Activities

1. List at least 5 key vocabulary words from a text.
   
   
2. Identify the part of speech for each of these key vocabulary words.
   
   
3. Re-read the original sentence and underline any other key words that help point to the word’s meaning.
   
   
4. Decide on whether the original key vocabulary word has a neutral, positive or negative connotation.
   
   
5. Make a list of at least two possible synonyms for your original word, using your positive, negative or neutral identification to help.
   
   
6. Assess your synonyms to see if they have the same connotation as the original word and choose the one synonym that best matches the original word’s connotation.
   
   

Answer Key/Rubric

1. Students are able to identify at least 5 key vocabulary words that they may or may not be familiar with.
   
   
2. Students are able to use the original sentence to decide and identify the word’s part of speech.
   
   
3. Students are able to correctly identify the most important context clues from the sentence that point to the word’s connotation.
   
   
4. Students are able to make an evaluation on whether the key vocabulary word has a neutral, negative or positive connotation.
   
   
5. Students are able to make a list of synonyms for each of their vocabulary words; however, these synonyms need not have the exact same connotation from their original word.
   
   
6. Students are able to see the difference between word’s definitions and their connotations and are able to identify the synonyms that best match the original word’s connotation.

Suggested Rubric:  This rubric may be used to assess a student’s overall mastery of the standard or eligible content.