Activity Description
Title: Fic/N-Fic Vocabulary - - Context, Wd Pts
This ACTIVITY has a set of teaching-learning strategies proven to increase student mastery of the critical Vocabulary standards in Fiction, Non-Fiction, and Language. Vocabulary is always included on high-stakes tests! Students are expected to use context clues (and multi-meaning words), and roots and affixes. The FICTION standard refers to texts from Mythology as well, so Mythology samples are provided. The premise of this Activity is that students cannot possibly know every word - - no matter how many Word Walls or weekly vocabulary lists they see. But if students master these vocabulary-attack skills, they can successfully navigate any on-level text - - and some above-level. Students learn a special strategy - - called “Arrowing Out” - - where they predict the meaning of the unfamiliar word or phrase using one or more of the skills above. They work in the margins of the text to keep the unfamiliar word or phrase in the context of the passage. This Activity provides samples and practice items for every one of the above, bolded skills - - in both Fiction and Non-Fiction, sentences and texts. [ At Grade 4, each Activity attaches student-sized texts, templates, and test items that teachers can quickly print and use immediately in class.]
Enabling Skills: Students need to bring the awareness that (a) they will not “know” every word they encounter when they read; (b) teachers will not pre-teach every new word or phrase; and (c) authors will not be giving readers the definitions of unfamiliar words. As students mature in their Vocabulary-attack skills, they become better readers and writers.
Direct Instruction: Suggested teaching strategies are given that model for students what they need to do to begin their journey toward mastery. These strategies include sample sentences and texts to guide authentic practice, requiring students to use context and roots and affixes to predict the meaning of unfamiliar words and phrases. The “Arrowing Out” texts provide students the opportunity to predict word meaning in the context of the entire passage. Several texts - - many from Mythology - - are provided for students to use their Vocabulary-attack skills and then verify or correct the predicted meaning.
Quick-Writes: Standards-based writing prompts are provided that require students to document that they have internalized the core ideas of the standard(s) and can show independent mastery. In this Activity, students use unfamiliar words or phrases to write sentences that show they understand the word or phrase. Several samples of Mythological symbols still used today are provided, and students describe their continued impact.
High-Stakes Look-Alike Assessments: At Grades 3-8, the Activities include two tests - - one for practice - - followed by classroom analysis of errors made - - and the second test to determine mastery. The test items are constructed to look exactly like those items students will encounter on their High-Stakes Tests. In this Activity, BOTH Fiction and NON-Fiction texts are included.
CUSTOMER: Thanks for considering this Activity as part of your approach to your state’s ELA standards. If you have any comments as to how it worked - - or didn’t! - - we’d welcome them! See the contact information to send us feedback. -- the EdFOCUS Team
This teaching activity comes with one hour of online instruction and guidance from a trained EdFOCUS professional. You will be contacted shortly after purchase with more details.