Transcript Review for the *Pruebas para la Certificación de Maestros (PCMAS)

Review for the “Pruebas para
la Certificación de Maestros
(PCMAS)
Prof. Miguel A. Arce Ramos
Dr. Maria de los A. Nazario
PUCPR
This presentation will be
available on my website so
feel free to download it.
Professorarce.weebly.com
Overview
Manage and use of language
Use of vocabulary in context
Correct usage of prepositions and pronouns
Subject-verb Agreement
False cognates
Use of correct verb tenses
Overview
Reading Comprehension and Literary Analysis
Author’s Purpose
Author’s Tone
Main Idea
Classification of types of discourse
Paragraph Structure
Previewing and Inferring
Vocabulary in Context
Vocabulary in Context
Purpose
The purpose of vocabulary in context is to use the
information surrounding the unfamiliar word to predict its
meaning.
How to answer vocabulary in context exercises
efficiently?
Read the sentence
Look at your answers
Verify whether they have prefixes or suffixes
Context Clues
Types of Context Clues
Repetition
The constant use of that word in the paragraph
General Knowledge
The meaning is derived from the experience and
background knowledge of the reader; "common sense"
and logic.
Context Clues
Types of Context Clues
Definitions
Phrases or words that define or explain
Synonyms/Cognates
Phrases or words that indicate similarity or similar to
the first language
but, in contrast, however, instead of, unlike, yet
Context Clues
Types of Context Clues
Antonyms
Phrases or words that indicate opposite meaning.
in other words, that is, also known as, sometimes
Context Clues
Context Clues Exercise
Prepositions
Use of Prepositions
What is a preposition?
Prepositions are used to express a number of
relationships,including:
time
location
manner
means
quantity
purpose
state or condition
Identify the prepositions in the paragraph below
My neighbor said she wanted to ask me for a small favor. Little
did I know what was in store for me when I agreed to feed her
cat. After my neighbor left on her trip, I walked across the street
to her house. Once I got inside the house, I was overwhelmed
by the stench of cat urine. I looked around the house and
couldn’t believe what I saw. My eyes fell on two salad dressing
containers sitting on a table beside the couch, which was
completely covered with dirty laundry, except for this one worn
area by the table. The volume on the TV was turned up all the
way. In disbelief and despite my better judgment, I walked
toward the restroom. Around the base of the tub I saw these red
velvety mushrooms coming up between the tub and tile floor.
This filth was beyond anything I’d ever seen in my life. Within
two minutes the cat was fed and I was out of there. Since she
returned from her trip, I have never been available to watch her
cat again.
Pronouns
Pronouns
Subject
Pronouns
Object Possessive Possessive Reflexive
Pronouns Adjectives Pronouns Pronouns
1st person
I
me
my
mine
myself
2nd person
3rd person
(m)
3rd person
(f)
3rd person
(n)
1st person
(pl.)
2nd person
(pl.)
3rd person
(pl)
you
you
your
yours
yourself
he
him
his
his
himself
she
her
her
hers
herself
it
it
its
(not used)
itself
we
us
our
ours
ourselves
you
you
your
Yours
yourselves
they
them
their
Theirs
themselves
Pronoun
___ will go.
Max saw
___.
That's ___
name.
The car is
___.
(subj) saw
(reflx) in the
Indefinite Pronouns
•
Indefinite pronouns are words which replace
nouns without specifying which noun they
replace.
Singular Indefinite pronouns
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
another
•
little
anybody
•
much
•
neither
•
nobody
•
no one
•
nothing
•
one
•
other
anyone
anything
each
either
everybody
everyone
everything
•
somebody
•
someone
•
something
Singular Indefinite Pronouns
•
They take singular verbs or singular personal pronouns.
•
•
Correct: Each of the members has one vote.
(The subject, each, is singular. Use has.)
Correct: One of the girls gave up her seat.
(Her refers to one, which is singular.)
•
Incorrect: One of the girls gave up their seat.
Plural Indefinite Pronouns
•
Example: both, few, many, others, several
•
They take plural verbs or plural personal pronouns.
