In a previous post, I taught you to play Boardless Scrabble as a way to build spelling and vocabulary skills while having a blast with your family. The thesaurus game is another great upper elementary through high school activity that uses a thesaurus to help strengthen vocabulary choices.
Why is this important? Because kids have a tendency to use the same words over and over when they write. A carefully chosen synonym will add sparkle to any writing assignment. By teaching your children to choose appropriate synonyms, you’ll help them expand their writing vocabulary, making their compositions, reports, and poems much more fun to read!
- paper
- pencils
- thesaurus, such as our favorite (affiliate link) The Synonym Finder
- dictionary
Thesaurus game directions
Are you tall? Shy? Determined? Then you might also be lanky, reserved, and tenacious! These are synonyms, words having the same or nearly the same meaning as another. Use your thesaurus to play this fun synonym game.
- For this activity, write down 10 adjectives that describe your personality, physical appearance, temperament, or character. (If you choose words from this list of character traits, make sure to change nouns to adjectives. For example, change optimism to optimistic, loyalty to loyal, etc.)
- Next, use your thesaurus to find a synonym for each of the 10 words.
- If the synonym is unfamiliar to you, use your dictionary to make sure you’re using the word correctly.
- Challenge yourself to choose new or less familiar words of at least three syllables.
Want to do more?
- Make other lists describing pets, family members, or friends.
- Write a paragraph describing yourself. Practice expanding your vocabulary by using at least three of your new words.
Pre-writing activities and writing games are important learning tools. That’s why we’ve tucked them into the pages of all our WriteShop curriculum: WriteShop Primary for grades K-3, WriteShop Junior for grades 3-6, and WriteShop I & II for middle and high school students.
