SORT WORDS BY SHARED GREEK OR LATIN ROOTS

Key Notes :

Understanding Roots:

• Explain that many English words come from Greek or Latin roots.
• A root is the basic part of a word that gives it its core meaning.
• Knowing roots can help students understand and guess the meaning of new words.

Common Greek Roots:

• “Photo” (meaning light): Found in words like “photograph” (light picture) and “photosynthesis” (light process in plants).
• “Geo” (meaning earth): Found in words like “geography” (study of the earth) and “geology” (study of earth’s structure).

Common Latin Roots:

• “Aqua” (meaning water): Found in words like “aquarium” (a place for water animals) and “aquatic” (related to water).
• “Aud” (meaning hear): Found in words like “audible” (able to be heard) and “auditorium” (a place where people gather to listen).

Identifying Words with Shared Roots:

• Practice finding and grouping words with the same root. For example:
  • “Spect” (Latin for “to see”): Found in “inspect,” “spectator,” and “spectacle.”
  • “Tele” (Greek for “far”): Found in “telephone,” “television,” and “teleport.”

Common Greek and Latin Roots:

• Introduce some common Greek and Latin roots that are relevant to grade 4 students, such as:
  • “tele” (Greek) meaning “far” (e.g., telephone, telescope)
  • “aqua” (Latin) meaning “water” (e.g., aquarium, aquatic)
  • “bio” (Greek) meaning “life” (e.g., biology, biography)
  • “port” (Latin) meaning “carry” (e.g., transport, portable)
  • “scrib/script” (Latin) meaning “write” (e.g., describe, manuscript)

Grouping Words by Roots:

• Practice sorting words into groups based on their shared roots. For example, words like “transport” and “portable” share the root “port.”
• Use visual aids like charts or flashcards to show the root and related words.

Understanding Word Meanings:

• Show how knowing the root helps in understanding the word’s meaning. For example, knowing that “aqua” means “water” helps understand “aquarium” as a place for water animals.
• Encourage students to guess the meanings of new words based on their roots.

let’s practice!