Fun Activities for Learning Greek and Latin Roots at Home
When I say the word "vocabulary," what's the first thing that pops into your head? Maybe you're picturing yourself copying definitions from a dictionary. Perhaps you remember trying hard to memorize a list of words and their meanings - and promptly forgetting them
But guess what? Learning vocabulary doesn't have to be boring!
Our brains work best when we can connect new information to stuff we already know. So, for older students who have mastered phonics, it's time to move on to Greek and Latin roots and affixes. By learning new words in word families, students can make more connections in their brains and remember those words more easily.
When helping your student with Greek and Latin morphology, it's important to make it fun and engaging. Some students might enjoy writing stories, while others might prefer discussing words or creating word maps. Here are six ideas to help reinforce your student's vocabulary:
Play Word Games and Puzzles
Make vocabulary building a fun and interactive experience by playing word games and puzzles like Bingo or crosswords using Greek and Latin roots. The more your student is exposed to the vocabulary words, the better they'll remember them.
Here are some free sites where you can make these activities:
Write Silly Stories
Gather 3 or more family members or friends to create a sentence using words from the roots and affixes learned in school. (You may want to use a word list at first, as some kids struggle when a prompt is too open-ended.) After everyone writes a sentence, pass the papers counterclockwise. Everyone adds a sentence to the paper. The added sentences should make sense and continue the story, even if it is a silly story. As often as possible, the added sentences should include at least one word from the target words.
Continue writing in rounds, always passing the papers counterclockwise, until you feel like the stories are ready to be shared. This activity is definitely better with more participants.
An alternate way to play is to write for two or three minutes, then pass the papers. Which version you use depends on the stamina of your participants - older students can usually write faster, so having a time limit works well. Younger students may struggle to think of and finish writing their sentences in a limited time.
Use Word Maps
Create a word map with your student to help them visualize the relationships between words. Start with a root word and add related words with prefixes and suffixes. This will help your student understand the meaning of new words they encounter.
Read and Discuss
Encourage your student to read books or articles that use the root words being studied. Make sure the passages are on their reading level. After reading, have a conversation about the root words, their meanings, and how they contribute to understanding the text. This will not only strengthen their vocabulary but also enhance their reading comprehension skills.
Word Detective
Explore the meanings of unfamiliar roots and affixes together. Identify root words and discuss their connections to other words your student already knows. For example, after watching a science fiction movie, you could discuss how the word universe comes from two Latin words, uni (one) and versus (turned). Combined, the Latin word universus meant “turned into one.” Ask your student how the word universe relates to universus (the universe is everything in space.)
Expand upon these discussions by brainstorming other words in the word family. For the word root uni, you might come up with unicorn, unify, unit, reunion, unique, and others. Making these connections will help your student understand how the words relate to each other and reinforce the meaning of the roots and affixes.
Morphology Scavenger Hunt
Create a scavenger hunt where your child searches for objects or signs containing words with Greek and Latin roots. Challenge them to determine the meanings based on their knowledge of roots.
Just remember, don't overwhelm your student with too many word lists at home in addition to spelling and vocabulary at school. Students will struggle if they are expected to remember too many words. Weaving morphology into your at-home activities is the way to go.