Wednesday, October 1, 2014

Delightful Dictionaries

What is the purpose of a dictionary? 

Both writers and readers use dictionaries as a wonderful resource. 

When readers come across a word they don't understand they can use a dictionary to: 

*find the definition or meaning of a word

*find examples of how to use the word

Writers can use the dictionary to help them:

*spell a word correctly

*use the correct part of speech or word form

*Find useful examples that can help them use the word in their own sentences! 

Dictionaries also have plenty of other interesting information! Look at the picture below. Some dictionaries include an interesting fact about each letter on the first page of its entries. 



Dictionaries also include labeled illustrations!

Illustrations are always labeled and sometimes even give history on where the word came from! 

For example, did you know that the word "aardvark" 

comes from Africa and means "earth - pig"? 


Aren't dictionaries intriguing! 

(ooh that's a high vocab word! Look it up in a dictionary to find out what it means!)


Now that we all agree on how fabulous dictionaries are we need to learn how to use them! 

There are many parts to finding a word in the dictionary. Use ABC order and the guide words. 

Guide words tell you what the first and last word on the page is. So you need to use your brain to figure out if your word falls in between the guide words. 

 The guide words here are foghorn and food chain. Is the word fork on this page? 


Here is an educreations made by some students on how to understand and dictionary entries! 



What are some new and intriguing words you can find in the dictionary? Provide us with the most common part of speech and its definition!

14 comments:

  1. Dear Room 9,
    I have never used a dictionary before, so I appreciate your little lesson on the different parts of a dictionary entry. I was even able to look up the word "canid". In the dictionary the most common definition of canid is as a noun. It means any animal that belongs to the dog family, such as a house dog, wolves and even hyenas! I can't believe I might have a cousin hyena!
    I look forward to learning some more new words. What new word have you learned today?

    Love,
    Brutus

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dear Mrs. Broussard,
    A new words I found were hemp, and folly. Hemp: noun A plant that used to make rope ad cloth. Folly: noun Foolishness. I think these words were very interesting to learn. What words did you find?
    From, Sophia S.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Dear Room 9,
    The word that we found sideboard.
    Sideboard is a noun.
    The common meaning is a piece of dinning room furniture with a large,flat surface and drawers or cabinets below.
    What is your favorite word in the Dictionary?

    From,
    Venice Beach

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Way to go, Venice Beach! I really enjoyed your video. You all did a really great job!

      xoxo,
      Jessica
      (Sophia N's mom)

      Delete
  4. Dear Surf Rider,

    We found a word called exert! The meaning of the word is to make an effort to do something. For example, Zuma ''exerted'' themselves to finish its report on sea animals.


    Can you find other word forms for exert?


    from,
    Ben, Max, and Oliver,

    ReplyDelete
  5. Dear Zuma,
    Our word is bloated. It is a adjective and means swollen like when you eat too much.
    Can you find the word baboon in the dictionary and what it means? Let's give you a hint, it's an animal?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Raana and Jordyn:
      I looked up the word baboon with Sophia's little brother. We used the Scholastic Children's Dictionary and it also had a picture of a baboon with its baby. We have seen baboons at the zoo but the dictionary gave us the official definition so we the next time we go to the zoo we might say, "Oh, Look! Do you see those baboons?They are the large African or Asian monkeys with long snouts and large teeth! "

      Can you look up the meaning of the word "official?"

      Keep up your great work!
      From,
      Sophia S' Mom and Little Brother

      Delete
    2. Dear Raana and Jordyn,

      Baboon means big type of monkey or ape that have little muzzles like dogs.
      Can you find muzzle in the dictionary?

      From, Kimia

      Delete
  6. Dear Braeden, Sophia N., Evan and Sophia S.:
    Your educreation was very informative! You did a nice overview of using the dictionary and "skate" was a good choice. It was also amusing to hear a few of your giggles.
    Can you look up amusing? Do you want to make another educreation about that word? After you check the definition, do you think a video about something amusing would be serious or hilarious? And this is no joke, but I just used the dictionary to be sure I spelled hilarious correctly. It is a word that I typically misspell. I am glad you and your class reminded us all about the importance and value in checking the dictionary!
    Fantastic job!
    From,
    Sophia S' Mom

    ReplyDelete
  7. Dear Room 9,

    Here is a word I found in the dictionary. It is in Section B. The word is believe [be-lieve].
    Here are two definitions:
    1. To have faith
    2. To accept as true

    I have another word. It is crustacean [crus-ta-cean]
    Definition:
    1. A group of water animals (lobster, crabs and shrimps) with a body made of a firm outer shell and two pairs of antennae.

    I have one last word. Eclipse
    Definition:
    1. A complete or partial hiding of the sun caused by the moon passing between the sun and the earth

    Hope you see the next eclipse.

    From,
    Teddi

    ReplyDelete
  8. Dear Venice,
    Your educreation was great!!! I liked the part where you made a mistake but you fixed it in a interesting way!Do you like looking up words in the dictionary? Would you like to make another educreation with a different word? Francis and I got the word "generate".Oh and 1
    more question was it hard making the educreation? It was kind of hard for us Zuma,but you guys did a great job!Keep it up!!!

    Love,
    Aanshi

    ReplyDelete
  9. Dear Surfrider,
    My word is haughty. Here is the most common definition: Being rude, while either bragging, or looking down his/her nose. In other words, very rude or impolite. Haughty is an adjective. Here is the word haughty in a sentence.
    Molly whispered in my ear that she thinks Mia Star is very haughty around younger children, because she brags about her A+ grades.
    Here is another word. Eclipse. Can you tell me what the most common definition is, what word form it is, and if you want to, use the word in a sentence that has a cause, effect, subject, and predicate?
    Good luck!
    Your challenging friend,
    Zoe

    ReplyDelete
  10. Dear Room 9,
    The word I found is laborious. The most common definition is: given to or diligent in work. It mostly means to work hard on something. It is an adjective. Used in a sentence, it sounds like this: The math problem was laborious to solve, as there were so many steps to find the answer. I heard this word used by someone, so I found it in a dictionary.
    Have you ever heard of this word?

    Sincerely,
    Maxim

    ReplyDelete
  11. Dear Room 9,
    The word that I found is intend.
    Intend is a verb. The meaning of my word is: to plan or want to do something.
    I intend to earn $2.00 in class.
    Is your word in the I section?

    From,
    Braeden

    ReplyDelete