Climbing for Meaning

This vocabulary-focused reading worksheet is designed for students in Grades 6, 7, and 8 to strengthen word-learning strategies and reading comprehension through context analysis. Students read a passage about a mountain climber and use surrounding details to determine the meanings of bolded words such as precipice and altitude. They then identify the type of context clue used-definition, example, synonym, antonym, or inference-reinforcing transferable strategies for independent reading.

Learning Goals

• Using Context Clues to Determine Meaning (Grades 6-8)
  Students infer word meanings from surrounding text without relying on a dictionary.
• Vocabulary Development & Usage
  Learners build academic and content-area vocabulary in context.
• Identifying Types of Context Clues
  Students classify how meaning is revealed (definition, example, synonym, antonym, inference).
• Reading Comprehension & Fluency
  The activity supports smoother reading by reducing vocabulary barriers.

Instructional Benefits

• Teacher-Created Resource
  Designed by educators to align with middle school ELA standards.
• Explicit Strategy Practice
  Naming the clue type builds metacognitive awareness and transfer to new texts.
• Engaging, Content-Rich Passage
  The mountain-climbing context provides vivid details and clear cues.
• Flexible Classroom Use
  Ideal for vocabulary units, close-reading lessons, literacy centers, or assessment.

This printable worksheet gives students meaningful practice with determining word meaning using context clues and identifying the strategies authors use to reveal meaning. By applying these skills to an engaging passage, learners strengthen vocabulary acquisition, inferential reasoning, and overall reading confidence. Suitable for classroom instruction or homeschool use, this no-prep resource supports independent, strategic readers.

This worksheet is part of our Grade 5 Reading Comprehension collection.