How can you start meeting gifted learners’ needs in language arts? Here are four guidelines from Dr. David Levande with several practical ideas to get you started.
All AboutVocabulary
Mega Homophone List
Challenge your gifted students and advanced spellers with this list of 320 homophones arranged into groups of ten. Also includes five task cards for independent work with homophones.
111 Greek and Latin Word Parts
To differentiate spelling and vocabulary for my gifted students, I incorporate words with Greek and Latin origins. This list is a compilation of 111 Greek and Latin roots, prefixes, and suffixes, along with 35 groups of 5 related English words, plus 5 task cards.
Super Idiom List
Idioms were my next target. Houghton Mifflin spends just one week on this concept, yet the only way to learn idioms is to be exposed to a wide variety. I scoured the internet and developed a list of over 200 idioms with definitions and examples.
Ideas for Idiom Activities
I began including an “idiom template” as well as some powerpoint slides in the weekly idiom list, but neglected to mention how I used the template! Here are four ideas I’ve used:
Puzzle: Word Ladders
One of my favorite tricks in the classroom was having a “puzzle of the day.” The great difficulty was finding puzzles that challenged my students, but didn’t require meticulous work or strange knowledge. Word Ladders were always a consistent hit.
Puzzle: Words Within Words
In need of some nice word puzzles that will keep your gifted kids busy? Ask them to find as many words as they can within another word. For example: can you find five words made from the letters in “snowy?” How about ten?
125 Homographs and Homonyms
This product features 125 homographs and homonyms to upgrade your spelling and vocabulary lists. Includes definitions, examples, parts of speech, and pronunciation guides.
Garden Path Sentences
Garden Path Sentences seem to begin one way, but quickly fall apart, forcing the reader to start over and interpret words in a new way. A simple example is: “The old man the boat.”
Weekly Lists of Common Foreign Vocabulary
Don’t bore students with another dull list of spelling words. Challenge them with weekly lists of common English words and phrases borrowed from another language.