Vocabulary Journal Assignment
Due Dates:
November 5 – 20 words
December 3 – 20 words
December 17 – 10 words
February 4 – 20 words
March 4 – 20 words
April 1 – 15 words
April 29 – 20 words
June 3 – 25 words
June 24 – 15 words
Instructions:
For this class, you are required to keep a vocabulary journal. Every week, include five new
vocabulary words that you have read or heard somewhere outside of this class in a notebook or
binder. For each word, you should include the following information:
1.
2.
3.
4.
the word itself, spelled correctly
the word's part of speech, whether its a noun, verb, adjective, adverb, etc.
the word's definition, what it means
the word used correctly in a sentence
Please, do not open a dictionary and write down the first five words you find. This will not help you
to improve your English and it will not help me to measure your progress. It's a waste of time for
everyone. Instead, include words that you actually encounter: words you hear on TV, in movies, or
in your favorite songs; words your friends or other students say to you or to each other; or words
you read in a book, on a web page, or in an email--words that are important in your daily lives.
Words often have more than one definition, so try to include the word in your journal in the context
in which you first encountered it.
I will collect your notebooks once a month to see that you are doing the assignment correctly. I will
also include your words from your journals in class assignments, lectures, and homework so that
you and your classmates can learn from one another.
Example:
October 7, 2009
1. summon (verb) to call someone to appear "The principal summoned me to his office this
morning."
2. margin (noun) a measurement of minimum amount "I passed chemistry class last year by
a small margin."
3. awkward (adjective) causing embarrassment "Coming to class late is always awkward for
a student."
4. pursue (verb) to follow someone closely "The teacher pursued the student down the
hallway."
5. ally (noun) someone working with you towards a goal "They were allies in finishing the
class project."