Although we have advanced to electronic dictionaries, google search and Thesaurus to find the meanings, synonyms, antonyms and pronunciation of a word that pops up in a seconds time online or in word document; we wanted teach our Geckos how to use a dictionary which is a great resource a student must have to learn, speak and write English. Dictionary is a tool that a student must know to use effectively since it gives them control over self learning, command in language and communication . The English faculty has organized the Dictionary day to train students on the skill to use a dictionary the traditional way to look up the meaning of a word.

Student Actions: Geckos of all grades carried a dictionary to school to take part in the event. Mrs. Reshma taught them the basics skill on how to look up for the words with examples and talked about the uses of having a dictionary handy.The Geckos of grade 1 looked up the word ‘cat’ and understood that it is an easy finding like a piece in a puzzle as long as they were thorough with the alphabetical order. They were each given a word to look up later and thus, develop an interest in learning new words to improve their vocabulary. Grade 3 were given compound words to integrate with their English grammar learnings. The Geckos of grade 4 have been learning about the government and can probably tell us all about how it works and why. But, is there a synonym for the word?As a part of the Dictionary Day, the Geckos of grade 4 were given words related to government and governance and asked to look up the meaning. Once they got acquainted with the words, they drew what the word represented and/or the feeling that the word evoked in them. Migration: (Noun) The process or act of moving from one place to another. Migrate: (Verb) Moving from one place to another. So, how is ‘migrate’ different from ‘migration’? The Geckos of grade 5 will probably be able to explain it more eloquently than an encyclopedia. The Geckos of grade 5 were introduced to words related to migration and were asked to look up the meaning and draw it. That surely did make them curious about synonyms of the words given and why they can’t be used interchangeably. the Geckos of grade 6 and 7 were given words related to plants that are the poetic equivalent of the respective scientific terms they have learnt in their PoI. They looked up the meaning of the words and drew a hybrid picture which was part diagram and partly on the artistic side.

Student Learning:The Geckos of all grades had lots of fun with the dictionary. The activity encouraged them to be self-sufficient when it comes to learning new words. It definitely spread awareness about the importance of a dictionary as an art of making it one’s best companion.The good old dictionary surely added something to the Geckos’ knowledge bank by adding new vocabs.

 

Some moments from the event: