“Many research studies show that vocabulary is the best single indicator of intellectual ability and an accurate predictor of success at school.”
~ W.B. Elley
University of Canterbury,
New Zealand
Long scientific words can seem daunting, but there is a secret to mastering scientific vocabulary. Many scientific words are just smaller words put together: root words, prefixes, and suffixes. The good news? You already know lots of these words
For example:
Deciphering Biology Terms
Your lab instructor will walk you through an activity in which you will decipher several scientific terms by investigating the meaning of their root words. Click here to access the root word list.
Who Am I?
Use the root words list to try and identify three familiar animals, based on their scientific names. Your lab instructor will provide you with all the necessary information.
“When you give students the opportunity to acquire a robust vocabulary, you give them the key to unlock the door to comprehension.”
~ Christina DeCarbo
Educator
As directed by your lab instructor, use the root word list to decipher the following biology terms, and identify the organisms listed by their scientific names.
Root word list: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1DP8g5LRWvpQa7q1MU6ekKLln2W5dddyZZogttvAtl34/edit#gid=0
Deciphering Biology Terms
- Pterodactyl
- Homeothermic
- Autotroph
- Parthenogenesis
- Sympatry
- Heterozygous
Who Am I?
- Haliaeetus leucocephalus
- Phascolarctos cinereus
- Ornithorhynchus anatinus
Name that Critter
In this activity, you will use the root words list to create “scientific names” for the animals pictured below.
