Strategies to Improve Understanding

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Strategies to Improve Understanding

• Standards ELA9RL1, ELA9RL3, ELA9RL5, ELA9RC3

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PRACTICE What is diction?

• Diction is simply word choicethe words that an
  author chooses to use. On the EOCT, diction
  refers to...
• The authors purpose
• The audience
• The authors voice and style
• The authors language and tone

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Authors Purpose
Purpose Definition
To inform To present facts and details
To entertain To amuse or offer enjoyment
To persuade To urge action on an issue
To instruct To teach concepts and facts
To motivate To encourage to act
To describe an event To narrate
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Authors Purpose read the text below.

• The fire crackled musically. From it swelled
  light smoke. Overhead the foliage moved slowly.
  The leaves, with their faces turned toward the
  blaze, were colored shifting hues of silver,
  often edged with red. Far off to the right,
  through a window in the forest, could be seen a
  handful of stars lying, like glittering pebbles,
  on the black level of the night.
• --excerpt from The Red Badge
• of Courage by Stephen Crane

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• PRACTICE answer this question in your notes by
  writing both the letter you chose answer beside
  it out
• The authors purpose in the passage you just read
  is
• To describe an event during the war.
• To create a mood of momentary peace.
• To persuade that war is destructive.
• To teach a lesson about nature.

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• Authors Purpose read another text below.
• Columbus own successful voyage in 1492 prompted
  a papal bull (formal declaration) dividing the
  globe between rivals Spain and Portugal.
  However, the Portuguese protested that the popes
  line left them too little Atlantic sea room for
  their voyages to India. The line was shifted 270
  leagues westward in 1494 by the Treaty of
  Tordesillas. Thus, by circumstances rather than
  design, the Portuguese gained Brazil and gave
  their language to more than half the people in
  South America.

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• PRACTICE answer this question in your notes by
  writing both the letter you chose answer beside
  it out
• The authors purpose in the passage you just read
  is
• To describe the creation of maps.
• To describe feelings about different papal bulls.
• To relate an adventure off the Atlantic coasts of
  South America.
• To inform readers about one effect of Columbus
  voyage.

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AUDIENCE

• WRITE this definition in your notes The audience
  is the person(s) for whom something is written.
• PRACTICE Consider the audience for the
  following paragraph...

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• Since youre in the market for a new car, I
  wanted to tell you about mine. My new car is the
  best one Ive owned. Its a 2004 Puma. Its got
  a 5.0 L overhead cam engine with multi-port fuel
  injection. It can do 0-60 mph in 5 seconds.
  With that much engine, passing cars on the
  highway is a breeze. I love the rush I get when
  Im cruising around on my new wheels. You should
  consider buying one, too.

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PRACTICE answer these questions in your
notes. Use complete sentences!

• Practice Questions
• 1-WHO is the intended audience?
• 2- HOW do you know this? Explain your reasoning.
  (You may cite evidence from the text to help you
  explain yourself.)
• 3-Now its your turn to write out your OWN
  persuasive passage, convincing your teacher why
  you should pass this course! (4 sentences min)

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The Main Idea

• Rule 1 Main ideas may be directly stated in a
  topic sentence. Topic sentences can be found in
  the title, the introduction, or even the
  beginning or ending sentence of a paragraph.
• Rule 2 Authors may also show the main idea by
  implying, hinting, or suggesting it through
  details and facts, not by directly stating it.
  This is called an implied main idea.

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• PRACTICE Question 1
• What is the main idea of this paragraph?
• Mockingbirds are common and popular birds in the
  eastern and southern regions of the United
  States. The mockingbird is the state bird for
  Arkansas, Florid, Mississippi, Tennessee, and
  Texas. Mockers, as they are affectionately
  called, are known for their ability to mimic
  other birds, mammals, and insects with song and
  sounds. Mockingbirds often live close to human
  homes, nesting in ornamental hedges.

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• PRACTICE Question 2
• What is the main idea of this paragraph?
• In Germany, lunch is the main meal for most
  families. Supper is a cold meal which resembles
  a light American lunch. Potatoes are a favorite
  dish. They are cooked in many ways and with
  different spices. Germans also like to eat
  sausage, or wurst. Fresh bread rolls are
  stuffed with wurst for a snack. Some kinds of
  food, like seafood, may be difficult to find in
  most restaurants in Germany, but the hundreds of
  varieties of wursts make meals interesting and
  tasty.

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Context and Context Clues do 2 things define
each term in your notes AND then paraphrase these
definitions in your own words.

• Words and ideas surrounding a word are called the
  context. Using context clues means to look at
  the way the words are used in combination with
  other words in their setting.

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• PRACTICE answer this question in your notes by
  writing both the letter you chose answer beside
  it out
• Ted seemed absolutely honest, but something told
  me he was prevaricating anyway.
• crying
• hoping
• speaking
• lying

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• PRACTICE answer this question in your notes by
  writing both the letter you chose answer beside
  it out
• These wild camels have a healthier growth of hair
  on their knee caps and a wider space between
  their humps than their domesticated cousins
• .
• In the context of this sentence, what does the
  word domesticated mean?
• tamed
• ignorant
• bald
• cooked