8th Grade ELA
ELA Vocab
8th Grade Skills
Across Genres
8th Grade Writing
100
What is SUSPENSE?
a state or feeling of excited or anxious uncertainty about what may happen.
100
words that mean the same as another are called
What is synonym?
100
The term used to make an educated guess based on evidence
What is inference
100
What is the difference between an autobiography and a biography?
An autobiography is the story of a person's life written by that person. On the other hand, a biography is the life story of an individual written by someone else, typically in the third person.
100
What piece of punctuation do we use to omit (or take out) extra words or phrases when we want to shorten text evidence?
Ellipses or dot dot dot (...)
200
There are two ways to give credit to the author when using text evidence. Name one of those two ways!
1. Parenthetical Citation (Author's Last Name and Page Number)
EX: For example, "An average of 20% of people prefer owning a cat to a dog" (Brown 24).
2. Introduce the quote by saying the author's name.
EX: According to Henry Brown, author of best selling book Dogs vs. Cats, "An average of 20% of people prefer owning a cat to a dog."
200
The type of irony that includes sarcasm, or means saying the opposite of what is meant.
Verbal Irony
200
The words and phrases around a difficult word to help the reader determine meaning. Gives us hints and helps us to better understand.
What is context clues
200
Dystopia is the opposite of what?
A Utopia
200
You are given roughly 60 minutes on the writing prompt. What should you do in the first few minutes before you begin writing your essay?
Make a plan! If it's a narrative determine your beginning, middle, end, characters, and setting. What text will you incorporate?
If it's argument or informative decide what your 5 paragrahs will cover. Intro has thesis, have 3 body paragraphs with text evidence, and conclusion paragraph.
300
What is dramatic irony?
When we as the reader or viewer know more than the characters in the story/ show/ play know.
300
To mark up the text with notes, questions, or other things that help you understand the text
What is annotate?
300
When providing a parenthetical citation (author's last name and page number), where does the end punctuation ALWAYS go if it is a period?
AFTER the parentheses.
For example, "An average of 20% of people prefer owning a cat to a dog" (Brown 24).
300
What sets Drama apart from other literary genres?
Drama is written to be performed onstage by actors.
300
What is refutation or rebuttal?
Part of a counterargument or counterclaim: Explains why the opposition is wrong and why you are correct.
400
A comparison that uses like or as.
Simile
400
When the opposite of what we expect occurs, what type of irony do we have? For exampe, the fire house burns down in the middle of the night.
Situation Irony
400
What is the role of the conclusion paragraph?
Restates what the entire essay covered; leaves the reader with a final thought.
400
What are the key characteristics of the horror genre?
Dark and mysterious settings, the use of suspense to create tension and feelings of dread, and the fear of the unknown.
400
Name at least 3 transition words.
For example, however, additionally, so, in addition, first, lastly, etc.
500
What is theme?
The message of the story.
500
A direct comparison to something that DOES NOT USE like or as.
Metaphor
500
What three things do we need in a introduction paragraph?
Hook
Background Information/ transition information
Thesis
500
What are the key characteristics of the science fiction genre?
Sci-fi often takes place in the future, space, alternate histories, or fictional worlds, uses advanced technology, and explores conflicts related to power, control, resources, and the impact of technology on humanity.
500
What type of writing does the following prompt ask for? What will be the structure of your essay?
Argument Essay
Five Paragraphs: Intro Paragraph with Thesis, Body 1, Body 2, Counterclaim Paragraph, and Concluding Paragraph
600
What is character motivation?
The underlying reasons, desires, or needs that drive a character's actions and decisions within a story. It explains why a character behaves a certain way, influences their choices, and impacts their interactions with other characters.
600
A. Combine
600
What role does the reasoning serve in an argument/analysis essay?
Connects the evidence to the claim and helps to show how the evidence proves the overall thesis.
600
List three types of common archetypes.
Possible answers: The Hero, the Villain, the Sage, the Mentor, the Jester, and the Rebel.
600
What type of writing is required from this prompt? What must you include?
Narrative
Dialogue, Details, Descriptions, Vivid Verbs, Sensory Details
700
List three types of conflicts.
Character vs. Self, Character vs. Nature,
Character vs. Society, Character vs. Technology,
Character vs. Supernatural, Character vs. Fate
700
Which sentence contains punctuation to indicate omitted words?
Option C
700
What is an oxymoron?
a figure of speech in which apparently contradictory
700
What is a character archetype?
A universal model of a character
700
What type of writing will you do for this prompt? What will be the structure?
Explanatory/ Informational Writing
5 Paragraph Essay
This will be just like our argument essays, but will not include a counterclaim paragraph. Instead, the third body paragraph will be another paragraph that includes examples and text evidence to prove your thesis/ assertion.