F U N C T I O N A L S K I L L S E N G L I S H · L E V E L 1
Specialist Words: Working Out Meaning
READING · LESSON 7 OF 10
Lesson by English
This lesson contains 19 slides, with interactive quizzes and text slides.
F U N C T I O N A L S K I L L S E N G L I S H · L E V E L 1
Specialist Words: Working Out Meaning
READING · LESSON 7 OF 10
Functional Skills English Level 1 · Reading · Lesson 7 of 10 (about 60 minutes)
Covers: subject content 13 (use reference materials and strategies, e.g. word type knowledge) and 17 (understand specialist words in context). Speaking and listening (statements 2, 3, 6) run through the pair talk.
Before the lesson: print the handout (Source A is slides 8 and 9), one per learner. Have a few paper dictionaries on the tables if you can.
Device-free fallback: every activity works with the printed source, mini whiteboards, dictionaries and hands up.
Description: Functional Skills English Level 1 Reading, lesson 7 of 10. Learners read a hair salon's leaflet about patch tests and aftercare, and work out the meaning of specialist words using context clues, word parts, word type, and a glossary or dictionary, including alphabetical order.
Tags: specialist words, vocabulary, word meaning, context clues, prefixes and suffixes, word types, dictionary skills, glossary, alphabetical order, hair and beauty, level 1 reading, functional skills english, functional skills level 1, further education, adult learners Image credit: JEaLiFe Pictures / Unsplash
😄 Great – ready to go
🙂 Good
😐 Okay
😕 Not great today
😴 Tired
Wellbeing check: how's your energy today?
Phase 0 · Wellbeing check (first 2 mins)
A quick, low-stakes check-in. Only totals show, so nobody is singled out. Say: "There's no right answer. It just helps me plan today."
Act on it: if several learners choose the last two options, ease the pace and build in a pair task early. Check in privately with anyone you are concerned about, and follow your college's wellbeing and safeguarding route.
Editor note: if any emoji have not come through, re-add them in the editor.
Device-free fallback: learners show 1–5 fingers, or write a number on a sticky note face down.
Skip it and keep reading
Guess from the sentence
Look it up on my phone
Ask someone
Put the letter down
You meet a word you don't know in a letter. What do you usually do?
Phase 1 · Hook (2–5 mins)
No wrong answer, and be honest: everyone skips words sometimes. Vote, then ask two or three learners for a time a word got in the way (a letter from the council, a payslip, a form at the GP).
Say: "Every one of these can work. Today you'll get faster, surer ways to crack a word, so you never have to put the letter down."
Device-free fallback: hands up for each option, or stand by the corner of the room that matches your answer.
What we're doing today
R E A D I N G
Today you will
Why it matters
use clues in the text to work out a word
break words into parts
use a glossary or dictionary quickly
Every job has its own words. Knowing them keeps clients, children and you safe.
The reading exam asks what words mean in the text, so these tricks earn marks.
Phase 2 · Goals (5–7 mins)
Keep it practical. Every job has its own words: salons, nurseries, kitchens, building sites, care homes. New staff hear them on day one.
Vocabulary: a specialist word belongs to one job or subject. A glossary is a short list of specialist words and their meanings, usually at the end of a text.
The Level 1 reading assessment often asks what a word or phrase means "as it is used in the text".
Device-free fallback: read the slide aloud; learners copy the three goals into their book.
What words would you only hear in a hair salon?
Phase 2 · Activation (7–10 mins)
Free association. Every answer counts: fringe, layers, highlights, balayage, toner, bleach, foils, trim, fade, skin fade, blow-dry, extensions, braids, cornrows, relaxer, patch test, appointment.
Ask experts in the room: "Who can explain one of these to someone who has never been to a salon?" Learners from hair and beauty courses can shine here.
Say: "These are specialist words. If you don't know them, a salon leaflet can feel like a foreign language."
