Teaching Sequence

15 minutes

Part A: Connotation - Not all words are created equally

15 minutes

Part B: What are weasel words?

25 minutes

Part C: Real-world weasel words

5 minutes

Reflection

Part A: Connotation - Not All Words Are Created Equally

Step 1.

Facilitate a quick class discussion to establish whether students understand the idea of connotation. Start the discussion by writing the question below on the whiteboard and inviting students to respond:

What is a synonym?

Record student responses on the whiteboard to allow visual learners to be included in the discussion.

Step 2.

Solidify student understanding of synonyms by discussing the word ‘hot’ and its synonyms. If possible, project the ‘hot’ entry from thesaurus.com so that students can see it, or share the link with the class so that they can view the website on their own devices.

(Link: https://www.thesaurus.com/browse/hot?s=t)

Invite students to notice the following:

The word ‘hot’ has a range of different synonyms. Some synonyms have slightly different meanings (for instance, 'boiling' and 'scorching'), even though they all still broadly mean the same thing.
At the top of the box containing the many synonyms for hot, there are several tabs, each featuring a different way that ‘hot’ can be used to describe something. This suggests that the word ‘hot’ can mean many different things, depending on the context.

Step 3.

Invite students to expand on this line of thinking by completing the Think-Pair-Share visible thinking routine on the Student Worksheet. They are asked to respond to the question “Do all synonyms actually mean the same thing?”

Think Pair Share
Think pair share is a collaborative learning strategy in which students work together to solve a problem or answer a question.

Think - students independently think about an issue or question and record their thoughts.

Pair - students work in pairs to discuss their ideas and record new thoughts.
Share - students share their thoughts with the whole group or with other pairs to reach consensus.

Step 4.

Once students have completed the visible thinking routine, summarise discussion by highlighting that even though synonyms mean the same general thing, there are often subtle differences between words. These differences are called connotations.

Inform students that 'connotation' refers to the wide array of subtle, secondary meanings that most words naturally have. It could also be called the ‘underlying meaning’. If we make careful choices with the words we use to describe something, we can change the meaning for the reader.

Step 5.

Inform students that for the rest of the lesson, they will be using their new understanding of synonyms and connotation to look critically at how words can be used to create positive meaning around a product in order to encourage people to consume that product.

Part B: What are weasel words?

This part of the lesson is about weasel words, which are words used to create positive associations for consumers without making any guarantees. For instance, a shampoo might be advertised as 'helping to fight dandruff' - but what does 'helping to fight' actually mean? It's not a quantifiable claim. The shampoo could be largely ineffective and still technically help fight dandruff (if only a little bit). When students are looking for weasel words, consider encouraging them to think about the actual promises being made, as opposed to how the words sound by themselves.

Step 1.

Introduce the term ‘weasel word’ by writing it in the middle of the whiteboard. Ask students to think about what it might mean, and to discuss with the person sitting next to them. If students need a place from which to begin their discussion, ask them to think about the connotation associated with the term ‘weasel’ - for example, if somebody ‘weasels out’ of something, what are they doing?

Step 2.

Once students have finished their quick discussion, invite pairs to share what they came up with. Note their contributions down on the whiteboard. If required, add the following to the whiteboard:

Weasel words are words used to suggest a positive meaning without actually making any guarantees.

(Source: Readwritethink.org - Persuasive Techniques (archived)

Step 3.

Link students’ understanding of connotation and weasel words by highlighting that a good understanding of connotation can help us to recognise weasel words. If we can recognise connotation, we can tell the difference between advertising that makes definite, solid promises, and advertising that just sounds good.

Step 4.

Ask students to work in their pairs to think about where they may have seen or heard ‘weasel words’ used. They will most likely have encountered weasel words in advertising (but they are also often used by public figures such as politicians, by salespeople, and in more general conversations when people are attempting to frame what they are saying in a positive light).

If required, start students’ discussion by providing these examples:

researchers believe...
most people think...
this product might help you to lose weight...
this dish soap leaves dishes virtually spotless...

Step 5.

Create a connection between weasel words and food marketing by reading through 'Health Washing - 6 weasel words food companies use to fool you', a blog post on SugarByHalf’s website.

Distribute a copy of the article to each student to read. They could do so independently, in small groups or as a class, depending on their needs.

Step 6.

Encourage students to make their thinking visible by completing the Connect-Extend-Challenge visible thinking routine (there is space provided on the Student Worksheet for them to do so).

CONNECT: How are the ideas and information presented CONNECTED to what you already know?
EXTEND: What new ideas did you get that EXTENDED or pushed your thinking in new directions?
CHALLENGE: What is still CHALLENGING or confusing for you to get your mind around? What questions, wonderings or puzzles do you now have?

Step 7.

Once students have completed the routine, encourage them to share and discuss with a small group of peers so that they can explore any elements that they found challenging or confusing.

Part C: Real-World Weasel Words

Step 1.

In this part of the lesson, students will find and analyse examples of weasel words in print advertising. Invite students to create pairs. Distribute a magazine to each pair, and ask them to look through it to find an advertisement that uses weasel words. Encourage students to try to find an advertisement for a food or drink product, in keeping with the article they read in the previous part of the lesson.

Step 2.

Once students have found an advertisement that uses weasel words, invite them to analyse its language, using the prompts on the Student Worksheet (listed below):

What are the weasel words used in the advertisement?
What is the connotation (underlying meaning) of the weasel words?
What do you think that the advertisement is trying to get the reader to think about the product?
What is the underlying meaning of the weasel words?
If you were to ‘translate’ the message of the advertisement, what would it say? OR: What would the advertisement say if it was not using weasel words?

Step 3.

Invite students to form ‘square’ discussion groups (i.e. by coming together with another pair to form a group of four) to share the advertisement they found and their analysis of it.

Step 4.

Facilitate a brief class sharing session to help students notice commonalities in how advertisers use weasel words. Invite volunteers to share their analysis, and ask the class to indicate whether they drew any similar conclusions in their analysis.

Reflection

Invite students to reflect on their understanding of how language can be used to create meaning by completing the “I used to think... now I think” visible thinking routine in relation to how ‘weasel words’ are used in advertising.

They are prompted on the Student Worksheet with the following:

In relation to ‘weasel words’ used in advertising, I used to think...
And now I think...

Differentiated Learning

Extension - Using Weasel Words for Good: Working in pairs, students should identify a food/drink that is of high nutritional/health/environmental value (e.g. a vegetable, fruit, tap water) that is usually known as being boring, bland or un-fun to consume. Students should then use their knowledge of weasel words to create a print ad or slogan that uses language to convince people to consume it. Invite students to share their work with the class. They could also create and publish a final version of the ad and display it around the classroom.

Provisions for Learning Support - Ensure that students form mixed-ability pairs during Part C of the lesson.

Teacher Reflection

Take this opportunity to reflect on your own teaching:

What did you learn about your teaching today?
What worked well?
What didn't work so well?
What would you share?
Where to next?
How are you going to get there?

Taking it Further

If you would like more information about SugarByHalf or the movement to reduce our sugar intake, check out the SugarByHalf Teachers Network here.

SugarByHalf would also love to share the results of your teaching with the world! If your students are making amazing changes, consider emailing info@sugarbyhalf.com to let them know. They're excited to tell people about your success!

SugarByHalf - Watch out for Weasel Words!

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