Julius Caesar, (102 B.C. - 44B.C.)

Attività proposta da Francesca Ripamonti - Docente Lingua Inglese

Scuola Secondaria II grado

Description:

English prefixes, suffixes, and roots are shown in relationship to the Latin language and how current English words can be analyzed for meaning.

Description:

VERSO UN CURRICULUM PLURILINGUE: CLASSICAL vs MODERN LANGUAGES

• Lesson Plan Title: LATIN vs ENGLISH!

• Target group: Secondary school – age 15-16

• Level B1 of the Common European Framework

VERSO UN CURRICULUM PLURILINGUE: CLASSICAL vs MODERN LANGUAGES

General aims:

• To help students:

• develop a plurilingual setting in the classroom

• develop a deeper understanding of Word-formation

• develop lexical competence, grammatical competence, phonological competence

• develop a Plurilingual Attitude melting classical and modern languages, es. LATIN+ENGLISH

Specific aims: • to help students develop the following skills:• Recognising words and phrases in English

related to ancient Latin origins• Using one’s own knowledge of Latin language

to interpret and decipher new English words• Deducing the meaning and use of unknown

words, detecting their prefixes/ affixes/ suffixes/ root words

• Understanding the meaning and implications of prefixes/ affixes/suffixes/root words

• Connecting this information to the other written and oral skills in order to engage the students in more confident interactions

Materials:

• Power point presentation of the activities

• Authentic reading texts

• Photocopies

• Pictures/ Students’ drawings

• Internet connections/ Internet sites

“Old, old, I’ve been told, has some value, worthy of gold!”

Now, let’s see the gifts of the ancient world and find out how their gifts have influenced us.

Do you know what it is?

It relates to Communication.

It’s Latin

What does Ancient Rome have in common with our Modern world?

60% of the words in EnglishEnglish are derived

from LatinLatin!

•Latin helps us understand words.

•Latin helps us understand English, Spanish & French grammars.

•Literature, Medicine, & Law, all use Latin words.

By the end of this lesson we should be able to:

break words into elements,analyze the parts, guess the meaning of the words.

This lesson will cover:Learning English word-elements such as affixes, prefixes, suffixes, and roots. Learning what these word elements meanword elements mean. Learning how to break words into elementsbreak words into elements.④Learning how to decipher word elementsto decipher word elements to understand the meaning of the word.⑤ Learning how to apply this procedure to understand new words

do you know the definition of:

-ROOT WORD-AFFIX

-PREFIX-SUFFIX ?

First things first:

Affix:Affix: A word element, such as a prefix or suffix, that can only occur attached

to a base, stem, or root.Prefix:Prefix: A word element that is attached

to the front of a root. SuffixSuffix:: A word element that is attached

to the end of the root.

Definitions:

Both Prefixes and SuffixesBoth Prefixes and Suffixes: -Usually cannot stand alone as a word.

-Give new meaning to the root to which they are attached to. Root:Root: A word element that can sometimes stand alone as a word and the meaning is altered by a prefix and/or suffix.

Examples for a root wordExamples for a root word: Ex. We have a mission to do well on our vocabulary Test!

The Latin root miss miss means “to sendto send”. All the words below relate to the word sendsend.

EXERCISE:EXERCISE:Match the words to the definitions

1.Commissioner (n.); 2.Admissible (adj.); 3.submissive (adj.) 4.missionary (n); 5.missile (n.) 6.missive (n).

___ a rocket or weapon sent through the air.___ a person sent for a special task, usually religious. ___ a message sent through the mail.___ yielding; obedient. ___ a person sent to meet with others to plan & make official decisions. ___ to allow to authorize

Example Answers:How did you do on matching the words with the meanings?

1.Commissioner (n.); 2.Admissible (adj.); 3.submissive (adj.) 4.missionary (n); 5.missile (n.) 6.missive (n).

_5_ a rocket or weapon sent through the air._4_ a person sent for a special task, usually religious. _6_ a message sent through the mail._3_ yielding; obedient. _2_ a person sent to meet with others to plan & make official decisions. _1_ to allow to authorize

: The Latin prefix bene means “good, well”. See how this prefix changesprefix changes the meaningthe meaning of the root words to relate to something good or well. 1.BeneBenefactor(n.)= Someone who does good things 2.BeneBeneficial (adj.)= Something good

3.BeneBenefit (n or v)= A worthwhile event or being helped

Examples for PrefixesExamples for Prefixes

The Latin prefix mal means “bad” and mis means “wrong”.

See how these prefixes change the meaning of the root words to relate to something bad or wrong.

1.Malefactor (n.) = a criminal 2.Malicious (adj.)= evil 3.Misfit (n)=Someone who does

not fit in.

Examples for SuffixesExamples for Suffixes: suffixes change the meanings of the words.

