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Many English words come from Latin roots, so becoming familiar with these roots will naturally make reading and spelling easier. But studying word roots is really boring, right?

No! At least, it doesn't have to be. And Word Trees are my favorite way to teach words derived from Latin roots-and make it engaging to boot!

Check out this 30-second Word Tree demo.

Download your free Word Trees and list of Latin Roots, and then read on for some tips for using them.

Why Is It Helpful to Know Latin Roots?

Think about the Latin root , which means . When you add prefixes and suffixes to the root, you can create many new words that all have something to do with writing, such as subscriber, scripture, inscribed, description, postscript, prescription, scribbling, and unscripted .

It's like an 8-for-1 deal: you learn one Latin root, and you get eight words in return. And when you come across a less familiar word like scriptorium , you can recognize the root which in turn gives you a head start on understanding the word's meaning and spelling.

(In case you are wondering, a scriptorium is a room set aside for writing. That makes sense, given that means and is a suffix meaning .)

So it's probably easy for you to see why I'm such a huge fan of learning Latin roots!

Is Your Child Ready for Word Trees?

If you can answer yes to these three questions, your child is at the right stage to benefit from Word Tree activities:

1. Does your child know how to spell closed syllables? Closed syllables are syllables that end in a consonant, such as , and . A closed syllable generally contains a short vowel, and it is the first syllable type that most children learn to spell.

2. Does your child know how to spell open syllables? Open syllables are syllables that end in a vowel, such as , and . The vowel in an open syllable is generally long.

While Word Trees can be interesting for younger children, they are most effective with children who have already mastered these three spelling skills.

Here's How to Use the Word Trees

The free download contains five prepared Word Trees, plus one blank one.

1. Decide which root word you want to work with. If you are using a blank Word Tree, write the root word in the box at the base of the tree.

2. Think of as many words originating from that root as possible, and write those words on the branches.

3. Store completed Word Trees in a binder or folder for future reference.

If you can only think of a few words at first, keep the Word Tree available and add to it over the next few days. Perhaps family members, a neighbor, or a friend can think of words to add, or maybe your child will run across more words in his private reading time.

In the photo above, Jimmy created twelve words with the root , including and . How many words can you come up with?

Which Root Words Should You Teach?

There are hundreds of possible root words to choose from, but two guidelines will make it easy for you to choose effective root words for beginners.

1. First, work with root words that occur frequently, as shown in the chart below.

2. Second, work with root words whose meaning is easier for your child to understand and that relate to words he already knows. For example, (self) and (to look) should be studied before (to carry).

How Do We Teach Latin Roots in All About Spelling?

Experience a sample Latin roots lesson from All About Spelling Level 7.
Download this Lesson plan for Level 7, Lesson 17.

In the lesson, we start out using letter tiles to demonstrate how prefixes and suffixes can be added to Latin roots.

Then we move on to building four Word Trees. Ten words are assigned for further study, including supportive, distraction, contractor, and .

Next, students write several sentences from dictation, including "Those gnus in the living room are a real distraction!" Finally, students randomly choose four slips of paper from the Writing Station to generate an interesting writing prompt, and they write several unique sentences using at least one of the new Latin-derived spelling words.

Some Final Tips for Teaching Latin Roots

It's important to keep in mind that we can't take the meanings of Latin root words too literally. In many cases, the meaning of the root is just a clue to the meaning of the word. For example, the word introspection comes from the prefix (meaning ) and the root (meaning ). We can't literally translate the word to inward look , but we can get the gist of the real meaning, which is an examination of thoughts and feelings.

Also, for this particular activity, your student doesn't need to memorize the meaning of the root words or recite them back. As long as he becomes familiar with the meanings, he will be able to recognize the root in other words, and spelling will become easier.

My hope is that as your child actively explores words in this unusual way, he will develop a positive attitude and curiosity about the words around him ... and hopefully increase his motivation to learn more!

Would you like step-by-step lessons that help you teach spelling in a hands-on way? All About Spelling was written for parents and teachers like you!

Do you think your child would like the Word Trees approach?

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Teach Latin Roots with Word Trees + free download and video!

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Many English words come from Latin roots, so becoming familiar with these roots will naturally make reading and spelling easier. But studying word roots is really boring, right? No! At least, it doesn't have to be. And Word Trees are my favorite way to teach words derived from Latin roots-and make it engaging to boot!

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eThemes - Grammar: Greek and Latin Roots, Prefixes, and Suffixes

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eThemes is your source for content-rich, kid-safe online resources.

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Root Words Game for Word Building: Practice root words game for word building by playing this interactive ESL board game. Students who have good mastery of root words and their meanings in English will often have skills for attacking unfamiliar words especially during exams like IELTS and TOEFL. English has borrowed words from many languages especially from Greek and Latin.
Choose whether to practice root words game for word building by navigating a treacherous galaxy filled with green monsters, a sea filled with pirates or a river filled with crocodiles. Either way this will keep your heart pounding. Suddenly English grammar practice is no longer boring with these games.

Games are useful for language learning because they provide a fun way to learn. Instead of many hours of worksheets, students can 'practice and play', with good results.

Games are great for motivating students to learn. By playing our fun educational games, students can practice and review key English vocabulary, grammar and sentences without the boredom which is usually encountered when doing paper-based gap-fill exercises. Play the game below and do not hesitate to share these resources with other learners. This is the philosophy behind our site - www.eslgamesplus.com.

Related Games

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Practice root words game for word building by playing this interactive ESL board game. Students who have good mastery of root words and their meanings in English will often have skills for attacking unfamiliar words especially during exams like IELTS and TOEFL. English has borrowed words from many languages especially from Greek and Latin.

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Suitable for grades 4 - 8, Rooting Out Words lets you determine the root & meaning of each word. Answer correctly to win. Play Rooting Out Words online, here.

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Learning Root Words

Although devoid of any affixes, a root word is a full-fledged word in and of itself. For example, the word "port" is the root word for export (which has a prefix) and portable (which has a suffix). Learning to recognize word roots early on continued...

is crucial in a child's education as it not only helps carry spelling skills over to reading fluency but also greatly increases general comprehension skills, reading or otherwise. A fun way for kids to build their repertoire of root words is by playing online root word games.

Teaching root words, prefixes and suffixes is often closely linked with teaching word origins, including teaching Greek and Latin root words. Also sometimes referred to as base words, root words are at the basis of many common everyday words as well as medical root words.

There are many online root word resources for teachers which are useful for creating both root words lesson plans and root words worksheets. Different root words are introduced at different educational levels. Elementary school root words are specifically selected for students in grades three through five, while middle school root words are geared toward sixth through eighth graders. At a more demanding level, high school root words provide excellent college prep material for students in ninth through twelfth grade as root words on standardized tests gain more importance.

An understanding of root words is particularly helpful to ESL students in terms of word recognition and phrase comprehension. These fun online root word games are perfect for helping ESL students grasp words. Don't miss out on other free phonics and reading resources.

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Although devoid of any affixes, a root word is a full-fledged word in and of itself. For example, the word "port" is the root word for export (which has a prefix) and portable (which has a suffix). Learning to recognize word roots early on continued...

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These problems ask definitions on Greek & Latin Roots.

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This root means "life", This root means "water", The root "astr" means..., The root "Geo" means...