HOMOPHONES LESSON ONE – Teacher’s GuideINTRODUCTION:Welcome to Ten-Minute Grammar! The goal of these units is to help students build a solid understanding of grade-level grammar concepts during the first ten minutes of the class period each day. Each unit goes through a progression in which new grammatical concepts are introduced (by discovery, as much as possible), built upon, and then practiced and reviewed. In addition, the concepts in each consecutive unit build on one another logically—it might seem silly to spend time reviewing nouns and verbs with 8th graders, but it’s necessary if they’re going to understand things like gerunds and infinitives or specific types of verb phrases.

The unit includes a week and a half of daily bell ringer activities, a quiz, and one or more additional practice worksheets.

SUGGESTED TIMELINE: Start the Day One bell ringer on a Monday. By Friday, if you feel the class is ready for it, give the unit quiz.

o If you feel like the entire class needs additional practice to master the concept (or, let’s be honest, if the next week is a short one and you don’t have time to start a new unit but need bell ringers for a few extra days), there are three additional days’ worth of bell ringers.

After the quiz, a student who clearly failed to grasp one of the week’s concepts could be assigned one of the practice worksheets. After completing the worksheet, the student could retake the unit quiz for an improved grade.

o The worksheets can also be used during the week as extra practice for the entire class.

OBJECTIVES:1. Students should understand that…

a. “Homophones” are pairs of words that sound the same but have different spellings and different meanings.

b. Homophones are commonly misspelled in student writing and should therefore always be double-checked during proofreading.

2. Students should be able to…a. Match common homophones to their definitions.b. Recognize misspelled homophones in another person’s writing.c. Correctly spell common homophones in their own writing.

i. There, their, they’re; Your, you’re; Where, were, wear, we’re; Its, It’s; Here, hear; To, two, too; Which, witch

KEYS TO THE UNIT:The set of homophones in this unit are some of the most commonly misspelled word in student writing (it doesn’t help that spell-checkers don’t catch these errors.) So the main goal here is to set these words up in students’ minds as words they should always

Ten-Minute Grammar

double check in their writing. Review them often throughout the rest of the year. And it wouldn’t be a bad idea to put these homophones on a list of “spelling unforgivables”—words that must be spelled right in the students’ final drafts.

One optional supplement activity could be to have students create visual mnemonic device posters to help them remember the different spellings and meanings. I divide my class into small groups and assign each group a set of homophones. Their goal is to come up with a good way to help the rest of the class remember the difference between the homophones on their list. (For example, they might draw a picture showing “They” and “are” crashing into each other so hard that the “a” in “are” is smashed into an apostrophe.)

DAILY ROUTINE:Have the day’s bell ringer activity up on a projector when the students come to class each day. I have my students do the assignment on quarter sheets of paper (I cut them up and have a stack available each day). Some days in each unit require copyediting; since it takes too long for students to copy the incorrect sentences and then edit them, a page of quarter-size student answer sheets are provided for those days (see the pages after the last bell ringer.)

Students should spend the first five minutes working silently (you should use that time to take roll and then circulate around the room to keep kids on task.) After the five minutes of work time, spend the next five minutes going over the answers. Don’t give them the answers (except as a last resort); you want the students to volunteer their answers. Use the correction session each day to explain new concepts, clarify ideas, and correct misconceptions. If a student volunteers an incorrect answer, find someone else who can give the correct answer. Help the class understand the concept a little better and then ask the first student a question like, “Explain to the class why your first answer was wrong.” I’ve never had a student feel offended by this—if anything, it gives kids a chance to redeem themselves after what might have been an embarrassing moment of being wrong in front of everyone.

If you use an overhead projector, a Smart Board, or project onto a white marker board, you can choose a student each day to come to the front and write answers or corrections as other students volunteer them.

In my class, students get full credit as long as they come up with an answer for every question, even if some answers are incorrect. At the very least, for the first few days while new concepts are introduced, students should be allowed to change their answers during the correction session—but only if they already have an answer of their own. What we want is for them to try to figure out the answer. If they get it wrong, they’ll learn when you set them straight in the correction session. But they learn nothing if they just write down answers as you dictate them!

