Curriculum

• Paper
• Pencil or crayon

1. Step 1. Say the definition: “Enormous means extremely large.” Read the whale example and ask what makes enormous fit.
2. Step 2. Give the non-example “The tiny ant was smaller than my fingernail, so it was enormous.” Ask why enormous does not fit that description.
3. Step 3. Oral context: ask your child to describe an enormous animal, building, or storm in a spoken sentence. Ask what detail shows that it is extremely large.
4. Step 4. Written context: give a different context, such as an enormous pile of leaves. Ages 5–6 choose the nouns or details and may dictate an original sentence for the parent to transcribe, then write or trace enormous. Older learners write their own sentence. A drawing may support the sentence but does not replace the recorded words.
5. Quick check. Ask what enormous means, then provide two different new contexts. Success means your child uses enormous appropriately in one spoken sentence and one child-authored or dictated written response, and explains in simple words how it fits the meaning in both contexts.

Worked example. Spoken: “An enormous whale filled most of the bay.” Written in a different context: “The enormous pile of leaves covered the path.” In both sentences, enormous fits because the thing is extremely large.

Optional challenge. Choose from this prepared bank. Fragile means easily broken: “The fragile glass vase may crack” fits, while “The sturdy rubber ball is fragile” does not fit. Swift means moving quickly: “The swift rabbit dashed away” fits, while “The turtle crawled slowly, so it was swift” does not fit. For the chosen word, explain why each sentence fits or does not fit, then create one spoken and one written use in two contexts.

What to notice. Save a short parent note quoting the child’s spoken use, the child-authored or dictated written use in a different context, and the explanation of the word’s meaning in both contexts. A photo of the written product may accompany the note without showing the child.