How to Clarify Vocabulary

• 1. Look for unfamiliar words in the story. Which words do you need to know to understand the story?

• 2. Have you seen the word before? Think about what you already know about the word.

• 3. Look at the text near the word. Does it help you understand the word’s meaning?

• 4. Look at the parts of the word. Do they help you understand the whole word?

• 5. Do you still need to know more? Think about who or what can help you understand the word.

There was once a king whose kingdom was plagued by a dragon. The king did not know which way to turn. The king’s knights were all cowards. They hid under their beds whenever the dragon came in sight. They were of no use to the king at all. And the king’s wizard could not help either because, being old, he had forgotten his magic spells.

I don’t understand what “coward” means. I haven’t seen the word before.

If I look at the text near the word, I see that the knights hid under their beds. “Coward” must mean a person who is afraid.