@jbalaena
Independent specialist in SpLD (M.Ed, AMBDA); previously English teacher & Glos LA Lead English Teacher. Dyslexia and dyscalculia specialist teacher. Wife, vicar’s wife, mama of 4, SEN parent carer. Neurodivergent. greatexpectationseducation.uk
I love getting messages like this at the end of a teaching week.
#structuredliteracy #scienceofreading #dyslexia #dyslexiasupport #spelling #morphology #etymology #literacyintervention #send #sendteacher #ukteachers #tutorlife
Crocuses surfaced here after weeks of cold rain.
‘Crocus’ comes from Greek ‘krokos’, meaning saffron — a dye and spice that travelled Mediterranean trade routes long before English lawns.
New Wordhord post:
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
#WordOrigins #StructuredLiteracy #SpringVoca
Daffodil begins as Greek ‘asphodelos’.
Its botanical twin, ‘narcissus’, comes from ‘narkissos’.
In parts of Europe it’s the ‘Easter lily’.
In older English, the ‘Lent lily’.
One flower. Two histories.
Full Wordhord study:
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
#etymology #daffodil #sprin
Snowdrop.
A word that falls through winter.
‘snow’ + ‘drop’.
A transparent compound.
Meaning built from two visible parts.
German: ‘Schneeglöckchen’ — little snow bell.
French: ‘perce-neige’ — pierce-snow.
Swedish: ‘snödroppe’ — structurally parallel.
Different languages. Different noticing.
T
Snowdrop.
A clear English compound: ‘snow’ + ‘drop’, first recorded in the seventeenth century. German and French forms reveal different noticing — shape, movement, season.
Etymology as structured vocabulary teaching.
#etymology #structuredliteracy #winterwords
A ‘seuil’ is not the door.
It’s the stone beneath it.
From Latin ‘solea’ – the sole of a foot or shoe – the word names the place where the foot lands when you cross in or out. A threshold is contact before concept. bit.ly/ateliermots
A ‘clé’ is what opens. A door. A system. A piece of music.
From Latin ‘clavis’, a key or bolt that controls access.
Whether written ‘clé’ or ‘clef’, the logic is the same: access comes first. bit.ly/ateliermots
A ‘clé’ is what opens. A door. A system. A piece of music.
From Latin ‘clavis’, a key or bolt that controls access.
Whether written ‘clé’ or ‘clef’, the logic is the same: access comes first. bit.ly/ateliermots
‘Mozzarella’ means ‘a little cut piece’—from Latin ‘mutilus’ via Italian ‘mozzare’. A word shaped by the same gesture that forms the cheese. greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/mozzarella
Ricotta comes from Latin recōcta ‘recooked’—a word that still carries the heat of Roman dairies. Explore its story: greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/ricotta
Ours still isn’t as thin as a true Neapolitan, but the word ‘pizza’ has travelled further. First written in 997 AD, it may come from Greek ‘pitta’ for ‘cake’ or Lombardic ‘pizzo’ greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/pizza
From Latin sal ‘salt’ to Italian salame, salami still means ‘a salted thing’. Explore its journey from Roman kitchens to modern delis: greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/salami
‘Spaghetti’ began as Italian for ‘little cords’. Its roots reach from Arab Sicily to Neapolitan kitchens, carrying a story of shape, language, and shared food culture. bit.ly/GEEwords greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
A ‘sentier’ is a narrow path made by repeated walking.
From Latin ‘semita’, a small footpath. I’ve been uploading words like ‘maison’, ‘bâtiment’, ‘ancien’, this week. ‘Sentier’ belongs alongside them. I use etymology to help my dyslexic Y7 learner make sense of French vocabulary.
bit.ly/ateliermots
A ‘poignée’ is the part of something you hold with your hand. Door handles, drawer pulls, bag handles. From ‘poing’ meaning ‘fist’, via Latin ‘pugnus’. A word anchored in the action of the hand closing, not in how an object looks. bit.ly/ateliermots
A ‘poignée’ is the part of something you hold with your hand. Door handles, drawer pulls, bag handles. From ‘poing’ meaning ‘fist’, via Latin ‘pugnus’. A word anchored in the action of the hand closing, not in how an object looks. bit.ly/ateliermots
‘Volet’ is the French word for a window shutter. From Latin ‘volare’, ‘to fly’, naming a panel by how it moves.
Photographed in Cordes-sur-Ciel.
bit.ly/ateliermots
A ‘sentier’ is a narrow path made by repeated walking.
From Latin ‘semita’, a small footpath. I’ve been uploading words like ‘maison’, ‘bâtiment’, ‘ancien’, this week. ‘Sentier’ belongs alongside them. I use etymology to help my dyslexic Y7 learner make sense of French vocabulary.
bit.ly/ateliermots
‘Spaghetti’ began as Italian for ‘little cords’. Its roots reach from Arab Sicily to Neapolitan kitchens, carrying a story of shape, language, and shared food culture. bit.ly/GEEwords greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
From Latin sal ‘salt’ to Italian salame, salami still means ‘a salted thing’. Explore its journey from Roman kitchens to modern delis: greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/salami
Ours still isn’t as thin as a true Neapolitan, but the word ‘pizza’ has travelled further. First written in 997 AD, it may come from Greek ‘pitta’ for ‘cake’ or Lombardic ‘pizzo’ greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/pizza
Ricotta comes from Latin recōcta ‘recooked’—a word that still carries the heat of Roman dairies. Explore its story: greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/ricotta
‘Mozzarella’ means ‘a little cut piece’—from Latin ‘mutilus’ via Italian ‘mozzare’. A word shaped by the same gesture that forms the cheese. greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-words-words-words/mozzarella
From Sanskrit ‘urvāruka’ to Latin ‘cucumis’ and Old French ‘cocombre’, the cucumber’s name has travelled far. 🥒
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
English ‘strawberry’ may remember a lost summer custom — threading wild berries onto a straw of grass. Most European tongues still say ‘earth berry’ or ‘fragrant fruit’. greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
Exploring the word ‘shine’, from Old English ‘scinan’ to the Hebrew root in Isaiah’s ‘arise, shine’. A journey through brightness, radiance and becoming light.
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
#etymology #shine #light #isaiah #hebrew #wordhistory #advent
‘Dream’ once meant joy before it meant a night vision. In Matthew the Greek word is ‘onar’, a dream sent from God.
Full word card: greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
#AdventEtymology #BibleStudy #Onar #Dream #Matthew2 #WordOrigins #GreekNT #Nativity #GreatExpectationsEducation
A look at the history of ‘star’, from the ancient root ster- meaning ‘to scatter’ to the Greek ‘astēr’ in Matthew’s Nativity. A word shaped by brightness and guidance.
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
#etymology #star #advent #nativity #magi #linguistics #wordhistory #greatexpectationse
‘Worship’ began as ‘worth-ship’. Greek adds the idea of approaching and bowing low. A small word with a long journey.
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
#advent #worship #etymology #languagehistory #matthew22 #wordstudy
From Germanic thought to Greek grace, this word carries a long history of gratitude.
greatexpectationseducation.uk/musings-word...
#thanks #etymology #advent #luke2 #eucharisteo #wordcards