About this activity
Sixteen sentences that carry their own definitions: the path was so narrow that we had to walk single file; she was reluctant to jump in because the water looked freezing; Dad glanced at the map and then kept driving; the gym was enormous, our whole school fit inside; the instructions were vague, so nobody knew what to do. The clue is always in the sentence, and finding it is the skill.
How to use it in a session
Make the student point at the clue. Walk single file is what makes narrow mean not wide, and identifying that phrase is what transfers to a sentence they have not seen. Cover the answer options first and ask for a meaning in their own words, since choosing from four can be done by elimination without reading the sentence properly. Twelve minutes covers the sixteen.
What to listen for
Watch which clue types work. A consequence clue — so nobody knew what to do — requires an inference; a direct restatement does not, and students who manage the second and not the first have a specific gap. Notice whether they read past the target word, since the clue is almost always after it and students frequently stop at the unfamiliar word.
Carrying it home
Any book above a child's talking level supplies this. When they hit an unknown word, asking them to finish the sentence and then guess is a better instruction than looking it up.
Questions
- What grades is this for?
- Third through fifth, using narrative-style sentences.
- Is it free?
- Yes, all sixteen items play with no account.
- Should students guess rather than look words up?
- While reading, usually yes — stopping at every unknown word destroys comprehension. Looking up is for the words that turn out to matter, which is a decision the student can only make after reading on.