Cognates are words that have a common etymological origin. For example, “pineapple” is very similar in a lot of languages.

Activity:

Give the students a list of key words for the topic that you are covering.

At the start or end of a lesson give students 5 minutes’ time to discuss which of the key words is similar in most first languages. That word is called ‘Cognate of the lesson’ . However, the process here is much more important than the end result. It gives your learners the opportunity to link the newly presented academic language with their first language (L1).

The more children develop their L1 academically and cognitively at an age- appropriate level, the more successful they will be in academic achievement in their second language (L2)*

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Joris