Annotating
What is annotation?
Annotation means making notes, marks, or comments while reading to show your thinking.
What is evidence?
Evidence is information or details from a text that support a claim, idea, or answer.
Identify the noun: “The puppy chased the ball.”
Puppy and ball are nouns.
What does it mean to attack a question?
To break a question into smaller parts so you understand exactly what you need to answer.
What is conflict?
A problem or struggle between opposing forces in a story.
Name one thing you can mark when annotating a text.
Possible answers: important details, unfamiliar words, questions, connections, main ideas, or evidence.
Which is stronger evidence: a personal opinion or a quote from the text?
A quote or specific detail from the text is stronger evidence because it directly supports the answer.
Identify the verb: “Marcus sprinted to the bus.”
Sprinted is the verb.
In “How does the setting affect the character?” what are you being asked to explain?
You must explain the effect the setting has on the character.
What is internal conflict?
A struggle that happens inside a character’s thoughts, feelings, or decisions.
Why might a reader circle an unfamiliar word while annotating?
To identify a word they do not know and return to it to determine its meaning.
A student says, “The character is brave.” What should they find in the text to support this claim?
They should find a specific action, statement, or event that shows the character acting bravely.
Correct this sentence: “She dont like reading mystery books.”
She doesn't like reading mystery books.
What are the three important parts of this question: “How does the author develop the theme through the character’s actions?”
You need to explain HOW, discuss the author’s development of the THEME, and use the CHARACTER’S ACTIONS as the focus.
What is external conflict?
A struggle between a character and something outside themselves, such as another person, nature, society, or a situation.
Read: “Jordan slammed his locker and stormed down the hallway.” What could you annotate about Jordan’s actions?
You could note that Jordan seems angry, frustrated, or upset based on his actions.
A text says, “Maya practiced her speech every afternoon for two weeks.” What does this evidence suggest about Maya?
It suggests that Maya is dedicated, responsible, hardworking, or determined.
Identify the subject and predicate: “The students carefully completed their assignments.”
Subject: The students. Predicate: carefully completed their assignments.
Unpack: “Explain how the character changes from the beginning to the end of the story.” What should your answer include?
Describe the character at the beginning, explain how they change, describe them at the end, and support the explanation with text evidence.
A character wants to tell the truth, but is afraid of hurting a friend’s feelings. What type of conflict is this?
Internal conflict because the struggle is happening within the character.
Why is it important to annotate specific details instead of simply highlighting everything?
Specific annotations show what is important and explain your thinking; highlighting everything makes it harder to identify key information.
What makes evidence strong and relevant to a claim?
It should come directly from the text, clearly connect to the claim, and help prove or explain the answer.
Correct the sentence and explain the error: “Because the book was exciting.”
Possible correction: “Because the book was exciting, I read it in one day.” The original is a sentence fragment because it does not express a complete thought.
Unpack: “How does the setting contribute to the conflict in the story? Use two details from the text to support your answer.” What are all the tasks?
Explain how the setting contributes to the conflict AND provide two specific details from the text as evidence.
A character is stranded in a snowstorm and must find shelter before nightfall. What type of conflict is this? Explain.
External conflict—specifically character vs. nature—because the character is struggling against a natural force.