MYVisit: Virtual Author Series

CLASSROOM LESSON 4:
Context Clues

BOOK TITLE: The Merchant of Death
AUTHOR: D.J. MacHale
LESSON PLAN AUTHOR : Becky Carr

GRADE LEVEL: 6-8
LESSON DURATION: 50 Minutes

OBJECTIVE

Students will examine types of clues that can be found within context to infer meanings of words.

Students will evaluate context clues to determine meanings of new vocabulary.

Students will incorporate new vocabulary into expository writing.

MATERIALS

Vocabulary Development Worksheet: Download PDF
Dictionaries
Highlighters
Copies of novel-Pendragon-The Merchant of Death
5 Context Clue Types Handout: Download PDF

MOTIVATION

Read words from Vocabulary Development Worksheet and ask students if any are familiar and what they think they mean.

Ask students how they would find out the definition of the word. They will probably respond that they would use a dictionary. Ask them what they could do if it was a situation where no dictionary was available. Tell students that there are clues in the text that will help them determine an approximate meaning.

NEW INFORMATION

Provide students with a handout of “The five types of context clues”. Go over the types and the examples for each.

PRACTICE/APPLICATION

Give each student Vocabulary Development Worksheet. Have them read each word, its sentence, and write what they believe is the definition for the word.

Have students highlight other words in sentence that may be a “clue” to the underlined word’s meaning.

Once they have finished, they should utilize a dictionary to verify if their definition is accurate. Remind them that their written definition will not be the exact dictionary definition and that is OK.

EXTENSION ACTIVITY

Option One= After reading the novel, revisit the vocabulary words and ask students to write a book summary to put on the back of the book cover utilizing as many words as possible from vocabulary list.
Option Two= Incorporate words into dictionary activity (see Lesson 2: Second Earth Dictionary). Students will need more time and papers to expand this project.

EVALUATION/CLOSURE

Have students turn worksheet over and write a reflection answering the following question: In what ways can you find the meaning of a word if you have no dictionary? Check to see that students understand context clues as a way to achieve new vocabulary understanding.

NCTE STANDARD 4

Students adjust their use of spoken, written, and visual language (e.g., conventions, style, vocabulary) to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences and for different purposes.

SOURCES

Context Clue Types Handout