The Wordplay at the end of each day’s questions can be a way to earn extra credit if you choose. As incentive to work quickly, I tell my students they can’t begin on the Wordplay until they’re finished with the other questions, and I always offer a piece of candy to the first student to get the answer right or the student with the best answer or most answers. (You’d be surprised what junior-high students will do for a Starburst or a Jolly Rancher!)

LITERATURE:This unit contains example selections from the novel The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.

Ten-Minute Grammar Homophones Lesson OneDAYOne

In each sentence below, choose the correct answer from the list of “homophones”:

1. A (witch / which) named Glenda had a friend named Brenda.2. They decided to take a ride on (there / their / they’re)

broomsticks.3. “(Where / Wear) would you like to fly tonight?” Brenda

asked.4. “I don’t care,” Glenda said. “(Its / It’s) up to you.”5. Glenda said, “I (here / hear) children laughing. Let’s go turn

them into gingerbread and dip them in milk!”6. “Glenda, (your / you’re) disgusting,” Brenda said. “Let’s go

get some tofu burgers instead.”7. And the (to / two / too) old ladies soared away into the night.

Word decoding:

8. List three words containing the root word “phon.”9. Based on the words you came up with, what do you think the

root word “phon” means?10.The prefix “homo” means “same;” combine that with the

meaning of “phon” and take a guess at the meaning of the word “homophone.”

From analysis of “phon” and “homo,” students should be able to deduce that the word “homophone” has something to do with “sounding the same.” Help them build that definition so they understand that homophones are groups of words that sound the same but are spelled differently and have different meanings.

Wordplay – Just for fun! CATALOGUE CREATOR: The suffix “-ness” means “state or

quality of being.” How many words can you list that contain this suffix?

Ten-Minute Grammar Homophones Lesson OneDAYTwo

Which two words make up the following contractions?

1. They’re = They + ? are 3. It’s = ? It + ? is or has

2. You’re = ? You+ ? are 4. We’re = ? We +? are

Notice how the apostrophe in these contractions takes the place of a missing letter: They + are becomes They’re (the a becomes ’ ). Remember that when you’re spelling contractions.Fix any incorrect words in the example sentences from The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (if it’s already correct, just write “CORRECT”):

5. “Once its in the soup, I’ll call it beef,” Greasy Sae says with a wink. It’s

6. But there are others, too, who have no one they love at stake, or who no longer care. CORRECT

7. “Look how we take you’re children and sacrifice them and their is nothing you can do.” Your, there

8. We don’t hunt them on purpose, but if your attacked and you take out a dog or two, well, it’s still meat. You’re, CORRECT

9. Twelve we’re defeated, the thirteenth obliterated. WereYou might point out that “we’re” and “were” are not technically homophones because they’re pronounced slightly differently. However, they are still confused and misspelled often by students.

Wordplay – Just for fun! FIXER-ROOTER: How many words can you think of that have the

same prefix, suffix, or root as the multisyllabic word below?DISSIMILITUDE(diversity or difference)

Ten-Minute Grammar Homophones Lesson OneDAY

Three

In your own words…

1. Why are word sets like there/they’re/their and your/you’re called homophones?They sound the same but are spelled differently and have different meanings—and “homo + phon” means “sounds the same”

2. Why do contractions like they’re, you’re, and it’s have an apostrophe in them?The apostrophe replaces a letter (or more than one letter) that has been left out.

Write your own sentences that correctly use the following words:

3. Hear 4. Too5. Its6. Their

Answers will vary. Have several students volunteer to share their answers, and correct any misconceptions if a student uses one of the words incorrectly in context.Wordplay – Just for fun!

FOUR-LETTER WORDS: Take the four-letter word below and change one letter to make a new four-letter word (keep it clean!) Then take that word and change one letter to make a new word. Then take that word and… You get the picture.

FAIL

Ten-Minute Grammar Homophones Lesson OneDAYFour

ThenWhere

here

hear

The words here, there, and where all have similar spellings and all refer to something’s placement or location. Remember that when choosing which homophone to use in a given situation.Which homophone would you choose in the following situations:

1. When talking about something they own (they’re / their / there)

2. When talking about something it owns (its / it’s)3. When talking about something you own (your / you’re)4. Asking someone to choose between two options (which /

witch)

Using the proper proofreading marks, correct the six errors in this excerpt from The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins:

“District Twelve. Wear you can starve to death in safety, I mutter.

