Hi Debbie,
You might want to teach them about the 4 types of context and have
them look at different unfamiliar words in sentences to evaluate the
sentences to determine the type of context provided, and if the
context was helpful or not. The 4 types are:
Misdirective Context
Sandra had won the dance contest, and the audience’s cheers brought
her to the stage for an encore. “Every step she takes is so perfect
and graceful,” Ginny said grudgingly as she watched Sandra dance.
Nondirective
Context
Dan heard the door open and wondered who had arrived. He couldn’t
make out the voices. Then he recognized the lumbering footsteps on the
stairs and knew it was Aunt Grace.
General Context
Joe and Stan arrived at the party at 7 o’clock. By 9:30, the
evening seemed to drag for Stan. But Joe really seemed to be having a
good time at the party. “I wish I could be as gregarious as he is,”
thought Stan.
Directive Context
When the cat pounced on the dog, he leapt up, yelping, and knocked
down a shelf of books. The animals ran past Wendy, tripping her. She
cried out and fell to the floor. As the noise and confusion mounted,
Mother hollered upstairs, “What’s all that commotion?”
These examples are from Beck's book, Bringing Words to Life. I find
this activity heightens students' metacognitive awareness of "Is this
strategy helpful for me at this time."
Hope this helps,
Linda
On Aug 11, 2008, at 5:56 PM, Debbie Parker wrote:
> Hi -- Does anyone have any great ideas how to explain to 7th graders
> about figuring our context clues to understand vocab? My kids want
> to immediately turn to the dictionary which of course interrupts
> their comprehension. Although there is a time for dictionary look
> ups, I need to give some direct lessons in context. Thanks,
>
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> Debbie Parker
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