origin. They complete numerous activities by reading and following directions.
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Dragonwings: Evaluate Chapters 10-12
As your class finishes the novel Dragonwings, use these culminating projects. A vocabulary list is given for chapters eleven and twelve and either an epitaph or letter activity concludes the book. The final project consists of creating a...
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Unlocking New Words: Partner Presentations
Following extensive modeling about how to apply word analysis and vocabulary skills to learn new words, partner teams create brief word presentations to teach new vocabulary to the class. Preselect words from upcoming social studies,...
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New Year's Etymology and Writing Activity
Students investigate the history and etymology of New Year's Day. They listen to a teacher-led lecture about the background of New Year's Day, design an image of Janus, and write a story in the first person telling what Janus might say...
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Mythological Word Origins
No wonder the ship was called the Titanic. An investigation of Norse, Roman, and Greek Mythology provides insight into mythological characters and corresponding words in the English language. A close look at roots, prefixes, and suffixes...
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Speak Vocabulary Strategy
A scarlet letter “V” stands for a desktop teaching vocabulary activity designed for Speak. Prior to reading Laurie Hales Anderson’s young adult novel, individuals sign up for a word, design a handout that illustrates the word, includes...
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Mississippi Trial, 1955: Vocabulary Strategy (Acquisition)
Readers of Mississippi Trial, 1955 engage in a desktop teaching activity and teach other class members the meaning of a word from Christopher Crowe's novel using an embellished illustration of their word.
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Dragonwings: Explore Chapters 1-5
If you are beginning Laurence Yep's Dragonwings, this will provide activities for the first five chapters. The objectives include making connections to oneself and the world, organizing information and events, vocabulary acquisition,...
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Unlocking Word Meanings
Fourth graders investigate eponyms in the English language. For this eponym lesson, 4th graders participate in a teacher led lesson on the definition of an eponym. They complete a worksheet in which they determine which eponym became...
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Diversity of Languages
Learners interpret graphs and statistics to recognise and understand the cultural and linguistic diversity of Australia. They create a profile of the linguistic diversity of the class or school. Students discuss Australia's cultural...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Charles Baudelaire: Poète Maudit (The Cursed Poet)
After learning the main ideas of the Decadent movement, learners work in small groups to read and translate poems by the French poet Charles Baudelaire using basic etymology skills. They then read the accurate English translations to see...
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Heraldry and Biography
Help learners discover more about their backgrounds. This family history activity includes links to sites about heraldry and family names. Begin by sharing your family history with the class and then allow young scholars to do some...
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Persuasive Text: Vocabulary Charades
Students play charades to act out vocabulary words that have recently been introduced in class. In this vocabulary lesson students may work in groups or in pairs.
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Pudd'nhead Wilson: Vocabulary Strategy
Invite your pupils to do the teaching when it comes to the vocabulary in Pudd'nhead Wilson. Each individual is assigned one word to research in depth and teach to classmates, one pupil at a time.
Novelinks
The Hobbit: Vocabulary in the Round
Blundering, audacious, obscurest. Class members develop strategies for teaching each other vocabulary words drawn from The Hobbit.
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Vocabulary of Ancient Rome Grades 9-12)
Young scholars define ancient Roman vocabulary using the dictionary writing sentences.
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History of the English Language - Word Origins
High schoolers use on-line resources to research their own name, determine its language origin and meaning. They take an on-line quiz to determine their "naming-style."
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Once Upon a Word
Students explore the derivations and usage of common slang terms. Through internet research and discussion, students consider the Latin and Greek roots of contemporary slang terms. Groups complete an etymology chart documenting their...
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Glencoe Literature Themes: Legends
Young scholars prepare for and respond to literature selections. This package includes five lessons from the Glencoe Literature series, each covering a different reading selection. Pre-reading and response activities are included for...
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Louisiana's Tragic Hero - "Evangeline"
"Ye who believe...List to a Tale of Love in Acadie." Longfellow's epic poem, "Evangeline," launches a study of tragic heroines, epic poetry, the expulsion of the Acadians from Canada, and their subsequent migration to Louisiana. The...
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Confounding Words
Eleventh graders gain understanding of how words in the English language are formed. They assess their own work for sentence clarity and variety of expression. They increase their comprehension and recall.
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Laurence Yep's, Dragonwings
Students discuss vocabulary words and compare definitions. They read chapters 6-9 of the novel, Dragonwings, and discuss point of view, and complete a plot diagram. Then they review the four types of conflict and identify the conflicts...
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Changing of the Guard
Students reflect on their knowledge of democracy. After reading an article, they examine current plans for the placement of a democracy in Iraq. In groups, they research past regime changes and democratization attempts and discuss the...