While reading The Future of Us, we have thought about two different vocabulary lessons that could be used. These activities could be utilized together or separately but these lessons should be used as students are reading the novel, rather than after the reading is complete. This will ensure students are learning new vocabulary terms and clarifying their understanding as they read the novel.
Here are some of the words that we have picked out as possible vocabulary words students may use for the activities described below. This is just a general list and students will need to decide on the words individually, but in case students cannot find any words, this is a list they can look at for ideas to get them started.
Page 7: Delusional- Misleading the mind in judgementThe first activity students can do is called Bookmarking. The students will be given a bookmark template and it will require the students to write the title of the book and the author(s) name at the top. Then, the bookmark will be divided into 6 squares. In each square, students will need to write one word that was unfamiliar to them along with the page number the word was found on. The students will then need to look the word up in a dictionary and summarize the definition in their own words. The definition will be written in the same box as the word. Students can write as many words down as they would like as long as they define the words that they have chosen. After every few days, the class can have a discussion about one word from everyone's bookmark and these words can be written on butcher paper and added to a word wall that is in the classroom. *Please note, there is a handout to accompany this activity in our Handout section of the website.**
The second activity that can be done along with bookmarking, or done alone is called Vocabulary Concept Development. This is a worksheet the students will be given that is a graphic organizer. There are 4 boxes that surround a center box (5 boxes in total). In the center box, students will write the vocabulary word they are unsure of. In the top left box students will define the word. In the top right box, students will write a sentence (different from the novel) using the word in the correct context. In the bottom left box students will write antonyms of the word and in the bottom right box students will right synonyms of the word.
