Atlas: A book of maps or a book of tables, charts, pictures
on one subject.
Mr. Taylor has a world atlas in his classroom.
Abbreviation: A shorter form of a word or phrase, i.e. AZ
for Arizona.
The abbreviation for the United States of America is
U.S.A.
Adverb: A word that modifies a verb by identifying time,
place, speed, etc.
Quickly is an adverb in the sentence "Jose quickly
finished his homework. "
Antonyms: A word opposite in meaning to another word.
Cold is the antonym of hot.
Apostrophe; The mark used to show a letter or letters
have been left out of a word or phrase or to show
ownership.
Example of letters left out: You've is short for "you have"
and an apostrophe shows that "have" is missing two
letters.
Example of ownership: Mr. Taylor's class reads several
books each year.
Example of ownership: The apostrophe in the sentence
"Mr. Taylor's class reads several books each year." shows
the class belongs to Mr. Taylor.
Bias: One meaning of "bias" is to like or dislike one thing
over another.
Claudia has bias for chocolate over all other candy.
chronological order/sequence of events: To arrange events
in the order they occurred.
In chronological order, our class has computer lab on
Monday, music on Tuesday, gym on Wednesday, library
on Thursday, and art on Friday.
complete sentence/ simple sentence/independent clause:
A complete sentence includes at least a subject and a
verb.
"Claudia ran." is a complete sentence.
context clues: Words, phrases or sentences around a new
word that helps the reader make a logical guess about the
meaning of the new word. Use context clues to figure out
what a new word means.
Contraction: A word or phrase shortened by leaving out
one or more letters or sounds.
"You'll" is the contraction of "you will."
will not is WON’T
compound word: A compound word is made when two
words are joined to form a new word.
The words "shoe" and "string" are joined to form the
compound word "Shoestring."
biography
The history of a persons life.
If you become famous, someone will write your
biography.
Describe: To tell or write about something. Please
describe your backpack.
Declarative (telling sentence) A sentence that makes a
statement. "The earth is round." is a declarative sentence.
Dictionary: A book of alphabetically listed words with
their meanings and other information.
Students need a dictionary when they go to college.
Exclamatory (exclamation point) A sudden, angry outcry;
to cry out; shout; or speak suddenly in surprise, etc.
"Lillian, be quiet! shouted her mother is an exclamatory
phrase.
fact
Something that really happened; truth; actuality; things as
they exist.
It is a fact that the moon revolves around the earth.
fairy tale: A fairy tale is a type of short story with fairies,
goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and
usually magic or enchantments.
The story "Jack and the Beanstalk" is a fairy tale.
folk tale: A story or legend originating and traditional
among a group of people (folk = people), especially one
forming part of the spoken tradition of the everyday
people.
The stories about Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox are
folk tales.
Interrogative: Asking a question.
"Do you like chocolate ice cream?" is an interrogative.
Index: One meaning of "index" is an alphabetical list of
names, subjects, etc., together with page numbers where
they can be found--usually placed at the end of a book.
In this book, the index says there is information about the
moon on pages 31 and 73.
Instructions: Education; teaching; lessons or a list of steps
to be followed to complete an assignment.
(1) Every teacher at Rio Vista gives instructions to their
students. (2) It is hard to use a TV remote without reading
the instructions.
main characteristics: The most important things that
identify a person, plant, object--or anything in the
universe. The main characteristics of most cars are four
wheels, a body where the driver and passengers sit, a
steering wheel, an engine, and headlights and taillights.
Nonfiction (Information text)
Books and stories which only include real people,
animals, plants, science, events, etc.
A book about birds in Tucson is a nonfiction book.
main idea: The main idea of a passage or reading is the
the most important thought or message. (In contrast to the
term topic, which refers to the subject under discussion.)
The main idea of Mr. Taylor's instructions is that it is
important to follow directions.
multi-meaning words: Words which have more than one
meaning.
Here are examples of how bat can be used in a sentence:
1. I watched the bat flitting through the trees.
2. Raymond gripped the bat tightly as he waited for the
pitch.
3. I hope I can bat a home run!
Opinion: A person's belief based on what seems true, or
probable; a person's judgment. How a person thinks or
feels.
Many people have the opinion that French cooking is the
best in the world.
Organization: A group of persons organized for some
specific purpose, such as a club, business, team, etc.