Here are some examples:

“ous”/”oso” gives the meaning of being full of

1. joyousous 2. marvellousous 3. furiousous

This chart will help you record word elements so you can refer to them later.

Entire word

& meaning

Root & meaning

Prefix & meaning

Suffix & meaning

BENEFACTOR=

A helpful person

FACT=to do/ to make

BENE= good OR=condition,activity

MALEFACTOR=a criminal

FACT=to do/ to make

MAL= bad OR=condition,activity

PRENATAL= NAT=birth PRE=before AL=relating to

LET’s LOOK at the WORD PRENATAL:

Prefix: PRENATAL

Root: PRENATAL

Suffix: PRENATAL

How does Latin relate to any of these items?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU IN LATIN

Laetus natalis, tibi.Laetus natalis, tibi. Laetus natalis, care Laetus natalis, tibi.

Now, let’s analyze the word natalis

natalis

What is the root? What do you think it means?

“Natalis” means birthday in Latin. Nat is the Latin root and it means “birth”.

Question: Does “nat” fit the definition of a “root”?”.

Let’s put some elements together and see what we have.

Add the prefix “pre” meaning “before” to “nat”. Now add the suffix “al” meaning “relating to” to

“nat”. What is the new word? Pre + nat + al (Prenatal)

What does it mean? It means “before birth”.

Let’s be creative:

Here’s a new one: Add the prefix “neo” meaning “new” to “nat”.

neo + nat The actual spelling of the word is neonate.

And it means new birth such as a newborn!

Now let’s see some more words

Now let’s add the suffix “ive”, meaning

“directed towards” to the root “nat”. Nat + ive

1)Write down your prediction of the definition of this word.

2)Now look “native” up in the dictionary & write the definition.

Were you correct? ? ?

Now investigate these new words :INNATE, NATALITY, NATUROPATHY

TENACIOUS, SUPERFLUOUS REMEMBER:Prefix: in = notSuffixes: al = relating to

ity = state of pathy = to experience, suffer

Decode the meanings by connecting the definitions of the prefixes and suffixes to the root word.

Then analyze in what way the meaning has changed.

You’re on your way to being a great Roman thinker!

How close did you come in your predictions?Write down your predictions of what each word means or relates to.Explain your reasoning. Look up the words in the dictionary and

write down the definition of each

Match prefixes on the left to their meanings on the right.

___ Re- (renew) 1) wrong, bad

_____ Pre- (preview) 2) before

_____ Mis- (misbehave) 3) again, back

_____ De- (deforestation) 4) eight

_____ Tele- (television) 5) one, same, whole

_____ Un- (unhappy) 6) remove or reduce

_____ Bi- (biweekly) 7) twice, (two times)

_____ Uni- (uniform) 8) far, distant

_____ Octo- (octopus) 9) many, (usually more than two)

_____ Sub- (subway) 10) under or low

_____ Multi- (multiple) 11) not

Prefix/Suffix Multiple Choice

Circle the best available answer for each of the following: 1) This newspaper is a BIWEEKLY.

a) the newspaper is published once a week

b) the newspaper is published three times a week

c) the newspaper is published twice a week

2) This medicine is a nasal DECONGESTANT.

a) the medicine helps to reduce nasal congestion

b) the medicine causes nasal congestion

c) the medicine makes your nose bigger

3) That shopping bag is REUSABLE.

a) throw the shopping bag away, we won’t need it again

b) don’t throw away the shopping bag because we can use it again.

c) if you throw the shopping bag we cannot use it again

4) I’m sorry I MISREAD the notice and therefore MISUNDERSTOOD the message.

a) Did not read the notice correctly and therefore did not understand correctly.

b) Read the notice and understood the message correctly

c) Did not read the notice and therefore did not understand the message.

Prefix/Suffix Multiple Choice

Circle the best available answer for each of the following: 5) We usually do not publish articles we don’t PREVIEW.

a) we usually read articles before publication

b) we do not read articles after publication

c) we read articles the day we publish them

6) REFORESTATION will help to RESTORE our environment.

a) planting trees again will REPLENISH our environment.

b) cutting down trees will further help to worsen the environment.

c) forests should be cut to improve the worsening environmental pollution

7)Why is it called “OCTOBER” when it is not the eighth month of the year?

a) Because this is an exception with the OCTO prefix.

b) There is no reason why.

c) Because October used to be the eighth month of the Roman Calendar

You have learned how to predict what familiar/unfamiliar words mean by applying the definitions of affixes.

You’ve entered the exciting world of word discovery and higher

understanding of literature. Now you’re a great English Latin

thinker!

Congratulations!

References:References: -The Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language, 1976, G.&M. Merriam Co.-Pennock, R.T., Tower of Babel: The Evidence Against the New Creationism, MIT Press, Cambridge MA, USA, 1999.-Walshe, M.O.C., A Concise German Etymological Dictionary, Routledge & Kegan, London, 2003.