Device-free fallback: pairs list as many as they can in 60 seconds; collect on the board. Image credit: Daniel / Unsplash
What are specialist words?
Specialist words belong to one job or subject.
In a salon: patch test, toner, regrowth.
In a nursery: key person, milestone.
Good news: texts often explain them nearby.
Phase 3 · Teaching (10–13 mins)
Say: "Every job has words that outsiders don't know. In a salon, a toner changes the shade of colour. In a nursery, your key person is the member of staff who looks after your child."
Good news: writers of everyday texts know you may not know the words, so they often explain them, in brackets, in the next sentence, or in a glossary.
Misconception: learners think a long word must be hard. Many specialist words are short (toner, fade, foils); many long ones are built from parts you know.
Device-free fallback: write the examples on the board and ask for more from learners' own jobs or courses. Image credit: Adam Winger / Unsplash
Work out a word in 3 steps
R E A D I N G
1
Read around it. The sentence before or after often explains the word.
2
Break it up. Find parts you know: re + growth. Is it a thing, an action or a describing word?
3
Check it. Use the glossary or a dictionary. Does your meaning fit the sentence?
Phase 3 · Teaching (13–17 mins)
Click to reveal each step. Model it aloud with regrowth: "The sentence says 'Rebook for your regrowth in 6 to 8 weeks.' Re- means again, grow is a word I know… so it's hair that has grown again, at the roots. The glossary agrees."
Word type: after step 2, ask "Is it a thing, an action or a describing word?" That narrows down the meaning.
Support: give learners the three steps on a card to keep.
Stretch: which step is quickest in an exam? (Usually step 1: the clue is often in the next sentence.)
Device-free fallback: write the three steps on the board one at a time.
Leaflet · Halo Hair & Beauty, Ashworth
SOURCE A · 1 of 2
Halo Hair & Beauty · Ashworth
Before your colour appointment
Please read this at least two days before you visit
Hair colour contains chemicals that can cause an allergic reaction in some people. This can mean itching, redness or swelling of the scalp or face.
So every new colour client has a patch test (also called a skin sensitivity test). We dab a little colour behind your ear and leave it for 48 hours. If your skin stays normal, the colour is safe to use. The test is free and takes five minutes.
A colourist at work in our salon
Book your patch test
Call 01632 960 517 or ask at the front desk.
**Allergic reaction.** Not sure? Read on. The next sentence lists the signs. That is a **context clue**.
**Brackets.** They give another name for the same thing. Patch test = skin sensitivity test.
**48 hours.** The strapline says "two days". Same time, said in a more exact, specialist way.
**Colourist.** colour + -ist (a person who does a job). Like florist or dentist. The photo shows what a colourist does.
Phase 3 · Reading Source A (17–22 mins)
Read the leaflet aloud while learners follow on the handout. Learners underline every word they think is a specialist word. Then open hotspots 1–4: each one shows a different clue the writer gives.
Probe: "What does 'allergic reaction' mean? How do you know?" (The next sentence lists the signs: itching, redness, swelling.)
Vocabulary: scalp is the skin on top of your head; client is a customer who uses a service.
Real-life link: patch tests really matter. A reaction to hair dye can be serious, which is why salons take them seriously.
Device-free fallback: printed Source A; learners circle each clue (brackets, the next sentence, the photo caption). Image credit: Maksim Chernishev / Unsplash
Leaflet · Halo Hair & Beauty, Ashworth
SOURCE A · 2 of 2
Aftercare
Wait 48 hours before you wash your hair.
Use a sulphate-free shampoo. Harsh shampoos strip colour out.
Stay out of swimming pools for a week, as chlorine fades colour.
Rebook for your regrowth in 6 to 8 weeks.
Any irritation?
Rinse with cool water and call us. If your face or throat starts to swell, get medical help straight away.