Than I glance quickly over my shoulder. even hear, even in the

middle of nowhere, you worry someone might here you.

Here, I used the proofreading mark for replacing an incorrect word with each of the incorrect homophones. They could also be circled as misspelled words—either proofreading mark would be correct.

Wordplay – Just for fun! VOWEL COMBINATOR: The vowel combination “ow” can sound

like the hard “O” in “go” or the “ow” in “wow.” List as many words as you can that contain this vowel combo making the hard “O” sound.

Ten-Minute Grammar Homophones Lesson OneQUIZDAY

REVIEW FOR TODAY’S QUIZ—Make sure you know the difference between the following homophones:

1. Witch / Which2. There / Their / They’re3. Where / Wear4. Its / It’s5. Here / Hear6. Your / You’re7. To / Two / Too

Ten-Minute Grammar Homophones One

ExtraDAYFive

Match the following words to the best definition or explanation of when you would use it:

1. Witch d2. Which a3. Their b4. There e5. They’re c6. Its b7. It’s d8. Your e9. You’re a10.Where c11.Wear f12.Here a13.Hear d14.Two b15.Too c

a)Asking someone to choose between two options

b)Talking about something that belongs to them

c) Short for “they are”d)An old lady on a broomstick who casts spellse)A location far away from youa)Short for “you are"b)Talking about something that belongs to itc) Asking for the location of somethingd)Short for “it is”e)Talking about something that belongs to youf) When you put something on, like clothes or

glassesa)A location right next to youb)The number between one and threec) “Also” or when you have more than you

needd)One of the senses; something you do with

your ear

Wordplay – Just for fun! DESCRAMBLER: Try to sort out the five scrambled words below:

TVOE BTORO PPSARE ELGELOC FLUCLOROVote Robot Papers College Colorful

Ten-Minute Grammar Homophones Lesson One

ExtraDAYSix

sp.

Write your own sentences that correctly use the following words:

1. Wear2. Your3. To4. Which

Answers will vary. Have several students volunteer to share their answers, and correct any misconceptions if a student uses one of the words incorrectly in context.Using the proper proofreading marks, correct the six errors in this excerpt from The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (could be five, depending on how you fix one of them):

Madge shoots him a look, trying to see if its a genuine compliment

or if he’s just being ironic. It is a pretty dress but she would never

be whereing it ordinarily she presses her lips and together then

smiles.

You could also put a semi-colon after “ordinarily.” In the novel, Collins starts a new sentence at “She.”

Wordplay – Just for fun! ANAGRAM: Rearrange the letters in the nonsense phrase

below to create new words that actually make sense.WRY CONEY KIT(Hint: place)New York City

Ten-Minute Grammar Homophones Lesson One

ExtraDAY

Seven

Read the excerpts from The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and then answer the following questions:

The result was Panem, a shining Capitol ringed by thirteen districts, which brought peace and prosperity to it’s citizens.

1. Why is the word “Panem” capitalized? It’s a proper noun (country name)

2. Is the “which” on the second line used correctly? yes3. List all the verbs in this sentence (there are two of them).

Was, brought4. Is the “it’s” on the second line used correctly? no

There has never been anything romantic between Gale and me. When we met, I was a skinny twelve-year-old, and although he was only too years older, he already looked like a man.

5. Is the word “There” in the first sentence used correctly? yes6. Is the word “skinny” on the second line a noun, adjective, or

pronoun? adjective7. Is the “too” in the second sentence used correctly? no8. List all the pronouns in this selection (there are at least four).

Me, we, I, he, he (“There” can act as a pronoun, but not in this sentence)

Wordplay – Just for fun! EIGHT LETTERS: Create as many words as you can using three or

more of the letters below (at least one eight-letter word is possible):D A D O R I E NOrdained

QUIZ ANSWER KEY

Choose the best answer or match:1. _____ Define the word “homophone.”

