Description
Our Shades of Meaning – Related Words lesson plan teaches students how to improve their word choice in their writing by understanding the subtle differences in meaning between similar words. During this lesson, students are asked to work collaboratively with a partner to place given sets of words in order according to their shade of meaning and explain their reasoning (for example, “limp, walk, jog, run, and sprint” are “in order from slower to faster”). Students are also asked to work independently to explain the difference between the meaning of underlined words as they are used in the given sentences and then correctly use each of the words in two different sentences.
At the end of the lesson, the students will be able to distinguish shades of meaning among related words that describe states of mind or degrees of certainty (e.g., knew, believed, suspected, heard, wondered).
