Completion Activity
(supports the introduction and activation of word meanings)

1. confine: to hold or keep in; limit; imprison; restrict Things that can be confined are                                             . 2. elusive: hard to describe or understand; intangible; evasive Concepts elusive to many people include                                             . 3. extinguish: to put out; do away with; douse; suppress; abolish People often extinguish                                             . 4. longevity: a long duration; long life Factors that may contribute to longevity include                                             . 5. persistent: refusing to give up; determined; unshakable I was very persistent when                                             . 6. remote: far off in place or time; distant; removed An example of a remote place would be                                             . 7. astound: to fill with surprise or sudden wonder; amaze; astonish; flabbergast I was astounded when                                             . 8. spectacular: unusual or impressive; marvelous; astonishing; wonderful The most spectacular thing I’ve ever seen was                                             . 9. taunt: to insult or ridicule; mock; razz When taunted, some people will                                             . 10. vital: necessary for life; essential; fundamental Vital organs in the human body are                                             .

Fill-in Sentence Activity
(supports presentation of words in a variety of contexts)

longevity     vital     confined     elusive     astounded     extinguish     taunt     persisted     remote     spectacular My grandfather credits his              to years of eating right and working outdoors. The bully likes to              the smaller kids on the playground. Even though the fire was out of control, the firemen              and were able to contain the blaze. Johnny was              when his team won their first game in years. Even though winning the lottery is only a              possibility, many people buy tickets. The tourists saw a              view of a sunset over the Grand Canyon. The hospital nurse checks the patients’              signs every hour. The dog was              to the backyard so he would not chase the neighbor’s cat. Sally was able to              the small kitchen fire with baking soda. The meaning of life is an              concept to many people.

Fill-in Paragraph Activity
(supports presentation of words in a variety of contexts)

longevity     vital     remote     taunted     spectacular     persistent     confined     elusive     astounded     extinguished               winds refused to let up and continuously whipped the flames higher and higher. The burning building became an illuminated monster with hundreds of red tongues lashing out at the black sky. Gravity-defying streams of water sought out the flames that refused to be               or              . Again and again fiery fingers teased and               the firefighters below. It was               that the source that sustained the monster’s fury be located. For several hours, however, the source proved to be              , and the room it was located in was too               for the firefighters to find. The battle was captivating. Human beings protecting their environment pitted against an all-consuming force that hissed and spewed jetting sparks in a desperate attempt to prolong its              . Onlookers were               by the               sight.

Read and Respond
(supports presentation of words in a variety of contexts)

The Pyramids The pyramids of Egypt were built more than 40 centuries ago as grand tombs for Egyptian rulers, called pharaohs. Scholars believe that most of the pyramids were built between the years 2686 and 2181 BC. The ancient Egyptians believed that humans continued to live after death, as long as their human bodies were well preserved. The Egyptians also believed that their pharaohs represented the gods on earth, so it was only natural for them to carefully preserve the rulers’ bodies. The Egyptians used a process called mummification to preserve bodies. Mummification was a long and expensive process that included removal of the internal organs because their decay tended to hasten decay of the whole body. After the organs were removed, the body was dried by soaking it in a salt solution, then covering it with a kind of soda powder. The next step in mummification was to wrap the body in bandages, then soak it in oils. After all these steps were completed, the body was placed in a coffin. Inside, the pyramids often had many rooms in addition to the burial chamber. For example, the pyramid erected to King Zoser, who lived from 2686 to 2613 BC, had a series of rooms that he could live in during his next life. And the pyramid had sculptures and inscribed slabs that told the story of Zoser’s life. The walls of the pyramid had blue glazed earthenware tiles. Food, weapons, and furniture were placed in the tomb. The pyramids are awesome feats of engineering considering they were built with only crude hammers, chisels, and other basic tools. The wheel would not be introduced to Egypt until 800 years after the pyramids were constructed. So how did the laborers haul the perfectly cut, massive stones into position to build the sloping sides of the pyramids? One theory is that workers built an enormous supply ramp and they hauled the stones to the lip of the ramp before sliding them into place on a bed of liquid mortar. Another theory is that the ramp wound around the pyramid, like a spiral staircase, so workers could push the blocks up the incline and then into place to build the graduated sides. Whichever method was used, the ramp was dismantled after the work was completed. Reaching a consensus on how the pyramids were built has been elusive. What’s your hypothesis? What conclusions might we draw about the longevity of an Egyptian worker’s life? Why do you think the process of mummification was vital to the Egyptians’ beliefs?

Yes/No/Why
(provides multiple opportunities to learn and to expand on meanings)

Is something elusive also remote? Can confinement affect longevity? Is something astounding always spectacular? Could something persistent ever be extinguished? Is taunting ever vital?

Analogies
(provides multiple opportunities to learn and to expand on meanings)

confine : fences  ::  constrict : ? elusive : miracle  ::  intangible : ? extinguish : firefighter  ::  tabulate : ? longevity : heredity  ::  language : ? persistent : achievement  ::  determination : ? remote : adjacent  ::  conspicuous : ? astound : amaze  ::  formulate : ? spectacular : fireworks  ::  baffling : ? envy : taunt  ::  admire : ? vital : blood  ::  urgent : ?

Writing Assignment
(promotes active and generative processing)
Evaluation Sheet

Student Response Before handing in my assignment, I checked to make sure I:       Wrote so that readers could relate to it, understand it, feel it.       Expressed a complete thought in each sentence.       Stuck to my topic and made sense.       Varied my sentence length and structure.       Made great choices about the words I used.       Punctuated correctly.       Used all my words correctly.       Spelled all my words correctly. Teacher Response       Beautifully done. What you said really stuck with me, and you met most criteria.       Great job. I like what you had to say. See criteria you should check more carefully next time.       Pretty good response. See criteria to check more carefully next time.       You can do a better job. See criteria that you need to check more carefully next time.

Improving Sentences
(promotes active and generative processing)

1. He lives remote from everyone else in the family. 2. The astound news caused the community disbelief. 3. His toothache persistent through the night. 4. Vital construction made the building able to withstand the earthquake. 5. The mustang elusive the ropes of the cowboy. 6. She confined a secret to her best friend. 7. The taunt remark embarrassed the person. 8. Sea turtles are many years longevity. 9. Extinguished flames fed by dried wood made a hot fire. 10. Niagara Falls spectacular tourists from all over the world.

The Conversation Game
(promotes active and generative processing)

Goal: To be the first team to use its assigned vocabulary words appropriately in a conversation. Preparation: The teacher selects enough vocabulary words so that each student in the class can be assigned two or three words. Each vocabulary word should be written on a separate card. Three teams of students should be formed, and the vocabulary cards should be passed out to each member of each team. Procedures and Rules: The teacher begins a “conversation” with the class, saying a sentence or two to introduce a topic. For example, the teacher might say, “I wonder what the world is going to be like in the year 2010. Will schools and workplaces still function in the same ways that we’re used to, or will everything be different?” Students raise their hands to request participation in the conversation. After being acknowledged by the teacher, they contribute to the conversation by including one of the vocabulary words on their cards (e.g., “I think that we might see a lot of innovations in the field of medicine, like maybe a cure for AIDS.”) The teacher indicates whether students have used their word correctly. The team that uses all of its words first wins the game. Variations: Allow students to use more than one word per contribution. Put 10-12 words on an overhead, and award points to individuals rather than teams. Allow students to select the topic for conversation and be the leader. Have teams select the vocabulary words that must be used by the other teams.