Making Word Attack Cards

ESSENTIAL RULES!!! After you make the cards, you must study them nightly. This may seem obvious, but many students remain in denial about it. ONLY HIGHLIGHT WHAT YOU ARE INSTRUCTED TO HIGHLIGHT. If you highlight willy-nilly, you will “over study,” thinking that everything is of equal importance. The highlighted information is what will be tested. You must use the colors indicated on the sample cards. These colors are the labels used for parts of speech when we are working with grammar and sentence structure.

MORE “MUSTS” You must organize your cards into categories: ROOTS, PREFIXES, ADJECTIVE-FORMING SUFFIXES, NOUN-FORMING SUFFIXES, and VERB-FORMING SUFFIXES. You must keep your cards in a small, note card box or a “recipe” box (a bit larger and with a hinged-top). You will begin to accumulate cards with each unit we study. After Unit 1 is finished, those cards must be sorted into categories, alphabetized, and filed in your card box. At the beginning of a new unit, check your box to see if you have already made a card for a particular root, prefix, or suffix that will be studied that week. If you do have a card, pull it out and simply add the new term to the card (see slide #11). Do not make duplicate cards.

Let’s make some WORD ATTACK cards!! You will need lined, white, 3” x 5” note cards.

Highlighter color has meaning: Roots Prefixes Use a black ink pen that will not smear when you run a highlighter over the writing. Highlighter color has meaning: Roots Prefixes Adjective-forming suffixes Noun-forming suffixes Verb-forming suffixes NOTE: There is only ONE adverb-forming suffix: -ly. For –ly when it is used to form an adverb and for prepositions, we use orange.

Root cards Highlight the root. -nov- Latin root meaning new ETYMOLOGY! You won’t be tested over this, but it is important to be familiar with the root’s origin. Highlight the root. -nov- Latin root meaning new Level B Unit ( ) Highlight what you are looking at. This is a ROOT card. Next year you will be adding Level C terms to these cards. This is simply a helpful heading to be atop your list of words. renovate (1) Highlight the root’s meaning. You will have to know it for the test. Highlight the root as it is appears within the word. This is the unit in which the word appears.

Prefix cards re- Latin prefix meaning again Level B Unit ( ) ETYMOLOGY! You won’t be tested over this, but it is important to be familiar with the prefix’s origin. Highlight the prefix. re- Latin prefix meaning again Level B Unit ( ) Next year you will be adding Level C terms to these cards. This is simply a helpful heading to be atop your list of words. Highlight the prefix’s meaning. You will have to know it for the test. Highlight what you are looking at. This is a PREFIX card. renovate (1) Highlight the prefix as it is appears within the word. This is the unit in which the word appears.

Suffix cards: adjective-forming Highlight the suffix. -ous Latin adjective-forming meaning abounding in Level B Unit ( ) Next year you will be adding Level C terms to these cards. This is simply a helpful heading to be atop your list of words. Highlight what you are looking at. This is an ADJECTIVE-FORMING suffix card. You will need to know this on the test. vicious (1) DO NOT highlight the suffix’s meaning. It is important to be familiar with the suffix’s meaning, but you won’t be tested over it. Highlight the prefix as it is appears within the word. This is the unit in which the word appears.

Suffix cards: verb-forming Highlight the suffix. -ate Latin verb-forming meaning to act; to make Level B Unit ( ) Next year you will be adding Level C terms to these cards. This is simply a helpful heading to be atop your list of words. Highlight what you are looking at. This is an VERB-FORMING suffix card. You will need to know this on the test. renovate (1) DO NOT highlight the suffix’s meaning. It is important to be familiar with the suffix’s meaning, but you won’t be tested over it. Highlight the prefix as it is appears within the word. This is the unit in which the word appears.

Suffix cards: noun-forming suffixes Highlight the suffix. -y Middle English noun-forming meaning characterized by Level B Unit ( ) Next year you will be adding Level C terms to these cards. This is simply a helpful heading to be atop your list of words. Highlight what you are looking at. This is an NOUN-FORMING suffix card. You will need to know this on the test. dynasty (1) DO NOT highlight the suffix’s meaning. It is important to be familiar with the suffix’s meaning, but you won’t be tested over it. Highlight the prefix as it is appears within the word. This is the unit in which the word appears.

Using a card more than once -ate Latin verb-forming meaning to act; to make Level B Unit ( ) renovate (1) lubricate (2) This is the unit in which the word now appears. Highlight the prefix as it is appears within the word.

Prefix cards with a changed meaning pre- Latin prefix meaning before Level B Unit ( ) prescribe (6) preclude (8) before, beforehand, in advance of If the meaning of the prefix is somewhat different as used in the new term, add the new information and highlight it. You will have to know it for the test. This is the unit in which the word now appears.

Final MUSTS Keep each week’s set of cards bundled together behind a master card that proclaims THIS WEEK’S WORD ATTACK!!! Paper clip or rubber band them together. This will make it easier to take out the correct cards for each evening’s study. After every unit is concluded, you must refile your cards. Failure to do so will mean that cards will get lost, and you will waste time making new cards every week. If you keep up with the routine, you eventually “pull and update” more cards than you will have to make each week. You must keep track of your card box. Crying that could be heard all the way to Maricopa County has occurred upon the discovery that a Word Attack card box had gone missing.