Denotation and Connotation Lesson from Texts and Lessons for Teaching Literature

intelligent Instruct students that each person will need a sheet of paper. Ask students to copy this word down. Ask them: What does this word mean to you? What do you picture when you hear this word? Jot down some notes. Take responses.

intelligent • Having good understanding or a high mental capacity; quick to comprehend. • Displaying or characterized by quickness of understanding, sound thought, or good judgment. • Having the faculty of reasoning and understanding. Show this definition and read it aloud. Ask students: How are your responses different from this dictionary definition? What’s the difference between what you wrote and this definition? Turn to your partner and compare notes on the definition. (3 minutes) Ask for volunteers to share findings with class. Students should focus on what they pictured and what the word made them think of: connotation and denotation. Tell them: All of the images you just mentioned reflect the words connotation. When asked, no one recited a dictionary definition.

genius Ask students to copy this word down. Ask them: What does this word mean to you? What do you picture when you hear this word? Jot down some notes. Take responses.

genius • An exceptional natural capacity of intellect, especially as shown in creative and original work in science, art, music, etc. • A person who has an extraordinarily high intelligence rating on a psychological test; has an IQ score in the top 2 percent of the population. Show this definition and read it aloud. Ask students: How are your responses different from this dictionary definition? What’s the difference between what you wrote and this definition? Turn to your partner and compare notes on the definition. (3 minutes) Ask for volunteers to share findings with class. Students should focus on what they pictured and what the word made them think of: connotation and denotation.

algebra Ask students to copy this word down. Ask them: What does this word mean to you? What do you picture when you hear this word? Jot down some notes. Take responses.

algebra • The branch of mathematics that deals with general statements of relations, utilizing letters and other symbols to represent specific sets of numbers, values, vectors, etc. in the description of such relations. Show this definition and read it aloud. Ask students: How are your responses different from this dictionary definition? What’s the difference between what you wrote and this definition? Turn to your partner and compare notes on the definition. (3 minutes) Ask for volunteers to share findings with class. Students should focus on what they pictured and what the word made them think of: connotation and denotation.

connotation Ask students to write this word on their paper next to the three words they have just written about. Ask them that if connotation is what a word makes us think about and picture, then what must denotation be? Tell them there is a clue in the letter “d.” Have them turn to a partner and formulate an answer.

denotation Take ideas for the definition of denotation. If the definitions are still off, click back to the dictionary definitions and tell them, “These definitions here would be considered denotations. Turn back to your partner and see if you can figure out the difference between connotation and denotation.”

denotation A denotation is how the dictionary defines a word. What’s important to remember here? When authors write, their word choices are controlled by connotation. Authors actively think about what readers will feel or picture when they come across a specific word.

brainiac Tell students you are going to try one more. Ask students to copy this word down. Ask them: What does this word mean to you? What do you picture when you hear this word? Jot down some notes. Take responses.

brainiac • A highly intelligent person. Show this definition and read it aloud. Ask students: How are your responses different from this dictionary definition? What’s the difference between what you wrote and this definition? Turn to your partner and compare notes on the definition. (3 minutes) Ask for volunteers to share findings with class. Students should focus on what they pictured and what the word made them think of: connotation and denotation.

Chameleon Schlemieleon Patric S. Tray The Brainiac. The Nerd. Not anymore. A midsemester move to a new school. A chance for a new identity. Algebra. First day. First period. Sitting in the back with the cool people hoping to clique, I finish my exam long before anyone else. Doubting my calculation, the teacher grades it aloud: 100. I’ve failed. Tell students that today they are going to read a really short story. As they read, they should pay attention to connotation. When a story is this short, authors really have to pay attention to every word. Each word has to have the perfect connotation to communicate the message and achieve the author’s purpose. As you read and reread this story, jot down the words that you think were very deliberate choices by the author. Then jot down what you picture– the connotation. Don’t be tempted to copy every words. Pick 5-6 of the best. Go!”

Pair- Share Turn to your partner and compare the words you picked. Talk about why the author chose those words rather than others that might have similar denotations or dictionary definitions. Randomly call on pairs to share. If students don’t pick up on these choices, you could spur discussion by asking: Why nerd instead of genius? Why algebra instead of world history? Why clique instead of click? Why calculations instead of plan?

Variations Use this story as a mentor text. Have students write their own 55 words stories about other events (perhaps a time they have taken a trip, made a move, gone on a journey). Emphasize connotation. They should choose words carefully.

Variations Discuss verbal irony– a play on words intended for the reader where the true meaning of the word has a very different meaning than the denotation. Take a look at the phrase: hoping to clique. What does the character want to happen at his new school? By the end, how has the opposite happened? Reread the story, this time looking for phrases that have opposite meaning (the title, “doubting my calculations,” “I failed”)