•
Correct:
•
•
A few of the justices were voicing their opposition.
(Few is plural, so are were and their.)
Indefinite Pronouns
•
For indefinite pronouns that can be singular or plural, it
depends on what the indefinite pronoun refers to.
•
Singular or Plural: all, any, more, most, none, some.
Indefinite Pronouns
•
Correct: All of the people clapped their hands.
•
•
(All refers to people, which is plural.)
Correct: All of the newspaper was soaked.
•
(Here all refers to newspaper, which is singular.)
Exercises
1. Shirley: I saw Robert and Luis at the
beach.
Angie: Did you talk to ____________ .
A) they
B) their
C) them
D) him
E) us
2. Wallace: Do Billy and you play on that team?
Mike: No, ____________ don’t’.
A) I
B) they
C) he
D) you
E) we
3. The teacher asked each of us to do ____________ own
work.
A) our
B) its
C) his
D) their
E) your
4. The coach asked Charlie and ____________ to substitute
the players.
A) I
B) me
C) we
D) he
E) she
5. She wrote __________ a letter.
A) anybody
B) somebody
C) anything
D) something
E) nothing
6. Isn’t there ____________ in the cabinet?
A) somebody
B) everything
C) nobody
D) nothing
E) anything
7. ____________ has to do his own work.
A) Everything
B) Something
C) Everybody
D) Anything
E) Anybody
Subject-Verb Agreement
Subject-Verb Agreement
•
•
The subject of a sentence must always agree with the
verb.
However, in standardize tests, you will encounter
many different tricks that test makers make to
confuse you.
Subject-Verb Agreement
Subject-Verb
Split
• There will be
distracting
words to
confuse you.
Correlative
Conjunction
• The either or
trick.
Inverted
Word Order
• Long phrases
that commit at
the start of the
sentence
Subject-Verb Agreement
•
•
Subject – Verb Split - instead of the typical subject
near the verb, the test maker loves to separate the
subject from the verb with many distracting words,
phrases, and clauses.
For example,
•
The teacher along with his students (is/are) going
on a field trip.
Subject-Verb Agreement
•
•
•
•
Correlative Conjunction –
The two most common correlative conjunctions are
the "Neither/Nor" combo or the "Either/Or" combo.
The closest subject to the verb determines the
verb.
For example,
•
Neither the student nor his classmates (is/are)
enjoying the game.
Subject-Verb Agreement
•
•
Inverted Word Order - The test maker loves to
begin sentences with long-winded phrases at the
beginning that commit the sentence to a verb
usage first before the subject.
For example,
•
At the back of the room (is/are) a small desk and
a large desk for visitors.
Exercises
1. This box of ornaments _____in the attic.
•
A. belong
•
B. belongs
2. A man chasing unicorns ____ on the terrace.
•
A. is
•
B. are
3. Each of the divers ______ an oxygen tank.
•
A. has
•
B. have
4. Not one of these cell phones belongs to me.
One of the phones ______ to Melanie.
•
A. belong
•
B. belongs
5. Professor Legree often goes for long walks in
the rain. The lights in his house ____ on at
midnight.
•
A. go
•
B. goes
False Cognates
Cognates
•
•
Cognates are words descended from a common
ancestor; that is, words having the same linguistic
family or derivation.
These are the words that are generally written
similarly in English and Spanish.
Cognates
•
•
However, there are also many "false Spanish English
cognates".
These pairs of words look similar in Spanish and
English but their actual meanings can be very
different.
List of 20 false cognates
aguardar
guard
decente
decent
argumento
argument
desgracia
disgrace
asesor
assessor
elaborar
elaborate
atender
attend
firma
firm
carrera
career
pareja
pair
comodidad
commodity
plata
plate
conformar
conform
presente
present
convenir
convene
ropa
rope
decepcion
deception
suceder
succeed
crudo
crude
vaso
vase
Verb Tenses
Past Tense
•
It expresses an action occurred in the past.
•
The simple past tense is the one we use most often.
•
Formula:
•
Subject + verb in past tense + complement.
(regular or irregular)
Future Tense
•
It indicates that an action is in the future relative to the
speaker or writer.
