Reading Comprehension
What does it mean to skim and scan a passage?
Skimming and scanning are reading techniques used to quickly gather information.
Skimming provides a general overview of a text.
Scanning is used to find specific information within a text.
Should you always look at the writing prompts?
YES
What is a simile?
a comparison of 2 unlike things using "like" or "as"
Float like a butterfly, sting like bee
What is symbolism?
When something, like an object or image, stands for something else
Spring can be a symbol for new beginnings
Give at least 2 examples of what you should be doing when you are engaging in active reading.
questioning
predicting
making connections
It is important to pay attention to key words. What are the differences between these key words:
explain, argue, compare/contrast, analyze
How would it change how you answer the question?
explain - tell how or why
argue - prove your point
compare - tell the similarities and differences
analyze - look closely at the text
What is a metaphor?
A comparison of 2 unlike things that does not use "like" or "as". Metaphors often say one thing IS something else.
Life is a highway
What is imagery?
Descriptive language (words that describe how something looks, smells, tastes, sounds, feels) that helps create a picture in our minds.
What does it mean to visualize while you are reading?
The words create pictures in your mind
Tell at least one thing you should do when planning your written response.
find quotes to use
find vocabulary to use
What is personification
Giving human qualities to non-human things (objects, animals, concepts)
The sun played peek a book with the clouds
What is an oxymoron?
2 opposite words place next to each other for effect
jumbo shrimp
bitter sweet
When you come across a word you do not know, you should try to use context clues to determine the word's meaning. What are context clues?
The words around an unknown word that give us hints about what the word means.
What is a thesis statement?
The main idea or claim of your writing assignment.
Exaggeration
My parents are going to kill me.
What is an idiom?
An expression or saying
When pigs fly
feeling blue
in a pickle
When answering multiple choice questions, give at least one strategy you can use.
Read ALL possible answers
Eliminate answers you know are wrong
(kick two, keep two)
Pay attention to key words such as always, never, all, none, except
Produce a thesis statement about whether or not students should have to wear school uniforms.
Answers will vary but must contain a claim (yes or no to school uniforms) and evidence/reasons that support the claim.
What is allusion?
A reference to a well known person, place, thing, book, story, movie, etc.
He is a regular Romeo.
What is irony?
Bonus $100 for each type of irony you name and define.
Irony is when something happens that is the opposite of what you'd expect, or when someone says something but means the opposite.
verbal irony - saying the opposite of what you mean
situational irony - when what happens is the opposite of what you would expect
dramatic irony - when the audience knows something the characters do not