word of the week routine – free sample

CONTEXT CLUES
Quick and easy word study routine to help
students learn how to use context clues.

T H E S T E L L A R T E A C H E R C O M PA N Y
 WHAT’S INCLUDED?
This is one of my all time favorite routines. Thousands of teachers have
used this routine in their classrooms, and it has helped so many students
become more confident in their ability to use context clues.

Here is what you get with this free routine:

• Pg. 3 - Links to related resources and podcasts
• Pg. 4 - Student Worksheet – Word of the Week Option
• Pg. 5 - Student Worksheet – Word of the Day Option
• Pg. 6-8 - Word Cards
• Pg. 9 - Teacher Answer Key
• Pg. 10-11 – Teacher Guide
• Pg. 12 – Check out The Stellar Teacher Reading Membership

“This resource has been a lifesaver for teaching vocabulary to my

students. It has helped my students so much!” – Sydney. P.

“Easy routines for vocabulary! I love that these can easily be turned into a
weekly center and done without teacher support.” – Young and Educating

I’ve also included a Google Slides

Presentation you can display on your
Smartboard. This makes it easy for
you to complete the routine as a
whole group.

Click HERE to access the

Word of the Week Slides.

© The Stellar Teacher Co. LLC

 IF YOU LOVE THIS ROUTINE…
If you love using this routine in your classroom, you can get a whole bundle of word study routines.
I have weekly routines to help your students with root words, affixes, figurative language, and
homophones! Just click the link below to check out this bundle in my TpT store.

“This resource has been a

lifesaver for teaching vocab
to my students. It has
helped my students so
much in building a routine in
our classroom!” – Sydney P.
Click here to grab
this bundle.

Episode #41: The 5 Types Episode #93: 3 Steps to Episode #94: Four Word
of Context Clues to Teach Having Effective Word Study Study Concepts You
Your Students Instruction This Year Should Teach

Click here to listen to Click here to listen to Click here to listen to

the podcast. the podcast. the podcast.

© The Stellar Teacher Co. LLC

 Word Detectives

Word of the Week: _______________________________ Word #:________

Monday: Make a Prediction Clue Type:

Read the context clue of the week, use the context clues to come up with a q Inference
prediction for what you think the word of the week means. qDefinition
qExample
qAntonym
qSynonym

Tuesday: Define the Word Wednesday: Dig Deeper

Look up the word of the week in the dictionary. Look up the word of the week in the dictionary or
Write the definition in the space below. thesaurus. Find out the following:

• Synonym:

• Antonym:

• Part of Speech:

Thursday: Draw a Picture Friday: Use It

Use everything you know about the word to create a Use the word of the week in a sentence of your
visual representation of the word. own. Make sure you use it in the right context.

©The Stellar Teacher Company

 Word Detectives

Word of the Day: _______________________________ Word #:________

Make a Prediction Clue Type:

Read the context clue of the week, use the context clues to come up with a q Inference
prediction for what you think the word of the day means. qDefinition
qExample
qAntonym
qSynonym

Define the Word Dig Deeper

Look up the word of the day in the dictionary. Look up the word of the day in the dictionary or
Write the definition in the space below. thesaurus. Find out the following:

• Synonym:

• Antonym:

• Part of Speech:

Draw a Picture Use It

Use everything you know about the word to create a Use the word of the day in a sentence of your own.
visual representation of the word of the day Make sure you use it in the right context.

©The Stellar Teacher Company

 plentiful
Word #1

On the first day of school, there was a

plentiful supply of sharp yellow pencils
waiting to be used. There would be more
than enough to last the entire year. It
would be unlikely that a student would ever
need to sharpen a pencil again.
©The Stellar Teacher Company

Word #2

frantic
McKenzie was absolutely frantic. She
was running all through the house looking
for her car keys. She was going to be late
for work. This would be the fourth time
this week. She was terrified her boss
would fire her.
©The Stellar Teacher Company
 shallow
Word #3

Jacob liked going to the pool, but he

wasn’t a very good swimmer. He only liked
to stay in the shallow end of the pool.
He was worried if he went into the deep
end, he wouldn’t be able to touch the
bottom with his feet.
©The Stellar Teacher Company

Word #4

venture
Danitra and Max were super excited about
their trip to Mt. Everest. They had been
training all summer and couldn’t wait to
start their mountain climbing venture.
They knew this adventure would be a
once in a lifetime opportunity.
©The Stellar Teacher Company
 coax
Word #5

Mia and Libby were desperate to know

where they were going for their family
vacation. They tried to coax the secret
out of their dad, but he refused to tell
them where they were going. They would
have to wait for the surprise.
©The Stellar Teacher Company
 Word Detectives FREEBIE – Context Clue Teacher Guide

Word #1 - plentiful
Context Clue Example:
On there first day of school, there was a plentiful supply of sharp yellow pencils waiting to be used. There
would be more than enough to last the entire year. It would be unlikely that a student would ever need to
sharpen a pencil again.
Definition: Clue Type: Part of Speech: Synonyms: Antonyms:
More than an Definition adjective ample, abundant, fruitless,
adequate supply sufficient, bountiful insufficient, lacking
of something

