My boys and I like words. We like to know where they come from, and how they came to be used as they are used in the English language (which, if you haven't noticed, is a very strange language!). Since we have had Discover It! and The English Tree of Roots, we have used them often to look up words that have puzzled us.
Discover It!
presents words in 100 clusters. Each word cluster lesson is presented on two pages, beginning with a box containing the entire cluster of words with the common element highlighted. Romance cognates, words with disguised roots, relevant Latin phrases, and more are introduced, and the student is provided with interesting and memorable examples of the words in context, plus Wordextras- unique facts or constructions. There are writing tips and quotes sprinkled throughout, and periodic quizzes (with answers in the appendix). This is a unique and useful resource for vocabulary building!
The English Tree of Roots is a dictionary of English roots.http://beta.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif For example, if you wish to look up the origin of the word "letter," you find that it comes from "liter," and is related to literal, literate, and over 30 variations including uncommon words such as antiliterate, heteroliteral, obliteration, and more. Seeing words in their clusters or family groups is a terrific way to expand vocabulary!
Dr. Danner is also author of an autobiography, Out of the Cotton Fields. This inspiring story tells how reading and education helped him transcend his childhood in an alchoholic Alabama sharecropping family. He donates profits from the sale of this book to an award fund for high school students to help boost exam scores for college entrance. For more information, visit Occoquan Books.
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