The Rio Vista band is an organization of students with an
interest in music.
personal narrative: A story that tells a story based on a
personal experience of the writer. 1st person point of view
will be used a lot.
Jasmine wrote a personal narrative about a trip to visit her
grandmother.
Plural: more than one of something.
Bones/bones city/cities church/churches goose/geese
Knife/knives
man/men
child/children
Plot: The arrangement of the main events in a book,
story, poem, or film, also known as the "story line." A
plot is a fictional story that has a beginning, middle, and
ending. You will also see the climax, conflict, resolution,
etc.
point of view: A way of viewing things; an attitude or the
position from which something is observed or considered;
a standpoint.
It is Mr. Taylor's point of view that students must be held
responsible for completing their work.
1st person: I, my, me, we, us
2nd person: you, your, yours.
3rd person: he, him, she, her, it, they , them
Possessive: The form of a word that shows ownership.
The possessive form of John is John's. For example, to
say John owns the airplane, you would say "It is John's
airplane."
One thing: ‘s
more than one s’
Predicate: In a sentence, the verb (action word) or the
verb and words that describe the verb. The predicate tells
what the subject did or is doing.
"Runs fast" is the predicate in the sentence "Magaly runs
fast."
Prefix: A prefix is placed at the beginning of a word to
change its meaning.
In the word "unhappy," "un-" is the prefix.
Prefixes: Prefixes are placed at the beginning of words to
change their meanings.
The prefixes we will see often are "pre-" (before), "post-"
(after), "un-" (opposite of), "anti-"(against), "hemi-"
(half), "non-" (absence of), "out-" (exceeding), "trans-"
(across), etc.
The sentence "John was unhappy in preschool" has two
prefixes.
punctuation (commas)
Special marks in sentences or phrases that make the
sentences or phrases easier to understand. Some common
punctuation marks are: . , ' ; ? !
The comma ( , ) tells where to pause or take a breath.
root word: A word that can start to build the meaning of
many words.
"Corn" is the root word of : popcorn; cornflower;
cornmeal; cornbread; and cornmeal: all the words mean
something about corn.
run-on sentence/incomplete sentence/ fragment:
A run-on sentence is a sentence in which two or more
independent clauses (i.e., complete sentences) are joined
without appropriate punctuation ( ; ) or a conjunction
(and, for, nor, but, or, yet and so).
"Sydney and Sabrina were in the band Sydney played the
saxophone Sabrina played percussion" is an example of
three run-on sentences.
Introduction: The introduction is at the beginning of a
story and it tells you what the main idea(s) will be; it lets
you "meet" the main idea. An introduction to your
teacher lets you meet.
Singular: In grammar, the form of a word that says there
is only one of something.
In the sentence "There was only one Juliana in the class,
but there were two Gabriels," Juliana is singular and
Gabriels is plural.
Sign: The word "sign" has many meanings. Among them
are: to write your name (signature); a symbol with a
specific meaning ( $ meaning dollars); and hand gestures
that give information (sign language).
When you vote in any election, you have to sign your
name.
story elements (character, setting, plot)
The who, what, where and why--the parts that make up a
story.
In Harry Potter, the main characters are Harry, Hermione,
and Ron; the setting is Castle Hogwarts; and the plot is to
learn to be wizards and keep Harry safe from Voldemort.
Schedule: The way things are planned to happen in our
lives, schools, or work.
Sometimes Mr. Taylor's class schedules a trip to the gem
and mineral show in February.
Subject: whom or what the sentence is about. Think of a
noun (person place, thing, animal, or idea)
The person, place or thing that does the action in a
sentence.
In the sentence "Michael finished his report before lunch,"
"Michael" is the subject, and "finished" is the action
(verb).
Suffixes: Letters or syllables added to the end of a word
to change its meaning.
Suffixes such as "-ish" and "-er" can be added to the word
"small" to change its meaning to smallish and smaller.
Summarize: find the main idea of each paragraph
To state briefly; to shorten to its most important parts.
supporting details: They come after the topic sentence,
making up the body of a paragraph. What do they do?
They give details to develop and help the reader better
understand the topic sentence (main idea).
If your topic sentence is "Harry Potter has a special
wand," you could add supporting details about the wand,
such as where he got it, what it's made of, and why it's a
special wand.