Word #2 - frantic
Context Clue Example:
McKenzie was absolutely frantic. She was running all through the house looking for her car keys. She was going
to be late for work. This would be the fourth time this week. She was terrified her boss would fire her.
Definition: Clue Type: Part of Speech: Synonyms: Antonyms:
Crazy with Example adjective agitated, frenzied, balanced, calm,
excitement or fear hectic, delirious collected, normal
- insane

Word #3 - shallow
Context Clue Example:
Jacob liked going to the pool, but he wasn’t a very good swimmer. He only liked to stay in the shallow end of
the pool. He was worried if he went into the deep end he wouldn’t be able to touch the bottom with his feet.
Definition: Clue Type: Part of Speech: Synonyms: Antonyms:
not deep, lacking Antonym adjective empty, hallow, flat, full, raised,
depth slight significant, deep

Word #4 - venture
Context Clue Example:
Danitra and Max were super excited about their trip to Mt. Everest. They had been training all summer and
couldn’t wait to start their mountain climbing venture. They new this adventure would be a once in a lifetime
opportunity.
Definition: Clue Type: Part of Speech: Synonyms: Antonyms:
A task that involves Synonym noun deal, endeavor, certainty, idleness,
uncertainty and adventure, safety Mrs. M’s Style © 2018

possibly risk experiment

Word #5 - coax
Context Clue Example:
Mia and Libby were desperate to know where they were going for their family vacation. They tried to coax the
secret out of their dad, but he refused to tell them where they were going. They would have to wait for the
©The Stellar Teacher Company

surprise.
Definition: Clue Type: Part of Speech: Synonyms: Antonyms:
To try to influence Inference verb cajole, entice, induce, repulse, discourage,
or persuade tease, tempt repel, turn away
 TEACHER GUIDE
With just a few minutes each day, students will learn how to use context
clues, identify the type of clue, and build their vocabulary of a challenging
word throughout the entire week.

Context Clue of the Week

One way to use this product is to give your students a context clue of the week. In the paid
resource, there are 40 word cards included which is enough to get you through the entire year.
You can display the context clue/word on the PowerPoint Presentation or print of the context
clue word cards on cardstock and display them somewhere in your room for your students to
read. Students follow the same routine each day of the week to help them understand and
become proficient in using context clues. With just a few minutes each day, you will be helping
your students become experts at using context clues.

• Monday – On Monday, students read the paragraph, think about what the word means, and
write their prediction for the definition of the word. Students also identify what type of
context clue (inference, definition, example, synonym, antonym) helped them come up with
the meaning of the word.

• Tuesday – On Tuesday, students look up the word in the dictionary and write down the
actual definition of the word. This can be done independently, or you can do it whole group
and have one student report back to the class. As an added bonus, students get regular
practice using the dictionary. Encourage your students to write the definition in their own
words so they can internalize the meaning of the word.

• Wednesday – On Wednesday, students dig a little deeper into the word. This time they visit
a thesaurus and look up the word to identify antonyms and synonyms of the word. In
addition, students are asked to identify the part of speech the word is. Having them look up
this additional information helps deepen their understanding of the word and builds their
vocabulary even further.

• Thursday – On Thursday, students start to internalize the word and draw a picture that
represents its definition. Encourage students to get creative and think of how they would
use that word in a sentence and illustrate that scene. You can also have them think about a
symbol or image that would represent what that word means. Students can also draw a
diagram with labels to show they understand what the word means.

• Friday – On Friday, students will use the word in a sentence. This is where they get to write
their own sentence or short paragraph that uses the word in context. Encourage them to
think about what type of context clue they want to use and for your advanced students,
you could have them write 2-3 different examples each one using a different type of
context clue.
© The Stellar Teacher Co. LLC
 TEACHER GUIDE
Possible Uses:
• Morning Work/Warmup - Works great as a component of your daily warmup/morning
work routine. The consistency in daily activities will allow your students to complete this
activity independently with a high level of success. Once you teach them how to accurately
fill out the student recording sheet they will be able to complete this activity with little
support from the teacher.

• Homework – If you are running low on instructional time during the day, this product
works great as a part of students homework packet. Include the student recording sheet
in students homework packet and once they have read the context clue paragraph they
can complete the rest of the activities on their own at home.

• Workstation – This activity can easily be added to a vocabular workstation. Rather than
having students visit the word each day, you can place all the context clue word cards in a
workstation and students can complete the entire recording sheet for 2-3 words per day.
Use the Word of the Day recording sheets if you choose to use it as a workstation.

• Early Finisher Work - This can be a great activity to have your students complete if they
are early finishers. Place all the context clue word cards on a ring and as students finish
early, they can grab a word and complete the tasks as time allows.

© The Stellar Teacher Co. LLC

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© The Stellar Teacher Co. LLC
 Thank you!
I am so glad that you found this resource. I
truly hope you and your students LOVE using
it. My goal is that your teacher life will be
filled with a little more joy as a result of what
we create at The Stellar Teacher Company.

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This resource is for personal classroom use only and is to be used only by the
purchaser/original downloader of the resource.

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• Make as many copies as needed for your • Share this resource with other teachers,
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CREDITS:
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