•
There are no inflected forms for the future in English
(nothing like those -ed or -s endings in the other
tenses).
Present Progressive Tense
•
It indicates an ongoing action that will be completed
at some definite time.
•
It is formed with the auxiliary verb "to be", in the
present tense, plus -ing ending.
•
Formula:
•
Subject + be + v(ing)+ (complement).
Present Progressive Tense
•
It indicates an ongoing action that will be completed
at some definite time.
•
It is formed with the auxiliary verb "to be", in the
present tense, plus -ing ending.
•
It requires to have the adverb “now.”
Present Progressive Tense
•
Formula:
•
Subject + be + v(ing)+ (complement).
present tense
am
is
are
Present Progressive Tense
•
For verbs made up of consonant-vowelconsonant format, double the consonant before
adding "-ing," as in "hopping.
•
hop - hopping
•
sit - sitting
•
put - putting
Present Progressive Tense
•
For verbs that end in silent "e," drop the "e" before
adding "-ing," as in "hiring.”
•
For verbs that end in the vowel digraph "ie," change
the "ie" to "y" before adding "-ing," as in "tying."
Past Progressive Tense
•
It indicates continuing action, something that was
happening, going on, at some point in the past.
•
This tense is formed with the auxiliary verb “be”, in the
past tense, plus -ing ending.
Past Progressive Tense
•
It indicates a limited duration of time and is thus a
convenient way to indicate that something took place
(in the simple past) while something else was
happening.
Past Progressive Tense
•
Formula:
•
Subject + be + v(ing)+ (complement).
(past tense)
was
were
Future Progressive Tense
•
It expresses an action that will be on-going in the
future.
•
It is used for actions that will be unfinished at a certain
time in the future, or for things that will happen in the
normal course of events, rather than being part of your
plans and intentions.
Future Progressive Tense
•
Formula:
•
Subject + will be + v(ing) + (complement)
Present Perfect
•
It is used to say that an action happened at an
unspecified time before now.
•
The exact time is not important.
Present Perfect
•
•
•
•
•
You CANNOT use the Present Perfect
with specific time expressions such as:
•
•
•
•
yesterday
one year
ago
last week
when I was
a child
when I lived
in Japan
at that
moment
that day
one day,
etc.
Present Perfect
•
•
ever
•
never
•
once
•
many times
You CAN use the Present Perfect with
•
unspecific expressions such as:
several
times,
•
before
•
so far
•
already
•
yet, etc.
Present Perfect
•
Formula:
•
Subject + has/have + past participle of the verb
He, She, It
I, We, You,
They
Past Perfect
•
It is often used when we are relating two events which
happened in the past.
•
It helps to show which event happened first.
Past Perfect
•
Formula:
•
Subject + had + the past participle of a verb
I ate breakfast.
7:30 am
I went to school.
8:30 am
now
Before I went to school, I had eaten breakfast.
Future Perfect
•
It expresses the idea that something will occur
before another action in the future.
•
It can also show that something will happen
before a specific time in the future.
Future Perfect
•
Formula:
•
Subject + will have + past participle of verb
Present Perfect Progressive
•
It indicates a continuous action that has been
finished at some point in the past or that was
initiated in the past and continues to happen.
•
The action is usually of limited duration and has
some current relevance.
Present Perfect Progressive
•
Example:
•
"She has been running and her heart is still
beating fast.”
•
It frequently describes an event of the recent past
and often accompanied by just in this usage: "It
has just been raining."
Present Perfect Progressive
•
Formula:
•
Subject + has/ have + been + v(-ing)
He, She, It
We, You, They
Past Perfect Progressive
•
It indicates a continuous action that was
completed at some point in the past.
•
If you want to know how long the activity
happened, or if you want to express the duration
of the activity, you can use the past perfect
progressive.
Past Perfect Progressive
•
Formula:
•
Subject + had been + v(-ing)
Future Perfect Progressive
•
It is used when you want to know or tell someone
how long an action has been happening at a future
point.
•
The action started before that future point, and it will
continue after the future point you speak about.
