English Language Arts and Reading.5.3.D

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The student is expected to

identify, use, and explain the meaning of adages and puns.

vocabulary strand teks talk image

Knowledge and Skills Statement

Developing and sustaining foundational language skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking--vocabulary. The student uses newly acquired vocabulary expressively.

Present students with a list of sayings including a few puns such as the best way to communicate with fish is to drop them a line. Task students with identifying the puns in the list. Then have students work in pairs to create a short story or skit using a few of the puns from the list to explain their meaning. 

Note:

You may wish to encourage students to include other puns that they know.
 

Further Explanation

This assessment requires students be able to recognize puns, understand the humor and double meaning of puns, and use a pun in their writing. Closely monitor students as they work on this project as some reteaching may be required for students who are more literal thinkers.

a concise, well-known saying (often using figurative meaning rather than literal meaning) that expresses a common truth or general observation (e.g., “The early bird catches the worm.”)
Students are expected to determine how an adage is related to the context in the text in order to understand why the adage was included and explain why it is being used. Similarly, students should explain how a pun, which relies on multiple-meaning words to create a play on words for humorous effect, is used by the author. Students should also understand the intended meaning of the pun in order to explain the joke or humor in the message.
An important aspect of understanding the English language is recognizing when words and phrases are sometimes purposefully placed out of context for effect. Adages are statements that on first reading might not appear to be related to the idea being discussed because they often use figurative rather than literal language to concisely communicate a complex idea (e.g., “the early bird gets the worm”). Similarly, puns rely on multi-meaning words to create statements that require the reader or listener to use context to determine the intended meaning in order to understand the joke or humor in the message (e.g., “Writing with a broken pencil is pointless.”)
a play on words that produces a humorous effect by using a word that suggests two or more meanings or by exploiting similar-sounding words that have different meanings
Students should have a thorough enough knowledge of how adages and puns are constructed that they are able to incorporate them into their own written and oral communications. They need to provide adequate context to support the recipient of the message in determining the intended use of the adage or pun. Puns and adages cannot be successful without context. Without context, they can create confusion for the reader.

Research

Palmer, B.C., Shackel, V.S., Miller, S.C., & Leclere, J.T.  (2007), Bridging two worlds: Reading comprehension, figurative language instruction, and the English-language learner. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 50(4), 258–267. doi:10.1598/JAAL.50.4.2

Summary: English language learners (ELLs) may experience challenges while reading figurative language. The purpose of this article is to deconstruct how ELLs process figurative language and provide instructional strategies to support their learning.