Changing Language Teacher Resources

Slang, as an example of language change in action, is the focus of a short activity that asks learners to contribute examples to a class list of terms that they use to separate themselves from other groups or adults. Consider expanding...

Choose any name to use the idea behind this lesson plan! The example is John, but I like that the original author looked to his or her classroom makeup to select a name to study. There's a bulleted list of discussion topics to use after...

Despite English grammar rules, in the e-world the plural of mouse is mouses. lol. Standard American English is constantly evolving. Introduce your class members to a variety of terms that describe different usage changes (economy,...

The English language is complex and sometimes counterintuitive. Guide young grammarians through a brief overview of the history of the English language with a presentation that includes lecture notes.

Take a closer look at North Carolinian dialects with pupils. They will discover how dialect in North Carolina's urban regions have changed as more people with varied backgrounds have come to live together. They discuss the provided...

How have inventions and events changed the English language? Learners create posters showing specific words and language changes that resulted from an event, discovery, or cultural change. The class develops their vocabulary by...

In small groups or pairs, learners explore the origins of each others' names. An awesome idea, but you'll need to do the initial research to gather your class's names and their origins. Or, consider having each member of your class...

War and conquest are not the only factors in language change and development, as the narrator of a short video points out in her lecture about the evolution of the English language. Using the phrases, "They gave us a hearty welcome," and...

“The Lord’s Prayer” provides the text for a study of how language changes. Using the provided link, young linguists examine the prayer in Old and Middle English and compare how the diction, syntax, and phonology have evolved over the...

In this English language instructional activity, students examine a passage written in Old English, Middle English, and Modern English to find changes in the language.  Students are then given a list of words to define and examine in...

Cool, man! This is rad! Sneak a peek at this resource before you outten the lights. LOL, you Dred. As an introduction to language change, class groups brainstorm IM lingo, as well as words and phrases popular today, that might seem...

A discussion of syntax and diction change is the prompted by of a reading of George Washington’s “Diary of the First Presidential Visit to the Palmetto State.”  As pairs read, they record examples of archaic spellings, words, and...

Have your learners play around with Shakespeare's language. In this plan, small groups examine and rearrange soliloquies from Othello, noting how the language changes and morphs. All groups have a chance to change each soliloquy, making...

Why do we use phones? How does our language change on the phone? Learners practice phone conversations with the dialogues provided. They practice written phone dialogues with a partner, and create and perform phone conversations to...

"Language and culture are so related that you cannot understand one without a knowledge of the other." The 37 slides in this presentation are meant to reinforce the points made in a lecture about language, language vareities, language...

That’s showbiz! Clipping is the term used to describe one type of abbreviation of words. After listening to a talk by Professor David Crystal about this particular way English language changes, pupils supply the shortened, or clipped,...

High schoolers explore language changes that may occur in a globalized world. In this language lesson, students read the linked articles about globalization and the protection of languages. High schoolers also examine statistics and...

Students examine words used at Jamestown in 1607. They predict what the words meant in 1607, write sentences using three of them, then analyze the sentences after they have read the actual definitions of the words.

Conquer those pesky moments when the Turkish language appears in class. Don’t be afraid to discover a few new Turkish morphemes, and their corresponding English words in this quick instructional activity.  Who knows where this knowledge...

What does your dialect sound like? Examine variation in English as it relates to geographic regions with your class. They recognize some of the major differences between regional dialects and determine that everyone speaks a dialect....

Oh, what fun! Young logophiles and neologists create a dictionary-sounding definition for imaginary words and try to fool their classmates.

Language is a fluid and ever-changing entity! Take a week to cover the changing English expressions and slang as related to the word "wannabe." Go through vocabulary, spelling, worksheets, and quizzes on the topics with your class.

Explore the tendency of the English language to change by reviewing the British idiom "bog standard." An audio talk is accessible via hyperlink and questions and worksheets are included for learners. The lesson is a good way to work on...

Use this presentation in your linguistics class as a review tool, or utilize the concepts within it to frame your curriculum. Covering vowel and consonant rules, morphophonemic spelling systems, and assimilation rules, this slide show...