A. A word has the same ending sound as another word

B. Two words that are spelled almost the same and have a similar meaningC. A word that sounds the same as another word but has a different meaning and spellingD. A word that means the same as another word but has a different origin

2. _____ You’re E A. In this place or at this spot

3. _____ Your C B. A contraction meaning “it is”

4. _____ It’s B C. Something belongs to “you”

5. _____ Its F D. To perceive sound with your ear

6. _____ Hear D E. A contraction meaning “you are”

7. _____ Here A F. Something belongs to “it”

Choose the sentence that correctly uses the homophone:

8. A. I watched Gladiator, which is my favorite movie.

B. Gladiators did not have magical powers like whiches.

9. A. Their are several movies and books about gladiators.B. Gladiators are cool because they’re strong and brave.

10. A. Gladiators fought each other and animals, two.B. Sometimes the audience got to choose the loser’s fate.

11. A. I visited the Colosseum, where the games took place.B. Some gladiators would were armor; others fought nearly naked.

For each sentence below, choose the correct homophone.

12. Gladiator fights offered an exciting spectacle for (there / their / they’re) audiences.

13. (Your / You’re) not likely to see a real gladiator fight anywhere in the world today.

14. Rome was the place (where / wear / we’re) most gladiator fights were held.

15. (Its / It’s) hard to believe that spectators would enjoy watching the contestants kill each other.

16. During a fight, the Colosseum would get so loud you could barely (here / hear) anything.

17. It wasn’t very common, but there were female gladiators, (to / two / too).

18. Rome eventually became a Christian empire, (which / witch) is one reason gladiator fighting ended.

19. Sometimes (there / their / they’re) were also comedic fights between contestants in silly costumes.

20. Gladiators had to (where / wear / we’re) protective clothing to keep from being wounded easily.

21. Many fights pitted (to / two / too) men against each other, and they fought to the death.

22. If (your / you’re) a Roman gladiator, you might be killed.

NAME: PERIOD:

Read the following article about Roman Gladiators. When you come to a bold group of homophones, choose the correct word.

If (your / you’re) interested in seeing an intense sporting event today, you can go (two / too / to) a football game or watch a boxing match. In ancient Rome, the most exciting sporting event was gladiator fighting.

The word “gladiator” comes from the Latin word “gladius,” (which / witch) means “sword.” Gladiators were armed combatants who entered an arena (wear / where) they (would / wood) fight against other gladiators, condemned criminals, or sometimes even wild animals. Contests ranged from as small as (two / too / to) gladiators fighting one another to small armies engaging in mock battles.

Many of these contests were fights (two / too / to) the death. But it was often left to the spectators to decide (whether / weather) or not a losing gladiator should be killed (buy / by / bye) the winner or (aloud / allowed) to live.

Although (sum / some) gladiators were free men fighting (for / four) fame or valor, most were either slaves or prisoners.

(It’s / its) not exactly clear when gladiator fighting started, but (their / there / they’re) is evidence that it might have originally (bin / been) a funeral rite. More and more Romans began to (here / hear) about the exciting fights, and (it’s / its) popularity (led / lead) to the expensive and extravagant spectacles we (know / no) as “gladiatorial games.” The games reached (their / there / they’re) peak between the 1st century BCE and the 2nd century CE.

Gladiator fighting became hugely popular and a booming business. The games were held in Rome and surrounding areas, (two / to / too).

Some of Rome’s emperors even participated in the games. (Won / One) in particular, Emperor Commodus, was (so / sew) fanatical about the gladiatorial games that he fought often and gave himself the title “Hercules Reborn.” Of (coarse / course), Commodus never allowed himself to (be / bee) in any (reel / real) danger; he (wood / would) kill helpless animals or men who were either crippled or (tide / tied) up.

Gladiator fights became (to / two / too) much of a financial burden to the Empire, and the games began to diminish. As Christianity became the state religion of the Rome, the

Ten-Minute Grammar Homophones Lesson OneExtra

Practice

violent sport was seen as murderous and evil, (witch / which) eventually led to the practice being officially (band / banned).

Write a short story on the prompt below. Within your story, correctly use at least 15 different homophone words. Underline each homophone word within your story.

PROMPT: Imagine you are a Roman gladiator that has just entered the arena to fight to the death.

Answers will vary.

NOTE: Both worksheets for this unit contain more homophones than the seven sets covered in this unit. Seven more of the most common homophone pairs will be covered in a later unit. The point of including additional homophones here is to help students realize how often homophones come up in a piece of writing and how important it is to double-check their spelling.

NAME: PERIOD:

Read the following excerpts from The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. When you come to a bold group of homophones, choose the correct word.

