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8th grade · English Language Arts · Unit 3 of 12

Word Study

Roots, affixes and connotation

What your child practices

Using prefixes, suffixes and Greek and Latin roots to work out unfamiliar words, reading context clues, and noticing how word choice changes feeling.

Arizona Academic Standards learning standard: 8.L.4; 8.L.5 · roots, affixes and connotation

How we explain it

Children can open this short lesson before they practice.

  1. Prefixes go at the start (re-, dis-, mis-). Suffixes go at the end (-ful, -able).
  2. Greek and Latin roots carry meaning: graph (write), auto (self), bio (life).
  3. Words with similar meanings can have different connotations: slim sounds kinder than skinny.

Example: The root “graph” means write and “auto” means self. What does “autograph” mean? Put the parts together: self + write. Something you write yourself is your signature. Answer: A person’s own signature

Word Study in Arizona

In the Arizona Academic Standards, this is unit 3 of 12 in 8th grade English Language Arts, after Literary Devices and before Irony, Satire & Allusion.

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: Arizona Department of Education

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

    “The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.” This is…

    • a root
    • an idiom
    • a prefix
    • a synonym

  2. Question 2

    Prefix or suffix? Sort each word part.

    Sort into: ⏮️ Prefix · ⏭️ Suffix

    • ⏪pre- (before)
    • ✅-able (can be)
    • ↔️dis- (opposite of)
    • 🚫un- (not)
    • 🧺-ful (full of)
    • 📦-ment (result of)
    • 🔁re- (again)
    • 0️⃣-less (without)

  3. Question 3

    The Greek root “graph” means “write.” What does “autograph” most likely mean?

    • A machine for writing
    • A long story
    • A picture of a car
    • A person's own signature

  4. Question 4

    The root “spect” means “look.” Which word means “to look closely at something”?

    • suspect
    • prospect
    • inspect
    • respect

  5. Question 5

    The root “port” means “carry.” Which word fits: “Please __ the box to the car.”?

    • portrait
    • import tax
    • report card
    • transport

  6. Question 6

    Which word has the most positive connotation?

    • scrawny
    • bony
    • slim
    • skinny

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