Narrative Techniques
Text & Theme Skills
Word Analysis
Language & Usage
Literary Devices
100

This point of view uses "I" and shares one character's thoughts and feelings.

What is First person

100

The main idea of a story is often called this; give its definition

What is a theme.

100

Use context clues to determine the meaning of the underlined word in this sentence: "The boy was elated after winning the award."

What is the boy was happy, excited.

100

Which is correct: "Their/There/They’re going to the park." Choose and justify briefly.

What is They're, meaning they are. 

100

Name the literary device that repeats the same beginning sound in nearby words (example: "bright, blue balloons").

What Alliteration

200

The structure where the story jumps back in time to show earlier events; name it and give one purpose it serves.

What is "Flashback" to review what has happened and set the stage for current events. 

200

Describe how you would determine a theme from a story (list two specific steps).When you read a story what are you looking for that tell you the theme?  

What is look at a big subject, what is the plot mostly about, does the character grow, look at how the conflict of the story gets solved. 

200

 Identify the root and meaning of this word and use it in a new sentence: "transportation."

What is trans, which means to carry

200

Identify and correct the error in this sentence: "Each of the students have a pencil."

What is each of the students has a pencil. 

200

Define "foreshadowing" and give one example of it from a commonly read novel or film

What is providing information that will lead to something in the future.  

300

 Identify and define the technique that shows a character's inner thoughts without quotation marks, often in italics or as a stream of consciousness.

What is an Internal monologue 

300

 Explain the difference between theme and moral, and provide an example of each from a familiar story or fable.

What is a theme is the authors message, the moral is the lesson of the story, example...

300

Explain how prefixes and suffixes change word meaning; give two examples with definitions.

What are in- or non- or de- im-

300

Explain when to use a semicolon vs. a comma and conjunction; give one example sentence using a semicolon correctly.

What is semicolon is a pause, a comma is a long pause. 

300

 Identify the difference between metaphor and simile and create one original example of each.

What is a similie uses like or as, a methphor compares to like things not using like or as. 

400

 Name three ways an author develops a character in a narrative (give at least three methods).

How or what is dialogue, characterization, inner thoughts, actions.

400

 list two textual details that support the inferred theme in this text (That's when everything I've been holding in since this morning, since when Mrs. Price put the sweater on my desk, finally lets go, and all of a sudden I'm crying in front of everybody. I wish I was invisible but I'm not. I'm eleven and it's my birthday today and I'm crying like I'm three in front of everybody. I put my head down on the desk and bury my face in my stupid clown-sweater arms. My face all hot and spit coming out of my mouth because I can't stop the little animal noises from coming out of me until there aren't any more tears left in my eyes, and it's just my body shaking like when you have the hiccups, and my whole head hurts like when you drink milk too fast.)

What are...

400
The bicentennial happens every 50 years, the last one happened in 2000 so the next one will be in 2050.

What is bi-means half and Cent means 100 as in century. 

400

 Rewrite this run-on as two correct sentences or use punctuation to fix it: "She finished her homework she went outside to play."

What is teacher approved. 

400

Explain how symbolism works and analyze the symbolic meaning of an object like an apple 

What is symbolism is the use of an object to create meaning or feelings like the apple which represents temptation, love, or knowledge. 

500

 Explain how an unreliable narrator affects a reader's interpretation of events and give one example of how an author might signal unreliability.

How is they say things that don't make sense.  Unreliable narrators are identified mostly in 3rd person point of view. 
500

Compare and contrast two themes that could be drawn from the same text and explain how different details support each theme. (That's when everything I've been holding in since this morning, since when Mrs. Price put the sweater on my desk, finally lets go, and all of a sudden I'm crying in front of everybody. I wish I was invisible but I'm not. I'm eleven and it's my birthday today and I'm crying like I'm three in front of everybody. I put my head down on the desk and bury my face in my stupid clown-sweater arms. My face all hot and spit coming out of my mouth because I can't stop the little animal noises from coming out of me until there aren't any more tears left in my eyes, and it's just my body shaking like when you have the hiccups, and my whole head hurts like when you drink milk too fast.)

What are...

500

Rutland Middle School thanks their benefactors monthly with a nice card signed by students.  What does bene mean in the word benefactors?

What is good

500

This type of sentence uses too many words or repeats information unnecessarily.  For example, "In my opinion, I personally think..."

What is redundancy or over repeating. 

500

Analyze how two different literary devices work together in a passage to create tone or meaning (The wind whispered through the willow’s arms, dancing like a shy dancer at a moonlit ball.)

What is personification and a Smilie. 

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