Lesson 6 — Activity 1: Vocabulary Strategies



We can enjoy many aspects of literature and media more completely if we can make it easier to understand what we are reading or hearing. In this lesson, you will learn some ways to help yourself understand literature better.


Theme 1 looked at some reading strategies:

  • skimming
  • reading aloud
  • asking questions
  • making predictions
  • using text organizers


We can use these strategies in any situation to help improve our understanding of new material. As well as trying these suggestions, we can get more out of what we are reading if we are able to figure out the meaning of new or unfamiliar words. There are several ways we can improve our vocabulary, or make sense of what a writer is trying to say when we read a word that is confusing or unclear to us. For example, you can try using some of the following strategies if you come across a word that you do not know:


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  • Is there a picture or illustration? Sometimes clues to meaning are shown in pictures that go along with the text.

  • Is there another word that would make sense in the sentence? We can often figure out the meaning of an unfamiliar word by thinking of another word we know that would express the same message. This is called using "context" clues.

  • Is there a familiar prefix or term at the beginning of the word? Sometimes we can figure out the meaning of a word by looking at its parts. For example, in unappetizing, we can see the prefix un, which means not, placed at the beginning of the word appetizing. This helps us to see that the word means the opposite of appetizing.

  • Is there a familiar suffix at the end of the word? A suffix is a letter or group of letters that are added to the end of the word.  For example, in the word wonderful, we can see the suffix ful, which means full of, placed at the end of the word wonder.  This helps us to see that the word means full of wonder.
  • Can we figure out the meaning of the sentence by skipping the unfamiliar word and reading on? Sometimes the meaning becomes clear if we continue reading.


When you come to a word you don't understand:


  1. Re-read.
  2. Read on.
  3. Use the context to guess the meaning.
  4. Use pictures, charts etc., for clues.
  5. Look for a part in the word that you already know (prefix, suffix, root)
  6. Use a dictionary.
  7. Ask for help.

 


  • Does the word make sense if we reread the sentence? Sometimes we miss details that would help us to understand the meaning more clearly because we are reading too quickly.

  • Can we sound out the word? If we are able to pronounce or say the word correctly, we may be better able to understand its meaning.

  • What do we already know about the topic that will help us to make a good guess at the meaning of the new word?

  • Can we look up the word in the dictionary?

  • Is there someone we can ask who will help us figure out the meaning of the word?


Digging Deeper!

Click on the Play button below to view a short video that shows you in more detail how to use Context Clues to help you find out the meaning of unknown words.