Glossary
aftercare – how to look after your hair after a treatment
patch test – a small test on your skin before colour
regrowth – new hair that grows in at the roots
sulphate-free – with no harsh cleaning chemicals
**Compound word.** after + care = care after. Two words you know make one new word.
**Context clue.** The next sentence says harsh shampoos strip colour. So sulphate-free must mean gentle.
**Word parts.** re- (again) + growth. Hair that grows again, at the roots.
**Glossary.** A mini dictionary for one text. It's in **alphabetical order**, so you can find a word fast.
Phase 3 · Reading Source A, continued (22–25 mins)
Read the page together, then open hotspots 1–4.
Probe: "If you didn't know 'sulphate-free', where else could you look?" (The next sentence, then the glossary.)
Glossary skills: point out that the glossary is in alphabetical order. Ask: "Where would 'colourist' go if we added it?" (Between aftercare and patch test.)
Safety note: "irritation" means soreness or itching. If anyone has had a reaction to hair dye, they should always tell the salon.
Device-free fallback: learners find each glossary word in the leaflet and draw a line to it.
Word parts give clues
R E A D I N G
Prefix: at the start
Suffix: at the end
un- = not · unsafe
re- = again · rebook
pre- = before · pre-wash
-ful = full of · careful
-less = without · painless
-tion = makes a thing (noun) · irritation
Phase 3 · Teaching (25–28 mins)
Word parts are clues, not rules, but they work surprisingly often. Ask learners for more examples of each from their own lives (unpaid, retrain, prepaid, helpful, homeless, information).
Word type: -ful and -less make adjectives (describing words); -tion makes a noun (a thing). Knowing the word type tells you what job the word does in the sentence.
Misconception: not every "re" at the start is a prefix (read, real). Check that the rest is a word you know.
Device-free fallback: learners copy the table and add one example of their own to each row.
What does the prefix (the start) mean? Drag each word to its meaning.
un- = not
re- = again
pre- = before
pre-wash
unsuitable
rebook
pre-treatment
reapply
unsafe
Phase 4 · Practice (28–32 mins)
Learners look at the start of each word, find the prefix, then drag. Say each word aloud first; some learners recognise words by sound more than by sight.
Answers: not: unsuitable, unsafe. Again: rebook, reapply. Before: pre-wash, pre-treatment.
Probe: "What does pre-treatment mean, then?" (Something done before the main treatment, e.g. a conditioner before colour.)
Stretch: find one more word for each prefix in Source A. (rebook / regrowth.)
Device-free fallback: read each card aloud; learners show N, A or B on a mini whiteboard.
patch test
allergy
peroxide
aftercare
highlights
regrowth
Put these salon words in alphabetical order, like a glossary.
Phase 4 · Practice: alphabetical order (32–35 mins)
Glossaries, dictionaries and indexes are in alphabetical order. When two words start with the same letter, look at the second letter, then the third.
Answer: aftercare, allergy, highlights, patch test, peroxide, regrowth.
The traps: aftercare before allergy (f comes before l); patch test before peroxide (a comes before e).
Support: write the alphabet across the top of a mini whiteboard.
Device-free fallback: learners write the six words in order on a mini whiteboard, then swap and check.
"Use a sulphate-free shampoo." What type of word is sulphate-free?
A noun (a thing or a person)
A verb (an action)
An adjective (a describing word)
A joining word (like "and")
Phase 4 · Check: word type (35–37 mins)
Answer: C. "Sulphate-free" describes the shampoo: what kind of shampoo? A sulphate-free one.
Why the others are wrong: "shampoo" is the noun (the thing); there is no action in "sulphate-free"; it does not join two parts of a sentence.
Strategy: once you know it's a describing word, you know it tells you what the shampoo is like. The next sentence ("Harsh shampoos strip colour out") tells you it must be gentle.
Device-free fallback: learners hold up A–D cards or fingers.
Complete the summary of Source A
A patch test checks if your skin reacts to hair colour. It must be done 48 hours before your appointment. The aftercare tips tell you how to look after your colour.
