Covering Vocabulary

"The limits of my language are the limits of my universe." --Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

"The more words you know, the more clearly and powerfully you will think...and the more ideas you will invite into your mind."  -- Wilfred Funk

Frequent repetition is usually key to learning new vocabulary.  However, there tends to be a gap between memorizing/reciting definitions and being able to use vocabulary correctly in speech and writing.  In order to close this gap, seventh graders completed several assignments that allowed them to use their vocabulary in creative, yet purposeful ways.

Writing Prompts - Students were given several prompts such as "If a special holiday were established in your honor, what would people do on that day?" These assignments produced some interesting (and often humorous) responses; however, they also gave students the perfect opportunity to try out new vocabulary. 

Here is Josh S.'s response to the above prompt (vocabulary words are underlined):

"If they named a holiday in my honor, I would have Congress work more as a monolith so that things would get done more quickly.  In addition, I would have all bosses duplicate their employees' paycheck value for that week.  I do not want to be so unfair about what people would have to do, so I would have there be a bilateral agreement between me and the President of the United States."

Vocabulary Magazine Covers - Students also created headlines for existing or invented magazine covers.  Each headline includes a vocabulary word. 

Chanan's magazine cover (click on picture to enlarge):

Cover created by Rivi G. and Zohar N.:

Joshua C.'s magazine cover:

Cover created by Harris and Bradley:

Don't you feel inspired by their work?  Let's go learn a new word (or 2!) and expand our own minds/universe.