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6th grade · English Language Arts · Unit 2 of 12

Connotation & Tone

Word choice changes meaning

What your child practices

Words can share a dictionary meaning (denotation) but carry different feelings (connotation), like “cozy” and “cramped.” Students choose words for effect and identify a writer's tone.

Alaska content standards learning standard: RL.6.4; L.6.5 · connotation and tone

How we explain it

Children can open this short lesson before they practice.

  1. Denotation is a word’s dictionary meaning. Connotation is the feeling it carries.
  2. Cozy and cramped both mean small, but cozy feels good and cramped feels bad.
  3. Tone is the writer’s attitude, shown by word choice: cheerful, angry, worried, playful.

Example: Which has the more positive connotation: “thrifty” or “stingy”? Both mean careful with money. Stingy sounds selfish. Thrifty sounds wise. Answer: thrifty

Connotation & Tone in Alaska

In the Alaska content standards, this is unit 2 of 12 in 6th grade English Language Arts, after Point of View and before Make Your Case.

Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.

Source: Alaska Department of Education and Early Development

Sample questions

A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.

  1. Question 1

    Sort each word: positive or negative connotation?

    Sort into: 😊 Positive · 😒 Negative

    • 🔤cozy
    • 🔤pushy
    • 🔤lazy
    • 🔤stingy
    • 🔤confident
    • 🔤determined

  2. Question 2

    Which sentence shows that the writer admires Leo?

    • Leo is arrogant and talks over everyone.
    • Leo talks in class.
    • Leo is confident and speaks up in class.

  3. Question 3

    A reviewer wants readers to dislike a character. Which word fits best? “The hero was _____ and refused to listen to anyone's advice.”

    • determined
    • cheerful
    • stubborn

  4. Question 4

    “unique” and “weird” have the same denotation (dictionary meaning). What is it?

    • known by many people
    • like a young person
    • a smell
    • not common or ordinary

  5. Question 5

    What is the tone of this comment?

    Pool fees went up again this year, and once again nobody asked the families who actually use the pool.

    • grateful
    • frustrated
    • amused
    • joyful

  6. Question 6

    What is the tone of this description?

    The empty playground was silent. A single swing creaked in the wind, and the gate hung open.

    • cheerful
    • silly
    • excited
    • lonely

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