Phase 4 · Check: summary (37–40 mins)
A short summary of Source A using its specialist words. Learners check each one against the leaflet.
Answers: patch test · 48 · aftercare.
Distractors: 24 is a near-miss (check the leaflet: 48 hours); glossary and regrowth are real words from the leaflet, but they don't fit these sentences.
Editor note: after pushing, set this fill's text to 28px in the editor.
Device-free fallback: write the sentences on the board with gaps; learners copy and fill them in.
Exam-style practice
minute
second
Answer on paper using Source A (both pages). Look at the marks: they tell you how many things to write.
1. What is another name for a patch test? (1 mark)
2. How long is colour left on your skin for the test? (1 mark)
3. Give one sign of an allergic reaction. (1 mark)
4. What does "regrowth" mean? Which word part helped you? (2 marks)
5. Why should you use sulphate-free shampoo? (1 mark)
Starters
Another name is…
It means…
The word part…
You should use it because…
Phase 5 · Independent practice, exam style (40–50 mins)
Learners work alone, on paper, with Source A. Start the 10-minute timer. This is the format of the Level 1 reading assessment: short questions, with the marks shown.
Support: let learners use the starters and the glossary; remind them of the three steps.
Stretch: for question 4, name the word part and say what it means.
Mark it together on the next slide.
Device-free fallback: the questions are written to be copied from the board or printed.
Check your answers
R E A D I N G
1. Another name
2. How long
3. Sign of a reaction
4. Regrowth
5. Sulphate-free
The brackets give it to you.
Accept "two days" too.
Any one of the three.
One mark for the meaning, one for the word part.
The next sentence gives the reason.
A skin sensitivity test.
48 hours
Itching, redness or swelling of the scalp or face.
New hair that grows in at the roots. The prefix re- (again).
Harsh shampoos strip colour out.
Phase 5 · Mark it (50–54 mins)
Click each yellow marker to reveal the answer. Learners mark their own work in a different colour and add up out of 6.
Common errors: Q2 "two days" (accept it: the strapline says two days, and 48 hours is the same). Q4 "hair growing" without the idea of new hair or roots (half marks are not given, so push for "new hair at the roots"). Q5 "it's cheaper" (not in the text).
Device-free fallback: read the answers aloud.
You can now…
R E A D I N G
use clues around a word to work out what it means
break words into parts, and spot their word type
use a glossary or dictionary, in alphabetical order
Phase 6 · Celebrate progress (54–56 mins)
Click to bring in each tick. Ask: "Which of these feels solid now? Which one needs more practice?" Name it as real progress: these strategies work on any text, in any job.
Device-free fallback: learners tick the three statements in their book, adding a question mark next to any they are unsure about. Image credit: LessonUp Studio (made for this series)
Read the sentences around it
Break it into parts
Work out its word type
Check a glossary or dictionary
Ask someone who knows
Next time you meet a new word, which strategy will you try first?
Phase 6 · Reflect (56–60 mins)
No right answer. Ask one or two learners why they chose theirs, and where they could use it outside college (a tenancy agreement, a payslip, a work induction booklet).
Device-free fallback: thumbs up for each option, or write the strategy on an exit slip.
Take it further
R E A D I N G
Stretch: in class
Before next lesson
Nurseries use specialist words too: key person, milestone, risk assessment.
Pick one. Use the 3 steps to work out what it means.
Find a text from work, college or home with a word you don't know.
Write down:
the word
the clue that helped you
its meaning, checked in a dictionary
Take it further
Stretch is for early finishers in class. Early years examples: a key person is the staff member who looks after a child; a milestone is a step in a child's development; a risk assessment checks for dangers. Accept sensible meanings with a clue.
Before next lesson needs no device. Learners bring their words to Lesson 8, where we look at how punctuation helps us read.
Device-free fallback: this slide is already paper-based.