Story Detectives
What are the two parts of a story’s setting?
Where and when the story takes place.
What is a theme?
A broader message or lesson about life developed through a story.
Should a summary include every detail or only important details?
Only important details.
Which word has a short vowel sound: pet, week, or cube?
Pet
What is explicit information?
Information the author states directly.
What do we call the problem or struggle a character faces?
Conflict.
What is a central idea?
The most important idea a text is mainly showing or explaining.
What does SWBST stand for?
Somebody, Wanted, But, So, Then.
What part of speech is quietly in ‘Priya quietly stirred the mixture’?
Adverb; it tells how she stirred.
What is an inference?
A conclusion drawn from text clues and what you already know.
In From Scratch, why does Priya begin eating peanut-butter sandwiches at school?
She wants to avoid being stared at for bringing Indian food and hopes to fit in.
Which is a theme: ‘Priya makes dessert’ or ‘Being open to differences can help people connect’?
Being open to differences can help people connect.
Name TWO things a good summary should do.
Any two: use your own words; include key events; be shorter than the original; follow a logical order; stay objective.
Which word has a short oo sound: moon, book, or spoon?
Book.
A character’s hands shake before a performance. What might you infer? Name the clue.
The character may be nervous. The clue is that their hands shake before performing.
What important information does Priya learn about Lindsay?
Lindsay grew up in Iran, speaks Persian and English, and also had difficulty adjusting after moving.
Give one important detail from From Scratch that supports the idea that people can find common ground.
For example, Priya learns that Lindsay also grew up in another country and struggled to adjust.
What is the difference between summarizing and paraphrasing?
A summary shrinks a text to its main ideas; a paraphrase restates a specific part in your own words while keeping its meaning and important information.
Fix the tense shift: ‘Yesterday, Priya walked to school and talks to Lindsay.’
Yesterday, Priya walked to school and talked to Lindsay.
What should you include to support an inference about Persephone in Rule of Rock?
A specific, accurate detail or quotation from the story, followed by an explanation of how it supports the inference.
How does learning about Lindsay affect Priya’s actions at the end of From Scratch?
Priya becomes more open to connecting with Lindsay and suggests sharing Indian sweets with her class.
Explain the difference between a topic and a theme using the topic ‘friendship.’
Friendship is a topic. A theme is a complete message, such as ‘Friendships can grow when people try to understand one another.’
Summarize From Scratch in TWO sentences.
Example: Priya feels uncomfortable about her differences after moving from India to America. When she learns that Lindsay has faced similar challenges, Priya becomes more willing to share her culture and connect with others.
Identify the tense: ‘Priya had finished cooking before dinner began.’
Past perfect tense. ‘Had finished’ shows an action completed before another past action.
What is the difference between giving text evidence and analyzing it?
Evidence tells what the text says or shows. Analysis explains how that evidence supports your idea or reveals something about the character, theme, or events.