Did you know that if you learn just 14 Greek and Latin roots, you can unlock the meanings of hundreds of words, maybe thousands? Clearly, students of all ages benefit from vocabulary instruction that includes Greek and Latin instruction, and there are so many great resources and methods. I’ve tried different approaches over the years, and some definitely seemed more effective than others with my G/T students. I’m happy to share what worked for me, and hopefully, others will add comments to this post.
With my gifted and advanced students, these were the approaches that worked best:
(1) Begin with a puzzle! Let students experience advanced vocabulary words as puzzles to solve, and show them how easily they can unlock the meanings of words when they know Greek and Latin roots. I created this slide show to get students to buy in, and I’ve used it successfully with students in 3rd through 8th grade. Even adults are intrigued by the long word and immediately see the power of learning roots!
(2) Present ALL of the roots you think are most important to learn, rather than teaching one or two a week. Gifted students learn quickly and this way they can absorb much more than if they are only presented with a few roots at a time. I gave my students a two-sided list to keep in their notebooks (here’s one) and also posted a Greek/Latin Word Wall in the room. If you search on Teachers Pay Teachers, you can find several really nice Greek/Latin word walls. Also, I have taken ideas from this unit, intended for 8th graders, for use with my 5th graders. Mine especially enjoyed “Find a Word” (p. 25 – Appendix H). Ian Byrd’s Byrdseed TV has some fantastic activities as well (a subscription gives you access to hundreds of teaching ideas and videos you can use immediately with students).
(3) Make instruction of roots a game. Present long or advanced words, such as the one in the introductory slide show, and have students use their roots lists to see if they can guess the meaning. Here is a list to get you started. They won’t know that they are practicing for college entrance exams!
(4) Have students create cartoons that illustrate the meanings of less familiar words. Display around the word wall or on a hallway bulletin board. Again, Ian Byrd has shared some wonderful creative drawing activities to reinforce Greek and Latin roots via Byrdseed TV.
(5) Teach students to note word origins when looking up unfamiliar words. This online etymology dictionary is a good one.
Please take a moment to share materials and resources that have worked with your students!