Aligned Standard

ELA.EE.L.11-12.4.a: Use context to determine the meaning of unknown words.

Grade Level Standard

This is aligned the following California State Standards:

  • L.11-12.4 - Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases based on grades 11-12 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies. a. Use context (e.g., the overall meaning of a sentence, paragraph, or text; a word's position or function in a sentence) as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase. b. Identify and correctly use patterns of word changes that indicate different meanings or parts of speech (e.g., conceive, conception, conceivable). Apply knowledge of Greek, Latin, and Anglo-Saxon roots and affixes to draw inferences concerning the meaning of scientific and mathematical terminology. CA c. Consult general and specialized reference materials (e.g., college-level dictionaries, rhyming dictionaries, bilingual dictionaries, glossaries, thesauruses), both print and digital, to find the pronunciation of a word or determine or clarify its precise meaning, its part of speech, its etymology, or its standard usage. CA d. Verify the preliminary determination of the meaning of a word or phrase (e.g., by checking the inferred meaning in context or in a dictionary).

Linkage Level Descriptions

Initial Precursor

The student can identify familiar objects by using descriptive words, either by identifying the object or the descriptive word when asked.

Distal Precursor

After reading a sentence with clearly defined words, the student is able to recall the stated definition to identify the correct definition of the word when presented with options.

Proximal Precursor

When presented with a sentence with a missing word, the student is able to identify the correct word which completes the sentence, based on the surrounding context of the sentence.

Target

When presented with unfamiliar words, the student can use semantic clues in the sentence or paragraph to help identify the meaning of the word.

Successor

When presented with unfamiliar phrases, the student can use semantic clues in the sentence or paragraph to help identify the meaning of a word or phrase.