Activity 3B: You Somnolist!

This five-part vocabulary activity will help students understand the language of science by combining root words with prefixes and suffixes as they analyze new terms. Each activity is designed as a “stand alone” activity. Although it is best to use all parts of this activity, it is not necessary. Students will participate in activities that will increase their ability to identify critical attributes. By understanding the meaning of roots words, prefixes, and suffixes, students will create scientific “names” to describe their observations. They will apply their acquired vocabulary to decode the meaning of complex, scientific words used in actual sleep studies. Through presentations and games, students will learn to speak the language of science as they discover the depths of the English language.

Objectives:

Identify critical attributes from photos and graphs
Create terms using root words, prefixes and suffixes to describe critical attributes
Apply acquired affix knowledge to infer the general meaning of complex science terms
Teach scientific terms to the class through the use of kinesthetic symbols
Demonstrate understanding of terminology by correct use of sleep-related terms
Use patterns in graphs to identify sleep cycles
Compare and contrast sleep graphs
Apply knowledge of waves, frequency, energy, wavelength, to interpret sleep study graphs