I prop myself up on one elbow. (There’s / Theirs / They’res) enough light in the bedroom to (sea / see) them. My little sister, Prim, curled up on her side, cocooned in my mother’s body, (there / their / there) cheeks pressed together. In sleep, my mother looks younger, still (warn / worn) but not (sew / so) beaten-down. Prim’s face is as fresh as a raindrop, as lovely as the primrose for (which / witch) she was named. My mother was very beautiful once, (two / to / too). Or so they tell me.

When I was younger, I scared my mother to death, the things I (wood / would) blurt out about District 12, about the people who rule (are / our) country, Panem, from the far-off city called the (Capitol / Capital). Eventually I understood this (wood / would) only lead us (to / too) more trouble. So I learned to hold my tongue and to turn my features into an indifferent mask so that (know / no) one could ever (read / reed) my thoughts. Do my work quietly in school. Make only polite small talk in the public market. Discuss little more than trades in the Hob, (which / witch) is the black market (wear / where) I make most of my money. Even at home, (wear / where) I am less pleasant, I avoid discussing tricky topics. Like the reaping, or food shortages, or the Hunger Games. Prim (might / mite) begin to repeat my words and then where would we be?

In the woods waits the only person with whom I can (bee / be) myself. Gale. I can feel the muscles in my face relaxing, my pace quickening as I climb the hills to (our / hour / are) place, a rock ledge overlooking a valley. A thicket of berry bushes protects it from unwanted eyes. The (site / sight) of him waiting (there / their) brings on a smile. Gale says I never smile except in the woods.

(They’re / There) not our kids, of course. But they might as well be. Gale’s (too / two) little brothers and a sister. Prim. And you may as well throw in our mothers, (to / too), because how (wood / would) they live without us? Who would fill those mouths that are always asking for more? With both of us hunting daily, (there / their / they’re) are still nights when game has to be swapped (four / for) lard or shoelaces or wool, still (nights / knights) when we go to bed with our stomachs growling.

Gale (knows / no’s) his anger at Madge is misdirected. On other (days / daze), deep in the woods, I’ve listened to him rant about how the tesserae are just another tool to cause misery in (hour / our) district. A way to plant hatred between the starving workers of the Seam and those who can generally count on supper and thereby ensure

Ten-Minute Grammar Homophones Lesson OneExtra

Practice

we will never trust (won / one) another. “(Its / It’s) to the (Capitol’s / Captial’s) advantage to have us divided among ourselves,” he might say if (their / there / they’re) were no ears to (here / hear) but mine. If it wasn’t reaping day.

Fix any incorrect bold words in the example sentences from The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (if the bold word is already correct, just write “CORRECT”).

1. ____________ The square’s surrounded by shops, and on public market days, especially if there is good weather, it has a holiday feel to it.

2. ____________ The crowd responds with it’s token applause, but he’s confused and tries to give Effie Trinket a big hug, which she barely manages to fend off.

3. ____________ We don’t hunt them on purpose, but if you’re attacked and you take out a dog or two, well, meat is meat.

4. ____________ Latecomers are directed to the adjacent streets, where they can watch the even on screens as it’s televised live by the state.

5. ____________ Most of the Peacekeepers turn a blind eye to the few of us who hunt because their as hungry for fresh meat as anybody is.

6. ____________ The last thing I needed was another mouth two feed.

7. ____________ The crowd draws in a collective breath and then you can here a pin drop.

8. ____________ “Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be ever in your favor!”

9. ____________ This is the Capitol’s way of reminding us how totally we are at they’re mercy.

10. ____________ It’s too bad, really, that they hold the reaping in the square—one of the few places in District 12 that can be pleasant.

11. ____________ Primps face is as fresh as a raindrop, as lovely as the primrose for witch she was named.

12. ____________ My mother where’s a fine dress from her apothecary days.

13. ____________ Its the same story every year.

14. ____________ She goes on a bit about what an honor it is to be here, although everyone knows she’s just aching to get bumped up to a better district.

15. ____________ But since we’re lucky if we get to or three hours of electricity in the evenings, the fence is usually safe to touch.

16. ____________ From this place, we are invisible but have a clear view of the valley, which is teeming with summer life.

CORRECT

CORRECT

CORRECT

CORRECT

they’re

to

hear

its

their

CORRECT

two

wears

It’s

CORRECT

which

CORRECT