Fiction Features
This is the message, lesson, or moral the author wants the reader to learn from a story.
What is the theme?
This is what the entire passage is mostly about.
What is the main idea (or central idea)?
A comparison of two unlike things using the words "like" or "as" (e.g., "The clouds were like giant marshmallows").
What is a simile?
When you use what you know + what the book says to make a smart guess.
What is to infer (or make an inference)?
This genre tells a story that didn't actually happen, but it features characters and settings that could exist in real life today.
What is realistic fiction?
This part of the plot is where the conflict is finally resolved and the story ends.
What is the resolution?
These are the facts, examples, or details that prove the main idea is true.
What are supporting details?
A comparison where you say one thing is another thing (e.g., "The classroom was a zoo").
What is a metaphor?
When a question asks you what the author "most likely" thinks, they are asking about the author's...
What is author's purpose (or perspective)?
This type of writing uses lines and stanzas, and often includes rhythm, rhyme, or imagery.
What is poetry?
A character’s "internal" qualities, like being brave or selfish, are known as these.
What are character traits?
To tell the most important parts of a text in a short way, using a beginning, middle, and end.
What is to summarize?
This is a word's "dictionary" definition.
What is the definition?
To "draw a _____" means to reach a decision or opinion based on the facts provided in the text.
What is a conclusion?
This is a story that is written to be performed on a stage, featuring a cast of characters and dialogue.
What is a drama (or a play)?
This is the perspective from which a story is told (e.g., first-person or third-person).
What is the point of view?
Captions, bold words, and subheadings are all examples of these helpful tools.
What are text features?
When an author gives human qualities to an object or animal (e.g., "The wind whispered through the trees").
What is personification?
If a character's actions change from the beginning to the end, the author is showing character _____.
What is change?
If a text is written to convince you to think or do something (like "Why Recess Should Be Longer"), it is this type of writing.
What is persuasive (or argumentative)?
In a drama or play, these are the instructions in parentheses that tell actors how to move or speak.
What are stage directions?
This text structure explains why something happened and what occurred as a result.
What is cause and effect?
An extreme exaggeration used to make a point, like saying "I've told you a million times!"
What is a hyperbole?
These are the words or sentences around an unknown word that help you figure out its meaning.
What are context clues?
A text is written to inform you on a topic by giving facts and examples.
What is an informational text?