Synonyms: Compare
Different words that have the same meaning.
Synonyms of "bend" are curve and twist.
verb (types and functions)
A word that in a sentence that tells you the action (bring,
read, walk, run, learn), or a state of being (be, exist,
stand).
In the sentence "Anthony ran his race and is now standing
next to the track," "ran" (the action) and "standing" (state
of being) are both verbs.
Acronym: A word that is made by putting together parts
of other words.
The word "radar" is an acronym that was built from "radio
detecting and ranging"
( "ra + d + a + r" ).
Adjective: size, shape, color, how many, descriptive
words
A word or phrase that modifies (describes) a noun .
The word "brilliant" is an adjective in the sentence
"Yatzari is a brilliant student". "Brilliant" describes the
noun "student".
adverb: Most adverbs in in – ly. Adverbs tell, when,
where, and how
A word that Modifies (describes) a verb.
"Suddenly" is an adverb in the sentence "Anthony
suddenly remembered his homework assignment".
"Suddenly" describes the verb "remembered."
Almanac: A book that gives useful information about a
particular subject; sometimes published in a month-bymonth order.
For example, a gardening almanac might tell when to
plant different flowers and vegetables.
Analogy: A phrase or sentence that shows how different
things may be alike in some ways.
"A human heart is like a pump" is an analogy. The heart
and pump are alike in one way: they each pump
something.
A dog is to loyal as a cat is to independence.
Anthology: A book that is a collection of different writers'
works (essays, stories, poems, etc.).
"Mr. Taylor had so many interesting stories to tell. One
day he was going to publish his collection as 'An Artist's
Anthology.' "
Antonym: Contrast
A word that has an opposite meaning.
An antonym of "hot" is "cold"; an antonym of "fast" is
"slow".
Aphorism; A short, clear, wise statement that tells an
opinion or a saying that many people believe is true.
An aphorism about a famous musician is the sentence
"Irving Berlin has no place in American music - he IS
American music."
audience (as listeners and readers)
A group of people that gather to see or hear a
performance - when the performance is an "out-loud"
reading, the performers are the readers and the audience
are the listeners.
For example: "Mr. Taylor and Maria were taking turns
reading 'The Chamber of Secrets' to the class. The
audience was very quiet as the readers reached a scary
part of the story."
author's purpose : The reason for writing - to inform, to
question, to entertain.
"Fernando worked hard on his first prompt. His author's
purpose was to entertain his readers with his funny story."
Autobiography: The story of someone's life, written by
that person.
"Mr. Taylor had given the students their first assignment
of the year: a one-page autobiography."
Bibliography; Last Name, First Name. Name of the book.
City of publication: Publisher’s name, Copyright Date.
*Never use an ISBN number in a bibliography*
A list of the books and materials consulted; appearing at
the end of the text. "Leslie was sure to include her
bibliography at the end of her science report."
Brochure: A booklet or pamphlet that describes a subject;
often an advertisement.
"Mrs. Kuhn carefully read the brochure that announced
the opening of the University Science Fair."
Caption: A short description or title of an illustration in a
text.
"Gloria had written the caption ' What I Want to be When
I Grow Up ' under her drawing of a jet pilot ."
Category: A set of things that are grouped together
because they have something in common.
"Eric had lots of homework to do. Which category would
he start with? Reading, Writing, Science, Math ...? "
Cause(why) /effect (what) characteristics
Cause is the action that makes something happen; Effect
is the something that happens.
"Sarah knocked over a glass of water onto her homework
pages. Knocking over the glass was the cause of soaking
her homework. Wet homework was the effect of
knocking over the glass."
Conclusion: The part that brings something to an end OR
a decision that is made after looking at all the facts.
"Andrew thought the conclusion of ‘Harry Potter and The
Chamber of Secrets‘ was really exciting!"
"After much thought, Anthony came to the conclusion
that the answer to the long division problem was '286' "
Conjunction : A connecting word that links sentences or
words ("and", "or", "if", "but" ...).
"David and Jose wanted to talk to Gage or Sam before
school, but the bus was late."
Conjunctions in this sentence were "and", "or", and
"but".
Correlative conjunctions: brings together two items
Key words:
but-also, neither-nor, either-or, both-and, not-only
Contest: An organized test among entrants to find out
which is best at doing something.
