Word of the Day

Every day in language arts class, students will encounter a Word of the Day.  The words chosen come from a list of high frequency words for middle schoolers--essentially, words that middle school students encounter often in their academic and independent reading.  When students walk into class, they know to get out an index card and write the Word of the Day on one side with a picture that represents the word, and on the other side to write the part of speech, definition, and a sample sentence.

The finished card would look like this:

Students, if you forget a word, or you want to review the words we've studied thus far, look no further!  They're all right here!

Parents, if you have the opportunity, try to use these words around your children and/or ask your kids what they mean!

Luminous (adj) – filled with light, shining

Emerge (v) – to become apparent; to appear from a hidden place

Pertinent (adj) - relevant

Serenity (n) – the state of being calm, peaceful, and/or untroubled

Zeal (n) – great energy or enthusiasm

Genuine (adj) – actual, real, or true; sincere and honest

Eloquent (adj) – having or showing the ability to use language clearly and effectively

Provoke – to deliberately try to make someone angry; to cause a reaction, especially an angry one

Imply (v) – to suggest something without saying or showing it plainly

Emulate (v) – to try to be like

Adequate (adj) – good enough; acceptable but not better than acceptable

Empathy (n) – the ability to share and understand the feelings of another

Momentum (n) - strength or force gained by motion or a series of events

Omniscient (adj) - all knowing

Plethora (n) - a large quantity

Triumphant (adj) - celebrating victory or success

Transpire (v) - to happen, occur

Unsightly (adj) - ugly, unpleasant to look at

Ominous (adj) - suggesting that something bad is going to happen in the future

Dismal (adj) - depressing, dreary, disgracefully bad

Arrogant (adj) - having an exaggerated sense of one's own talents or abilities

Brazen (adj) - overly bold or rash