Warm-Up: 9/14

• Add the correct punctuation to the following excerpt. There needs to be 1 apostrophe, 1 semicolon, 1 colon, 2 periods, and 6 commas:

The cold of the fall was sweeping over the plains Noras husband Rolf and his men had ridden off on the roundup She was left on the ranch with several animals horses cows chickens and the stable hand Pleny

Context Clues

Day 1Context Clues:- unfamiliar word in reading

- Helps understand word’s meaning by looking at the words and sentences around it (the context)

- The context, or the way in which a word is used in a sentence, can you help figure out its meaning.

Day 1 - continuedLook at the following sentence:

Since Ann loves plants, she is studying botany. Ann is currently raising orchids. They have colorful and unusually shaped flowers.

THINK TO YOURSELF: I can understand what the word botany means by reading the sentences around it. Since the sentence has the word plants in it, I know that botany must have to do with studying plants. The other sentence contains the unfamiliar word orchids. I read on and see that the next sentence explains thatorchids have colorful flowers. I realize that orchids are a flowering plant.

Day 1 - continuedLook at the following sentences. Identify the context clues you used to figure out the meaning of the underlined word in each sentence below. Discuss in your groups.

1. Paint is made using a dry, colored powder, or pigment.

2. That liquid is toxic, or poison.

3. My uncle loves to travel. He writes in his diary on every excursion.

4. A fledgling is a baby bird that has just grown feathers for flying.

5. The old house on our block is so decrepit that it is falling down.

Day 1 - continuedThere are different types of context clues. There are four kinds of context clues that are quite common:Synonym A synonym, or word with the same meaning, is used in the sentence. *My opponent's argument is fallacious, misleading – plain wrong.   AntonymA word or group of words that has the opposite meaning reveals the meaning of an unknown term. *Although some men are loquacious, others hardly talk at all.   Explanation The unknown word is explained within the sentence or in a sentence immediately preceding. *The patient is so somnolent that she requires medication to help her stay awake for more than a short time.   Example Specific examples are used to define the term. *Celestial bodies, such as the sun, moon, and stars, are governed by predictable laws.

Read the following sentences and define the bolded word based on the context clue. Then identify which of the four types of clues is used. Discuss in your groups and be ready to share.

1.The girl who used to be very vociferous doesn't talk much anymore.

2.Pedagogical institutions, including high schools, kindergartens, and colleges, require community support to function efficiently.

3.He was so parsimonious that he refused to give his own sons the few pennies they needed to buy pencils for school. It truly hurt him to part with his money.

Day 1 - continued

4.His pertinacity, or stubbornness, is the cause of most of his trouble.

5.Rather than be involved in clandestine meetings, they did everything quite openly.

6.Ecclesiastics, such as priests, ministers, and pastors, should set models of behavior for their congregants.

7.The girl was churlish – rude, sullen and absolutely ill-mannered.

8.Because the conflagration was aided by wind, it was so destructive that every building in the area was completely burned to the ground.

Day 1 - continued

Day 2Yesterday we learned that context clues are used to

figure out the meaning of a word or sentence. Today we are going to learn that context clues can be located within the same sentence, in nearby sentences, or in other paragraphs. You can identify context clues by:

1. Looking for a definition in the text of the unknown word or phrase. Definitions often follow the unknown word or words

2. Looking for an example of the unknown word.

Day 2 - continuedI will read the following sentence aloud and you will need to follow along as I read it:

Bears are omnivores, or animals that eat both plants and meat. Cows, which are herbivores, eat grasses and other plants.

THINK TO YOURSELF: To figure out the meaning of omnivores and herbivores, I look for context clues. The first sentences provides a direct definition of the word omnivores: “animals that eat both plants and meat.” The word herbivores doesn’t come with a definition, but the sentence gives an example of the word: “Cows, which are herbivores, eat grasses and other plants.” I can figure out that a herbivore is an animal that eat plants.

Day 2 - continuedUse context clues to determine the meaning of each

underlined word. Be ready to tell me whether you use definition clues or example clues to figure out a word’s meaning.