Timetable
2013
1947
2003
today
2007
2005
2011
By the year 2013, people will have been watching
television for 70 years.
Modals
•
A modal verb is a type of auxiliary verb that is used to
indicate modality (likelihood, ability, permission, and
obligation).
•
Modal verbs do not take the inflection -s or -es in the
third person singular, unlike other verbs.
Name
Example
Yes/No Question
Negative
Statements
Simple Present
Ana studies
hard.
Does Ana study
hard?
Ana doesn’t study
hard.
Simple Past
Ana studied
hard.
Did Ana study hard?
Ana didn’t study hard.
Future
Ana will study
hard.
Will Ana study hard?
Ana won’t study hard.
Present progressive
(be+ing)
Ana is studying
hard.
Is Ana studying hard?
Ana isn’t studying
hard.
Past progressive
be (past) + ing
Ana was
studying hard.
Was Ana studying
hard?
Ana isn’t studying
hard.
Future progressive
Present+ Modal +
be+ ing)
Ana will be
studying hard.
Will Ana be studying
hard?
Ana won’t be
studying hard.
Name
Example
Yes/No Question
Negative
Statements
Present Perfect
(have/has+ pp)
Ana has studied
hard.
Has Ana studied
hard?
Ana hasn’t studied
hard.
Past Perfect
(had+ pp)
Ana had studied
hard.
Had Ana studied
hard?
Ana hadn’t studied
hard.
Future Perfect
(Modal + have +
pp)
Ana will have
studied hard.
Will Ana have
studied hard?
Ana won’t have
studied hard.
Present Perfect
Progressive
(have/has + pp of
be+ ing)
Ana has been
studying hard.
Has Ana been
studying hard?
Ana hasn’t been
studying hard.
Past Perfect
Progressive
(had + pp of be+
ing)
Ana had been
studying hard.
Had Ana been
studying hard?
Ana hadn’t been
studying hard.
Future Perfect
Progressive
(Modal + have + pp
Ana will have been
studying hard.
Will Ana have been
Ana won’t have
studying hard?
been studying hard.
Exercises
1. Elvis ___________ to sing and dance.
A) is liking
B) have liked
C) likes
D) don’t like
E) like
2. Where did Sam _______ his car?
A) leave
B) leaves
C) left
D) has left
E) leaving
3. Teresa ______ an accident a week ago.
A) have
B) has
C) is going to have
D) had
E) has had
4. Have you ______ my history book?
A) see
B) saw
C) sees
D) seeing
E) seen
5. I’m looking forward to ______ you again.
A) see
B) sees
C) seeing
D) seen
E) saw
6. Charles ______ the picture that hangs over his bed.
A) draw
B) draws
C) drawn
D) drew
E) drawing
7. We ______ left the mall before our parents arrived.
A) have
B) are
C) was
D) will
E) had
8. Ivan: I’ve decided I ought to sell my old car”.
Annie: How long ______ it?”
A) you’ve had
B) have you
C) had you
D) have you had
E) you have had
9. John sold his house, but we don’t know who ______
it.
A) bought
B) buys
C) had bought
D) buying
E) buy
10. I ______ take a break now. I don’t want to stop
____________.
A) can / study
B) can’t / to study
C) can’t / studying
D) can / studying
E) can’t / for studying
11. One of the new students ____________ elected
class president.
A) are being
B) have been
C) could have
D) has been
E) is having
12. I___________ to Rincon yesterday.
A) go
B) went
C) going
D) goes
E) will go
Author’s Tone Purpose
Author’s Tone
•
•
•
•
The author’s purpose is expressed by the tone of voice he or she
assumes in writing.
Tone is the emotion or mood of the author’s written voice. Purpose
and tone are so closely related that they work together.
Purpose and tone are established with word choice.
To identify tone and purpose, you need to build on several skills
you have already studied: vocabulary, inference, and main ideas.
Author’s Tone
•
•
•
•
Tone clues the reader to the author’s primary purpose.
An objective tone usually presents facts and reasonable, un-biased
explanations.
A subjective tone allows a writer to share his or her personal
worldview through fiction and personal essays.
