Unit 1
Definition of tenacity?
A noun that means the quality of being determined or of holding fast.
Definition of emulate
to strive to imitate or approach equality with
Definition of incumbency?
state of currently occupying an office
Definition encroach?
to advance or intrude beyond set limits
Definition of indemnity
protection against loss or damage
central ideas
is an overarching message or truth that is specific to a text. Central ideas are the key points authors make and the ones they want you to remember most. Central ideas may be directly stated in a text, but more often they are implied.
Why is textual evidence important?
Textual evidence is specific information found within a reading that is used to support claims and analysis of that text.
What are structural elements?
Structural elements such as sentences, paragraphs, chapters, and sections, can help a reader to comprehend a text’s main idea or claim.
In what ways can themes be presented?
What is a claim?
The claim is the primary statement that is to be proved through the presentation of an argument. A claim should be controversial.
Task, purpose, audience.
The author’s task is the assignment or work that an author needs to do.
The purpose is the reason the author creates the text.
The audience is the reader.
What are some ways to generate ideas for writing?
Free writing, listening, and idea mapping.
What is the purpose of an introduction?
What is an argument?
Argument is a type of writing that emphasizes logic, specifically claims, reasons, evidence and, counterclaims.
What should not be included in an argumentative essay?
Which sentence states a central idea in the section of the article “I Rode 500 Miles in a Self-Driving Car” titled “A Baby Step into the Future”?
The autonomous A7 represents one of the biggest steps forward of any automaker with self-driving cars.
In “How Not to Raise a Bully: The Early Roots of Empathy,” how does author Maia Szalavitz use a rhetorical feature to appeal to her audience’s emotions?
She uses figurative language to vividly depict lives of poverty and loneliness, making her readers feel sympathetic.
Read the excerpt from “The History of the Electric Car.”
In the early part of the century, innovators in Hungary, the Netherlands and the United States—including a blacksmith from Vermont—began toying with the concept of a battery-powered vehicle and created some of the first small-scale electric cars. And while Robert Anderson, a British inventor, developed the first crude electric carriage around this same time, it wasn’t until the second half of the 19th century that French and English inventors built some of the first practical electric cars.
Which answer most effectively states the author’s main point in the excerpt?
Inventors from many countries had a hand in the development of the electric vehicle that we know today.
Read the excerpt from the Declaration of Independence.
We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do.
Which response best explains how the excerpt expresses a theme of the document that declaring independence from Britain is morally right?
It asserts the colonists’ belief that a higher power approves of their claims to liberty and control of their lands and laws.
Read the excerpt from a letter to the editor.
The issue of the water quality in Echo Lake is of grave concern to our community. Test results show dangerous levels of algae, which is caused by pollution from common household chemicals. However, the families living on Echo Lake’s shoreline are not the ones to blame.
Which sentence could be added to the end of this letter to maintain a consistent tone?
We must all assume responsibility for returning Echo Lake to its former pristine state.
Which sentence has the most appropriate tone for persuading people to recycle?
If we recycle, we are using natural resources more responsibly for the sake of future generations.
In which excerpt from “How Not to Raise a Bully: The Early Roots of Empathy” does the author use an appeal to emotion to persuade her audience that empathy training should start in early childhood?
Institutionalized infants do not experience being the center of a loving family’s attention; instead, they are cared for by a rotating staff of workers, which is inherently neglectful.
Reread “The History of the Electric Car.”
How does the overall structure of the article support the author’s main point?
The article’s chronological structure supports the author’s main point that the electric car has undergone many changes over the years, and therefore can be expected to continue evolving in the future.
You are writing an essay about a novel and want to express that one of the major themes is unrequited love. The paragraph’s first sentence is:
The novel’s theme concerns unrequited love.
Which sentence could you add next to provide a context clue to the meaning of unrequited?
Despite his feelings for Laila, Noah knows he needs to respect her dreams of studying abroad in Taiwan.
Jasmine is writing a letter to the editor in support of her town’s plans to build a new public theater in the park.
Which statement would make the most effective call to action in Jasmine’s letter?
If you would like to see the arts thrive, please make a donation to the public theater fund.