Focus Question: How do we know which meaning of a multiple-meaning word is used in a sentence?
Print and cut out Homonym Picture Cards (L-K-4-3_Homonym Picture Cards.docx) prior to this lesson. You may want to differentiate pictures and give more challenging matches to advanced students. Hand out one picture to each student. Say, “Find the person with the other picture whose word is the same as yours.” If you would like students to discover that they are finding words that sound alike but have different meanings, the thinking process will enhance their learning experience. However, you may model for them by matching two pictures and explaining the process. For example, show a picture of a bat (animal) and a baseball bat. Explain that the words are the same, but they mean different things.
Say, “You have two minutes to find the person who has a picture with the same word as your picture. You may NOT talk during this activity. Simply hold your picture up in front of you and walk around to find the picture that matches yours. When you find the person with the matching picture, stand next to him or her and wait. Ready? Go.”
After two minutes, help students who have not yet found a match. Then gather the partners in a group and allow students to share and show the pairs of homonyms. Ask, “What did you learn about words by doing this activity?” (A word can have more than one meaning.)
Part 1
Say, “During our picture -matching activity, we learned that a word can have more than one meaning. We call these multiple-meaning words. For example, the word bat can mean an animal that flies at night or it can mean a piece of wood that you swing to hit a ball. Another example is the word point, which can mean the tip of a pencil (show students) or to point your finger at something.”Allow students to share other examples.
Ask, “If a word can mean more than one thing, how do we know which meaning we are supposed to use when we read it in a text?” (Possible answers: by the words around it, by the story)
Say, “Let’s discover more multiple-meaning words by reading the book Did You Say Pears? by Arlene Alda.”
As you read pages 4–17 to students, think aloud using the illustrations to support understanding of the multiple-meaning words. For example, read pages 4 and 5 and say, “Oh, there are two kinds of horns here. There are horns on this animal that it uses for protection. On this page, there are musical instruments called horns.” Allow students to participate. For example, display pages 8 and 9 and ask, “What word do both pictures show?”(nails) “What are the two meanings of this word?” (something to hammer and something on fingertips)
After reading, make a chart of the multiple-meaning words in the book. Hand out copies of the Multiple-meaning Words graphic organizer (L-K-4-3_Multiple-meaning Words.docx). Say, “You are each going to fill out this graphic organizer with a multiple-meaning word. Watch as I show you what to do.” Model for students how to fill in the graphic organizer: Write the word bank in the top box labeled “Multiple-meaning Word.” For meaning 1, draw a building with a dollar sign and/or write a meaning, such as “a place to keep money.” For meaning 2, draw a river bank and label it by drawing an arrow pointing to the bank. You may also write a meaning, such as “land beside a river.”
Say, “Now it is your turn. Choose a word from the chart and write it in the top box on your graphic organizer. Then draw or write a meaning for the word in the box on the left. Draw or write a second meaning for the word in the box on the right.”
As students are working, walk around the room and make sure they understand the concept of multiple-meaning words. Papers can be collected and used as a formative assessment.
Part 2
Say, “Now that we are familiar with multiple-meaning words, we are going to practice choosing the correct meaning of the word when we are reading. We will choose the correct meaning by looking at the context clues and at the illustrations.”
Ask, “What are context clues?” (information from the text that helps a reader identify a word and understand its meaning)
Students may be familiar with Amelia Bedelia, a character who often gets into trouble because she misunderstands words. Note that Amelia Bedelia books also include homophones (different words that sound the same and have different meanings) and literal/figurative meanings of words. For purposes of this lesson, focus on the examples of homonyms that are indicated below.
Say, “We are going to read an example from Amelia Bedelia’s First Day of School by Herman Parish. As we read, we will see how misunderstanding a multiple-meaning word can lead to trouble!”
Read aloud pages 4 and 5 of Amelia Bedelia’s First Day of School. Ask, “What is the multiple-meaning word?” (tag) “What does the teacher mean when she says, ‘You’re my last tag’?” (She has only one name tag left.) “How do you know?” Have students turn to a partner and tell two ways they know which meaning of tag the teacher uses. Have students share their answers with the class. (The picture shows the teacher with a name tag for Amelia. The text says “I have a name tag for you.”) Then ask, “What does Amelia think the teacher means?” (The teacher wants her to play tag.) Ask students to explain how they know. (The picture shows Amelia running around the class. Amelia says, “You can’t catch me.” The teacher says, “We aren’t playing tag.”)
Ask, “What strategies did you use to determine which meaning the author intended us to choose for the multiple-meaning word tag?” (context clues and illustrations) Then ask, “What happened to Amelia because she chose the definition that didn’t fit the situation?” (She didn’t know what to do. She did the wrong thing.)
For additional instruction/practice, read the following examples from Good Driving, Amelia Bedelia:
- pages 12–13: steer (cow)/steer (aim a car)
- pages 14–15: horn (a hard, smooth part that sticks out of a cow’s head)/horn (a part of a car that can be honked as a warning)
- pages 20–21: fork (a place where a road splits in two)/fork (something used for eating)
- pages 22–23: right (the opposite of left)/right (correct)
Follow a similar procedure of having students identify the multiple-meaning word, explain the meanings of the word, and tell how they used the text to determine the meanings.
Part 3
Display a copy of Multiple-meaning Word Sentences (L-K-4-3_Multiple-meaning Word Sentences.docx) on an overhead projector or interactive whiteboard. Model the activity. Say, “I am going to write the word rock in each box.” Demonstrate. Ask, “What is one meaning of the word rock?” (a stone) Draw a picture of a stone in one box. Ask, “What is another meaning of the word rock?” (to move back and forth in a chair) Draw a picture of a rocking chair in the other box. Say, “Now I am going to write a sentence with each word.” Write two sentences below the pictures (e.g., I have a rock collection. Mom will rock the baby to sleep.). Read the sentences with students and have them determine which meaning of rock is used in each sentence and explain how they can tell.
Brainstorm a list of multiple-meaning words or display the Homonym Picture Cards used earlier in the lesson. Distribute copies of the worksheet to students. Explain that they will choose a multiple-meaning word and complete the worksheet with pictures and sentences.
Allow students time to complete their pictures and sentences. While they work, walk around the room and provide assistance if necessary. Some students may dictate their sentences for you to write. Have students share their work with a partner. You can use the completed worksheets to assess students’ understanding.
Extension:
- For students who need additional support, use the pairs of Homonym Picture Cards. Have students explain the two meanings of the multiple-meaning words and use each word in a sentence to express its meaning.
- Work with small groups of students to read pages 4–9 of If You Were a Homonym or a Homophone by Nancy Loewen. Have students explain the two meanings of each multiple-meaning word and draw visual representations for both definitions.
- Students who are ready to move beyond the standard may write a story using multiple-meaning words. The story can be silly like the Amelia Bedelia books or it can demonstrate accurate use of multiple-meaning words.
- Have students write a sentence with a multiple-meaning word and then draw a silly picture to illustrate the wrong meaning. For example, if the sentence is The bat flew out of the cave, the picture might show a baseball bat flying out of a cave. Have students share their work and have others explain what is wrong.
