Your Literacy Standards Companion, Grades 6-8. Jim Burke

To have students determine the figurative and connotative meaning of words, do the following:

       Identify with students figurative language or words with other connotative meanings; then have them determine the literal or denotative meaning of those words; then ask them to determine, in light of how the words are used, the figurative or connotative meaning.

       Direct students’ attention to words used figuratively (simile, metaphor, analogy, euphemism, and pun) and ask them to determine a word’s meaning and explain how its use affects the meaning of other words around it or contributes to the meaning of the text.

       Have them assess whether a set or series of words used figuratively has a unifying theme (e.g., they are all related to gardens, sports, the law) and, if they do, what it is and how that set of thematic words adds meaning to the text.

       To have students analyze the impact of word choice on meaning and tone, do the following:

       Complete a think-aloud as you read through a text, noting the author’s use of certain words that combine with others (through sound, imagery, meaning, stylistic or rhetorical effect) to add meaning or serve some other purpose (e.g., to reinforce a theme).

       Direct students to highlight, code, or otherwise indicate (by alternately circling, underlining, putting dotted lines under words) those words or phrases that are connected; ask them then what conclusions they can draw from the patterns, connections, or general use of words about their meaning.

       Provide students a list of words or phrases with a common theme left unstated; ask them what the words have in common and how that relates to the text from which they come.

       To help students understand discipline-specific words, symbols, and terms, do the following:

       Show students how to make use of any textual features—sidebars, captions, typography (is the word in bold and, thus, in the glossary), diagrams, footers, or glossaries in the chapter or in the appendix—available in the textbook.

       Teach students, when appropriate, the root words or etymology of certain subject-specific words (bio = life, ology = study of) as part of the study of any discipline.

       To have students analyze how authors use analogies and allusions, do the following:

       Provide a focused lesson on analogies (perhaps extending it to distinguish between analogies, similes, and metaphors), illustrating with examples; then model for the class how to read for them in the assigned text; once they understand, have them apply the ideas on their own to the rest of the text.

       Read aloud for students the text that has some good examples of allusions in it, explaining to them how these function and how you determine that they are, in fact, functioning as allusions.

       To help your English Language Learners, try this:

       Use these words as often as possible, speaking them aloud so students hear them used in context and pronounced correctly.

      Preparing to Teach: Connections to My State’s Standards

      Common Core Reading Standard 4: Academic Vocabulary: Key Words and Phrases

      Analogies and allusions: Analogies are those words or phrases that compare two things, often based on similar structures or qualities, to explain or clarify some other point; allusions can include, in some cases, as little as a word but often a more developed reference to an image, a story, or some passage in the Bible, for example, that the writer uses to make a point by suggesting some point of similarity (e.g., that a place was an Eden).

      Connotative meanings: Words have a primary or literal meaning; some also have a secondary or connotative meaning, which implies an additional idea or feeling related to the word or phrase.

      Domain-specific words and phrases: Within each discipline or branch of that discipline, certain words (cell, division) have a domain-specific use in, for example, biology; other words, however, are unique to that discipline and are, thus, essential for students to know in order to read, discuss, and write about complex texts in that subject.

      Figurative meanings: Figures of speech (or figurative language) are those often colorful ways we develop of saying something; they include euphemism, hyperbole, irony, understatement, metaphor, simile, and paradox, among others. Some of them are specific to an era, region, or social group and, thus, can confuse readers.

      Impact of rhymes and other repetitions of sounds: Though we associate the role sound plays more with poetry, it often plays a key role also in drama and, depending on the author’s style, in fiction. It can have a number of effects: emphasis, pleasure, association, mimicry of action, or reinforcing to imagery.

      Impact of specific word choice on meaning and tone: Each word comes with its own denotative and connotative meaning which, in a piece of writing being read closely, will be in the author’s mind and, thus, one of the many tools for creating meaning and evoking a certain tone. If, for example, a writer uses a word that is very formal, archaic, or otherwise outdated, it will create in the reader’s mind a certain impression and tone that shapes how that student interprets what the author means. In short, the writer’s choices shape meaning or tone: Certain words carry added, often implied meanings; we describe these as “loaded words,” for they have the power to affect the meaning of the words around them or to influence the speaker’s tone (e.g., turning it from sincere to ironic).

      Interpret: This is best understood as a way of explaining what an author wrote using more accessible, familiar language for those who lack experience with or knowledge of the subject or this type of text.

      Key terms: In highly technical or scientific subjects, certain terms represent the precision and accuracy that discipline demands. In some subjects, a certain term (e.g., evolution, uncertainty, or entropy) represents a specific idea or applies to a very precise process.

      Symbols: In humanities classes, a symbol suggests some greater meaning when it is attached to an idea; thus, the bald eagle symbolizes the American spirit; in science and math, however, symbols represent operations, procedures, and concepts such as change (∆) or pi (π).

      Technical meanings: These would be words with specialized meanings specific to the subject being investigated, explained, or argued about; one example might be the distinctions made between political philosophies, such as libertarian and republican.

      Tone: When thinking of tone, think about tone of voice. The formal tone of the Constitution matches its importance and subject; the informal tone of a literary text signals the relationship between the individuals and reveals the character of the speaker.

      Words and phrases as they are used in a text: Close reading seeks to understand what the text really says; to do this, students must scrutinize the words and phrases used by the author, as they are the key to determining what the author really means or what the text says; also, they are an essential source of evidence.

      Planning to Teach: What to Do—and How

      Reading Standards: Craft and Structure

      Reading 5: Analyze the structure of texts, including how specific sentences, paragraphs, and larger portions of the text (e.g., a section,