"On Tuesday there was a contest between the two fourth
grades to see which class was best at playing cricket."
Conversation: Use quotation marks
A talk with someone.
"Mrs. Kuhn would have a conversation with the "Wheels
in Motion" people to learn whether their contest would
come to Rio Vista this year."
Diary: A book of a person's daily happenings and
thoughts.
"George Washington's diary was full of interesting things
that happened before the United States became a nation."
double negatives: Using two negative forms together in a
phrase or sentence; not good English.
*Do not use NOT and NEVER together*
Drama: Works written for performance on stage,
television, or radio; usually serious subjects and manner
of performance. Sometimes anything that is not a comedy
is called a drama.
The book “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” was
dramatized into a movie.
drawing conclusions: Reaching a conclusion, or a final
decision, about something.
"After Mr. Taylor sees the results of the test, he will be
drawing conclusions on on the next homework
assignment."
Encyclopedia: A reference book or set of books giving
much information on all areas or specialized areas of
knowledge.
"Jade, did you find 'Mount St. Helens' in the
encyclopedia?"
Fable: A make-believe short story that teaches a moral,
especially with animals as characters.
In the fable “The Tales of Peter Rabbit“, a young rabbit
has adventures and learns about the world.
Genre: A category of artistic works, based on form, style
or subject matter. For example, a detective novel is a
genre of fiction.
Noun: A word (or group of words) that names a person,
place, or thing.
The sentence "Ellie quickly gathered up her books to fill
her backpack ,"
contains three nouns.
making inferences: Reaching a conclusion or decision
from facts and reasoning.
"Hector and Alexis were making inferences on the cost of
their field trip by adding up their lunch expenses."
Outline: A rough plan of a written work or speech; a list
of main points or features to be covered.
"Mr. Taylor's drew an outline of his chapter on the smart
board."
possessive nouns: Persons, places, or things that show
ownership.
In the sentence "Sally’s car is with yellow stripes," the
possessive noun is "Sally's" .
Preposition: think of a mouse; can that mouse maneuver
that word. A relation or function word that connects a
noun or pronoun to another part of a sentence ( "in", "by",
"for", to", etc.).
In the sentence "Steven hit the ball and ran for first base,"
the word "for" is a preposition that joins "first base" to the
rest of the sentence.
Pronoun: A word that may be substituted for a noun ("I",
"you", "them", "who", "ours", "he", "she", "anybody",
etc.).
"Adriana has been working hard on long division, and it
has been worth the effort because she scored high on her
math test!" The three pronouns in this sentence are "it",
"she", and "her".
Proofread: To check written work for errors and mark the
changes to be made.
"Pedro just needed to proofread and correct his 'Read and
Response' chapter, and he would be finished."
sentence fragment: Words that do not form a complete
sentence of subject and verb.
"Mr. Taylor for the first time." is a sentence fragment
because it has no verb.
simple predicate: The verb or action word of a sentence or
phrase, without words that modify the verb.
"Ran" is the simple predicate of the sentence "Monique
expertly ran the cotton candy booth for the Rio Vista's
Fantasy Fair."
Simile: A figure of speech that compares two different
things (often with "as" or "like") .
"Red as a beet" is a simile in the sentence "Tim's face was
red as a beet."
simple subject: The subject of the verb of a sentence,
without words that modify the subject.
In the sentence "The shiny spotted horse frisked around
the pasture," the word "horse" is the simple subject.
Synonym: A word that means the same, or almost the
same, as another word.
The word "scholar" is a synonym for "student".
tall tale: A story with characters or happenings that are
exaggerated or made bigger than real life.
"Pecos Bill" is a tall tale of a cowboy who could do
unbelievable things, like rope a tornado with his lariat.
title page (parts of)
A title page is a page at the beginning of a book that gives
the book’s title, the author, and the publisher.
The title, “HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER’S
STONE”; the author, “J.K. ROWLING”; and the
publisher, “Arthur A. Levine Books” all appear on the
title page for the first Harry Potter book.
verb tense
The form of a verb that shows not only the action, but
when the action happens (in the past, present, or future).
In the sentence “ Mr. Taylor’s class will leave for lunch in
15 minutes”, the verb tense is future; In the sentence
“The class is leaving now”, the verb tense is present; In
the sentence “The class left,” the verb tense is past.