Week 6: Verbal Communication (outline pending)
Week of Mon, Sep 21 · week closes Sun, Sep 27
This week's items
- Week 6 reading — Verbal Communicationpoints in Canvas
- Activity: Language and Meaning analysispoints in Canvas
Exact due times are in Canvas.
Read this week
Know these cold
- Explain that language is symbolic and arbitrary — words have no inherent meaning.
- Distinguish between denotative meaning (dictionary) and connotative meaning (emotional association).
- Identify semantic, syntactic, and pragmatic rules that govern language use.
- Explain how language shapes reality through framing and labeling.
- Describe the ladder of abstraction — concrete vs. abstract language and why it matters.
- Explain the use of 'I' language vs. 'you' language and how each affects conflict.
- Identify at least five ways language can create barriers: ambiguity, jargon, euphemism, profanity, hate speech.
- Describe how confirming and disconfirming messages affect relationships.
Meerk's quiz — open the Week 6 gate
10 questions, no time limit. 85% on your first attempt in a 24-hour window opens the gate. Retakes inside the window are practice — they help you learn, they don't count. Work alone; the point is to know it, not to have seen it.
Stuck?
Raise your hand. Mr. James gets a message right away and can help you remotely. Nothing else is stored — just your last name, grade, and where you're stuck.
Dinner Table Question
Ask at home: Think of a word that means something very different to you than to someone from a different background. How does that difference in connotation affect real communication?
En español: Piensa en una palabra que para ti tenga un significado muy diferente al de alguien de otro entorno. ¿Cómo afecta esa diferencia de connotación a la comunicación real?