Greek and Latin Root Super Hero!
This lesson will enable students to extend their previous knowledge of Greek and Latin roots through the creation of a super hero. Using the example of the super hero name, HYDROMAN, have students theorize what "powers" Hydroman must possess, according to the definition of the Greek and Latin root, "hydro". Students should know that "hydro" means "water", therefore Hydroman must have powers that relate to the sea, or perhaps he can master water and control it for his own devices. Have students hypothesize what his costume would look like. You could have them draw an illustration on the board, or on paper to share with the class. Take time to discuss Hydroman and his characteristics with the class and enjoy theorizing what shenanigans Hydroman would get into if he had his own cartoon series or movie.
After students have had a bit of fun creating a fictional world for Hydroman, tell them that they will be creating their own superhero! The superhero can be male, female and can even be an animal if they wish. Tell them to study their Greek and Latin root word list and select a root that they would like to use as part of their super hero name. After creating their name, students will write a descriptive paragraph that explains who their super hero is, and what traits make them special, according to the definition of the root word the student selected as part of the super hero name.
The next step in the lesson is to instruct students to create an illustration of their Greek and Latin root word super hero. Encourage them to tie in the definition of their root word into the drawing, mush like they did with Hydroman. Students can present their drawings and descriptions to the class, and further define their super hero's strengths and weaknesses. If you would like to extend this lesson, you could group students and have them create a short comic strip using each of their characters within the strip. Groups could collaborate and envision evil adversaries for their super hero that would also have a name created with Greek and Latin root words. This lesson will appeal to a student's creative nature and encourage them to use their imaginations!