The subjective or emotional tone words describe senses, feelings,
personal experiences, judgments, biases, or opinions.
Author’s Purpose
An author writes for many reasons.
•
•
•
•
An author may give you facts or true information about a
subject, therefore the author is informing.
Some authors write fiction stories and these stories are
to entertain you.
Other authors may write to persuade or to try to get you
to do something.
Author’s Purpose
To Inform
•
•
•
Reading for informational purposes is one of the most
common forms of reading.
The objective of this type of reading material is to present
data that the reader didn’t previously know or data that
the reader needs to further their knowledge.
Informative or expository writing provides factual
information about a topic.
Example of Informative Reading
Reading for Entertainment
•
•
•
Typically literature that should be used for entertainment are
fictional stories.
Even though not every fictional piece of literature is not
entertaining for everyone but it is entertaining for a specific
group of people.
A story may have a lesson, but the author’s main purpose is
to entertain.
Examples of Entertainment Reading
Literature
Movie Scripts
Poetry
Narrative Writings
Persuasive Literature
•
Persuasive writing expresses an opinion (may use facts to
support).
•
Attempts to influence the reader.
•
Usually makes an argument.
Example of Persuasive Literature
To Inform, Entertain or to
Persuade?
•
It was a glorious morning in Alabama. The sun was
shining through the trees. Alan couldn't wait to find his
fishing pole and call his friend Sam to go fishing. They
had a great time on these early morning fishing trips.
They took their dogs with them and the dogs would
swim in the lake while they fished. It was so funny to
watch those dogs paddle around the lake.
To Inform, Entertain or to
Persuade?
•
The Slim-O-Matic will cause you to lose pounds and
inches from your body in one month. This amazing
machine helps you to exercise correctly and provides
an easy video to show you the proper way to
exercise. Send $75.99 and begin exercising today.
To Inform, Entertain or to
Persuade?
•
The Underground Railroad was a secret
organization which helped slaves escape to
freedom. Many slaves were able to escape
because of the conductors and station masters. The
northern states were free states and slaves were
free once they arrived in the north. Secret codes
and signals were used to identify the conductors
and station masters.
To Inform, Entertain or to
Persuade?
•
Judy Glen's Amazing Wrinkle Remover Cream will
make you look younger in thirty days or less. This
remarkable cream has special ingredients to make
your wrinkles disappear. The cost for a thirty day
supply is $ 25.99. Send your check to P.O Box
00002, Shelton, CA 74836
To Inform, Entertain or to
Persuade?
•
Thomas was not happy one little bit. His sister,
Susan was making honor roll again. His parents
would allow her to do anything she wanted to do.
Thomas was not making honor roll this time and he
was not going to be allowed to do all the things he
wanted to do. Poor Thomas! He would just have to
study harder and get back on the honor roll.
To Inform, Entertain or to
Persuade?
•
Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder was born on
February 7, 1867 in Pepin, Wisconsin to
Charles and Caroline Ingalls. She met and
married Almanzo James Wilder in 1885. She
published many books based on her travels to
the west. Her writing became the basis for the "
Little House" series. She died in 1957.
To Inform, Entertain or to
Persuade?
•
HAMSTERS FOR SALE: Braxton Pet Store,
Northwood Mall: We have a large selection of
hamsters for sale this week. They are interesting
pets and you will enjoy having one. They are
only $ 17.99 this week. Come and buy yours
today!
To Inform, Entertain or to
Persuade?
•
Calligraphy is a form of handwriting . A special pen
must be used. Letters are formed using up and down
strokes. Old documents are usually written in this form.
Diplomas , certificates and other awards are written in
calligraphy. It is an interesting form of handwriting.
To Inform, Entertain or to
Persuade?
•
Katina and her brother, Jess were playing with the
water hose outside one day. Jess was hiding from
Katina so she wouldn't squirt him with the water. The
back door opened and Katina pointed the water
hose toward the door. It was Mom and she was
dripping wet!
Identifying Main Ideas
Identifying Main Ideas
What is a main idea?
Finding a Stated Main Idea
Difference between stated and implied main idea?
Implied main idea
Finding an implied main idea
What is a main idea?
