Central Idea Center
The definition of central idea.
What is the author's main point? (Alternate answer: What is what the story is mainly about?)
What are words that help the reader determine which text structure the author is using?
A comparison not using "like" or "as," and a then comparison that does use "like" or "as."
What is a metaphor? and What is a simile?
First person pronouns.
*Name at least three.*
What are I, me, my, mine, we, us, our, ours, myself, ourselves?
What is a reference to something from history, religion, literature, etc.?
A topic is usually _________, while a central idea is usually __________.
What is a word or phrase? and What is a complete sentence?
The two types of text structure best suited for recounting the events leading up to World War II.
What is cause and effect and sequence?
The definition of personification.
What is assigning human traits to a non-human object?
Second person pronouns.
*Name at least three.*
What are you, your, yours, yourself?
What you need to understand and identify an allusion.
What is background knowledge?
Where you can usually find the central idea in a paragraph.
What is in the first few sentences?
The signal words for the problem and solution text structure.
*Name at least four.*
What is problem, solution, dilemma, issue, solved, fixed, resolved, et alia?
What is a hyperbole?
Third person pronouns.
*Name at least three.*
What are she, her, hers, herself, he, him, his, himself, they, them, their, theirs, themselves, it, its?
The allusion and its meaning in the following passage.
Gary knew he wasn't allowed to chew gum on the bus, but he popped in a piece of spearmint anyway. He'd forgotten to brush his teeth that morning and he wanted to freshen up.
"Mr. Carlisle, Gary's chewing gum!" Alyssa hollered up to the bus driver.
Mr. Carlisle looked at Gary in the mirror. "Gary! Spit it out, now!"
Gary threw Alyssa a look of daggers as he spit the gum in a napkin. "Judas!" He said, only loud enough for her to hear.
What is Judas? and What is Alyssa betrayed Gary like Judas betrayed Jesus in the Bible?
The central idea of the following passage.
Johnny often overindulges in his meals. Two weeks ago, he came over to my house for a barbeque. It was just me and Johnny, and all eight of the burgers I cooked are gone. I only ate two. Then, last weekend, we went out to a restaurant and Johnny ordered a T-bone steak cooked medium-well, a plate of chicken fettuccini alfredo, two side salads, and a basket of breadsticks for himself. He ate every bite! And, just last night, his mom cooked two whole lasagnas and a loaf of garlic bread just for him. I have no idea how he doesn't weight 600 pounds—he's skinnier than me!
What is Johnny eats a lot, but manages to stay skinny?
Five types of text structure an author might use.
What is compare and contrast, sequence, problem and solution, cause and effect, and description?
Five types of figurative language.
What are simile, metaphor, idiom, hyperbole, and personification? (Could also have any combination of these: alliteration, litotes, onomatopoeia, synecdoche, oxymoron, allusion, analogy, et alia.)
The point of view of the passage below.
The pencil sharpener sat on the desk, crammed to the brim with pencil shavings. It needed to be emptied, but no one could be bothered to do that. Neglected and sad, it sat, waiting.
What is third person?
The meaning of the starred word, as found using context clues.
One day, after school, Ronny sat next to Cashalie on the bus. He knew that she sold chips out of her backpack as a way of making a little extra cash, and he was hungry. "How much for some Hot Cheetos?" he asked her.
"Two dollars," said Cashalie.
Ronny's stomach rumbled as he pulled out his wallet. He peered inside and flicked through the larger bills until he got to the singles in the back. "I'll give you a buck fifty," he said.
Cashalie, having seen the contents of his full wallet herself, replied, "Ugh, Ronny, you are so *parsimonious."
What is cheap or frugal?
The supporting details from the text below. *Name all three.*
Catera is a good student. Every evening when she gets home from school, she opens her notebooks and reads over her notes from the school day. Then, she does all of her homework, going over it a second time to check for errors. Additionally, every morning on the bus, she completes a ReadingPlus lesson to start her day.
What is she looks over her notes?, What is she does all of her homework and checks for errors?, and What is she does ReadingPlus on the bus?
Milan had a very important test coming up. She knew that if she studied, she would do better on her exam. So, the night before her test, Milan sat at her kitchen table, pulled out her notebooks, and reviewed all of the units her teacher had covered. It took her six hours to read through all of her notes, but in the morning, she felt confident and ready for the test. When she got her score back, she saw that she had aced it. Because of her diligent studying, Milan rocked it!
What is cause and effect?
The meaning of the following figurative language.
Jeremy was a mule. No matter how much his sister pestered him, he refused to empty the dishwasher.
What is Jeremy is stubborn?
The three types of third person point of view and their meanings.
What is third person limited? and What is when the narrator knows the thoughts and feelings of only one character?
What is third person objective? and What is when the narrator knows the thoughts and feelings of no characters?
What is third person omniscient? and What is when the narrator knows the thoughts and feelings of every character?
The meaning of the starred word, as found using context clues.
Andre won an Emmy. He was told he would have time to give a speech. When he was called to the podium, however, he said only, "Thank you. This is great." He then went back to his seat.
The host came back onstage and said "Well, that speech was pretty **laconic, eh? Moving on!"
What is short, pithy, concise, or containing few words?