1. The shrew is a small animal that looks something like a mouse. It has a long snout and small ears. It lives most of its life in perpetual, or never ending, darkness. This nervous animal is easily excited or irritated.

2. Mel pulled out the driver from the bag of golf clubs. The driver is for hitting long and low drives. The ball sat on the tee, or small peg, waiting to be hit.

Day 2 - continued

3. Maya makes paint using a dry, colored powder, or pigment. Her picture is gloomy. It has somber colors.

4. I tried not to fidget during the long, boring speech. It was hard to sit still and not squirm.

Day 2 - continuedTake out a pencil and paper. Read the following sentences

below. Use context clues to help you figure out the meaning of the underlined words. On your paper, write your own definition for each underlined word. Check your answer with a partner to see if you both came up with the same meaning. After you are finished, we will go over them together.

1. Sam grew indolent. He slept late and never exercised.2. Chandra is a capable athlete. She is good at almost every sport.3. Volunteer firefighters work for no pay.4. The habitat of the giant panda is in China.5. Some birds migrate a very long way, flying from country to country.6. A large bird that eats mostly fish, the osprey is found all over the

world.7. The city’s stadium is able to seat 40,000 people for sporting events.8. We had gazpacho for lunch, which is a kind of cold vegetable soup

from Spain.

Day 3On day 1 we talked about different types of context clues. One of those types was synonym: A synonym, or word with the same meaning, is used in the sentence. Take out a piece of paper and follow the directions for these sentences. You may work with one partner to determine the proper answer. Write a synonym for each underlined word as it is used in context. YOU MAY NOT USE A DICTIONARY!

1. His lucid lectures, along with his clearly presented explanations, made him a popular professor. _____________________

2. Their vociferous chatter made me wish I had ear plugs. _____________

3. He was so impudent to his mother that I would have punished him if he talked to me that way. _____________________

4. The Russians are skillful at sending cryptic messages, open to many interpretations. Our State Department spends days puzzling over their meanings. __________________

(continued on the next page)

5. The Great Flood of Noah’s day was caused by incessant rain that fell for 40 days and nights. _____________________6. The students who arrived late told the teacher an implausible story about stopping to watch a UFO. _____________________7. After spending three weeks in the hospital, I had a surfeit of daytime TV programming. _____________________8. The prisoners liberated from the Nazi death camp were so emaciated that they looked like skeletons. _____________________9. Bob decided to be prudent and call ahead for reservations, instead of just showing up. _____________________10. The ambiguity of Joe’s directions made it almost impossible to find his house. ______________________

Day 3 - continued

Day 4Today I will be dividing you into groups. We are going toplay a context clue game. Here are the rules: Each group must determine the meaning of each word based on how it is used in context. When you have answered each one, you will compares definitions with another team. The team with the highest point total at the end wins the game.

When I call “time” I will ask group 1 for their definition on word 1 and then it in a grid space on the board. Before telling you if it is correct or not, I will ask group 2 if they agree or disagree with group 1's definition. If they agree, I’ll write 'A'. If they disagree, I’ll write 'D'. This will continue until all groups have either agreed or disagreed. Let’s divide into groups and then we will start when I go to the next slide ……………

1. The boy hurried precipitously to get his homework done so that he could play basketball before going to bed.

2. Confections, such as cake, candy, and sweets, should be eaten sparingly.

3. Becky had an innate ability to play the piano. She had never taken a lesson, yet she was able to play the most complicated songs.

4. Kara was an astute learner and did very well her music theory classes. Her sister, Mary, found music theory difficult and felt foolish being in the class.

5. Where we live in Northern Maine, the winters are quite harsh. Each year we fly to a warm climate for a break from the cold weather. It feels like utopia every time we step off the plane at our destination.

6. Some people feel perplexed by brain teasers, while others figure them out quickly.

7. I know that Jeff is smart, so I was confused when he did such a vacuous thing as to jump off the roof of our house.

8. The audience appreciated the brevity of the final speech. Many of the others were quite lengthy.

Day 4 - continued

Time to see who are the winners ….

Get your papers ready and let’s check

Day 4 - continued

Remember: Using context clues can help you figure out the meanings of words, sentences, and passages. Use them frequently!!