Hey there, word detective! This lesson is all about discovering the secret building blocks of words called “root words.” These come from ancient languages like Latin and Greek, and knowing them will help you read tricky words aloud, figure out what they mean, and even invent your own. It’s designed just for you and we’ll make it fun with games, drawings, and challenges.
Focus: Understanding root words and basic etymology to build word families.
- Identify and analyze 15+ common root words from Latin and Greek, tracing their etymological origins to build vocabulary confidence.
- Use roots to decode pronunciation and meanings in unfamiliar words, achieving 95% accuracy in self-assessments.
- Apply etymology to real-world contexts, such as science or history texts, to infer word meanings without a dictionary.
- Develop creative thinking by inventing words or stories based on roots, demonstrating outstanding mastery through original applications.
Module Success Criteria:
- Achieve 90%+ accuracy on self-quizzes identifying and defining 10-15 root words (e.g., aud-, vis-, port-).
- Confidently pronounce and define root-based words aloud, with no hesitation in reading lists or passages.
- Demonstrate depth in journal reflections by linking root knowledge to personal reading experiences and etymological origins.
- Successfully complete extension challenges, such as researching a root’s history and presenting an oral explanation, showing initiative beyond basic recall.
Warm Up:
Imagine this: Words like “telephone” are actually from old Greek meaning “far sound”! Cool, right? About 60% of English words come from Latin or Greek roots, so learning them lets you crack the code on thousands of words. Start by thinking: How could knowing roots help you read new words in books or games?
Now, let’s learn 15 key roots. I’ll show them in a table—say each one out loud with me (practice the pronunciation). For each, note the origin (where it comes from) and meaning, plus examples.
| Root | Origin | Meaning | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aud | Latin | Hear | Audience, audible |
| Vis/Vid | Latin | See | Vision, video |
| Port | Latin | Carry | Portable, transport |
| Scrib/Script | Latin | Write | Describe, script |
| Dict | Latin | Say/Speak | Dictionary, predict |
| Bon | Latin | Good | Bonus, benevolent |
| Mal | Latin | Bad | Malfunction, malice |
| Phon | Greek | Sound | Telephone, symphony |
| Photo | Greek | Light | Photograph, photosynthesis |
| Bio | Greek | Life | Biology, biography |
| Geo | Greek | Earth | Geography, geology |
| Phil | Greek | Love | Philosophy, philanthropist |
| Phobia | Greek | Fear | Claustrophobia |
| Graph | Greek | Write/Draw | Autograph, graph |
| Tele | Greek | Far | Telescope, television |
Task Two:
Activity One: Root Hunt Game
Task Two:
Activity Two: Mind Map/Word Tree
Task Three:
Activity Three: Online game: https://wordwall.net/resource/2637991/root-word-graph-practice
Task Four:
Greek and Latin Root Words Activity
- Latin Roots:
- Aud (hear) – E.g., audience (people who hear), audible (can be heard). Etymology: From Latin "audire" (to hear); fun fact: "Audio" in modern tech comes from this.
- Vis/Vid (see) – E.g., vision (sight), video (moving images). Etymology: Latin "videre" (to see); used in words like "evidence" (clearly seen).
- Port (carry) – E.g., portable (easy to carry), transport (carry across). Etymology: Latin "portare"; ancient Romans used it for shipping goods.
- Scrib/Script (write) – E.g., describe (write about), script (written text). Etymology: Latin "scribere"; scribes were ancient writers.
- Dict (say/speak) – E.g., dictionary (word sayings), predict (say before). Etymology: Latin "dicere"; dictators "speak" commands.
- Bon (good) – E.g., bonus (extra good), benevolent (wishing good). Etymology: Latin "bonus."
- Mal (bad) – E.g., malfunction (work badly), malice (bad intent). Etymology: Latin "malus."
- Greek Roots:
- Phon (sound) – E.g., telephone (sound from far), symphony (sounds together). Etymology: Greek "phone"; ancient Greeks invented musical terms.
- Photo (light) – E.g., photograph (light drawing), photosynthesis (light synthesis in plants). Etymology: Greek "phos/photos."
- Bio (life) – E.g., biology (study of life), biography (life writing). Etymology: Greek "bios."
- Geo (earth) – E.g., geography (earth writing), geology (earth study). Etymology: Greek "ge/geos"; linked to Gaia, the Earth goddess.
- Phil (love) – E.g., philosophy (love of wisdom), philanthropist (lover of humanity). Etymology: Greek "philos."
- Phobia (fear) – E.g., claustrophobia (fear of enclosed spaces). Etymology: Greek "phobos"; Phobos was a god of fear.
- Graph (write/draw) – E.g., autograph (self-writing), graph (drawn chart). Etymology: Greek "graphein."
- Tele (far) – E.g., telescope (far-seeing), television (far vision). Etymology: Greek "tele."
