Teaching The Secret Garden

Instructions for You

Objective: Thanks to advances in technology, language is changing at a rapid pace. New words are being created and others are being lost. For today's youth, even reading text as mildly antiquated as The Secret Garden can seem like scanning an Old English medical report. The language can feel foreign, just as the students' own slang is sometimes foreign to adults. Not for Shmoop, obviously, because we speak student. Let us translate a brief summary of The Secret Garden for you into student speak: MaryLennox12 tweeted: "Going 2 the garden @ColinCraven. BRB. #Shhh."

Since nobody has yet translated the entirety of the novel into hashtags, your students are bound to run across a few words in the text they don't recognize. This activity will engage your students' critical thinking skills while they increase their vocabulary.

Materials Needed: Copies of The Secret Garden Vocab Handout, copies of the text, a digital or hard copy dictionary, and pencils.

Step 1: Whenever your students read The Secret Garden, whether it's during class time or on their own as homework, ask them to keep The Secret Garden Vocab Handout with them and fill it out as they complete the book. They'll look for ten words they don't know and add them to their worksheet.

Step 2: After copying the word, the students will copy the sentence in which the word was found. The sentence does not have to be written in its entirety, just enough for students to guess the meaning of the word from the context.

Step 3: Students will then make an educated guess as to the definition of the word using the context and any other clues they may know, such as Greek or Latin roots.

Step 4: Using the dictionaries, ask your students to locate the correct definition and copy it onto the worksheet.

Step 5: Students will now write a new sentence that uses the word with its correct meaning. The word should be used in a manner that allows the reader to guess its meaning. For instance, "The scarf was the same, perfect blue as the sky," is a much better sentence than, "The scarf was blue."

Step 6: Using their awesome collection of new vocabulary, your students will complete this activity by writing a small one-page story that incorporates all the new words. You can decide whether or not you would like this story to be based on The Secret Garden or simply be one of their own creation.

Step 7: Once both the worksheet and the story are complete, you can have your students share their stories in small groups or with the rest of the class. Both the worksheet and the story can be collected for a grade.

Instructions for Your Students

Student Intro: Dost thou feel prepared to read-ith this novel? Thou mustn't skim-ith the text but comprehend-ith with thine entire mind.

Just kidding. We know you really wish that people still talked like that, but unfortunately, it's just not going to happen. By reading The Secret Garden, though, you can get a little taste of the old English language. Since it was written in 1911—over 100 years ago—you are bound to come across a few words that will be unfamiliar to you. Keep this worksheet with you each time you read to keep track of new words you can learn from the book.

Step 1: As you read, refer to The Secret Garden Vocab Handout and record any words you come across that are new or strange. You will also copy down the sentence where you found the word so that you can refer to it later. Here's an example:

Word: Desolate
Sentence Found: "but even though she was 'Mistress Mary Quite Contrary' she was desolate" (4.92)

Step 2: Once your worksheet is full of new words, you will make a guess as to what the definition of the word may be. Use the context in which the word was found to guide your guess.

Guess Definition: lonely or without any friends

Step 3: Next, it's time to see how incredibly smart you are. Using a dictionary, look up the correct definition of the word and then copy it onto the worksheet.

Dictionary Definition: lacking the people, plants, animals, etc., that make people feel welcome in a place (Merriam-Webster)

Step 4: Then, you'll use the word in your own sentence, avoiding "thous" and "thines" if possible. Make sure the sentence is complete and proves that you understand the definition of the word. For instance, if the word is "blue," you would not want to write, "The scarf was blue." A better sentence would be, "The scarf was the same, perfect blue as the sky."

Your Own Sentence: Even full of servants, Misselthwaite Manor seemed quite a desolate place.

Step 5: Now that your worksheet is looking less desolate, you'll write a story that includes all ten of your new vocab words. This story should be one page long and the words must be used in a way that shows the meaning of their definition, just as you did in the sentences on your worksheet.