•
The main idea of a paragraph is the point of the
passage, minus all the details.
Finding a main idea
•
•
After you've read the passage,
summarize it in one sentence that
includes the gist of ever idea from the
paragraph.
A good way to do this is to pretend you
have just ten words to tell someone what
the passage was about.
Finding a main idea
•
Summarize what was read
•
Look for Repetition of Ideas
Difference between stated and
implied main idea?
•
•
Sometimes, a reader will get lucky and the main
idea will be a stated main idea, where the main
idea is easy to find because it's written directly in
the text.
If the author doesn't directly state the main idea
of the text, it's up to you to infer what the main
idea is.
Stated Main Idea
•
Because the Internet exists in a world that is already
regulated with policies and laws, government officials,
upholders of current laws and the voice of the people, should
be ultimately responsible for the regulation of the Internet.
With this responsibility comes the enormous task of managing
the protection of First Amendment rights along with honoring
social and public interests across the world. That being said,
the ultimate responsibility still rests in the hands of Internet
users who vote – they, along with the officials elected to serve
them, make up the global community. Voters have the ability
to elect responsible individuals to the appropriate posts, and
the elected officials have the responsibility to act on the will of
the people..
Implied main idea
•
•
•
Finding the implied main idea is easier if you
think of the passage as a box.
Inside the box, is a random group of stuff (the
details of the passage).
Pull each item from the box and try to figure out
what they each have in common, kind of like the
game Tri-Bond.
Implied main idea
•
These are the 4 steps to finding an implied main
idea:
•
•
•
•
Read the passage of text
Ask this question to yourself: "What do each of the
details of the passage have in common?"
In your own words, find the common bond among all
the details of the passage and the author's point about
this bond.
Compose a short sentence stating the bond and what
the author says about the bond.
Implied main idea
•
The idea that women are not equal to men has been a
prevailing, common theme in literature since the
beginning of time. Like their predecessors, Renaissance
writers staunchly laid down the tenet that women were
less valuable throughout the pages of effusive literary
writings, where women are alternately idolized as virtuous
or shunned as harlots. One man proved to be a glaring
contradiction to this falsity. That man was William
Shakespeare and he had the courage in those turbulent
days to recognize the value and equality of women. His
portrayal of women differed than that of many of his
contemporaries during the Renaissance era.
Implied main idea
•
•
What is the main idea?
Although most Renaissance writers propagated the belief
that women were not equal with men, Shakespeare's
writings portrayed women as men's equals.
Types of Essays
Expository Writing
•
•
•
Expository writing explains and informs.
It presents information and does not argue for or
against a point or seek to defend an opinion.
Encyclopedia articles are examples of expository
writing.
Characteristics of Expository Writing
•
•
•
•
It seeks to inform readers about a specific subject.
It presents information efficiently.
Consider who your audience is and what they will
already know about the subject and thus what you
still need to explain.
You do not want to bore or overwhelm your
reader.
Characteristics of Expository Writing
•
•
It should instruct and inform.
It relies almost exclusively on established
information.
Characteristics of Expository Writing
•
•
It does not include the author’s experiences or
feelings.
It does not express an opinion to be defined. The
material is presented in a direct and unbiased
way.
Descriptive Essay
•
•
•
The descriptive essay is a genre of essay that asks the
student to describe an object, person, place, experience,
emotion, situation, etc.
This genre encourages the student’s ability to create a written
account of a particular experience.
A descriptive essay is like a painting!
Purpose of a Descriptive Essay
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To inform a reader about something (place, event,
object, subject…)
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To share an experience.
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To give a report.
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To entertain a reader.
Characteristics of a Descriptive
Essay
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Strong sensory details (sight, touch, taste, hearing,
feelings, thoughts…)
Main idea/topic followed by supporting details and
descriptions.
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Clear organization.
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Effective transitions.
Example
Using your senses
describe the previous
four pictures
Narrative Essays
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A narrative essay is a story written about a personal
experience.
Its main objective is to provide an opportunity to get
to know and understand yourself better.
Narrative Essays
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Narratives can do the following:
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Create a sense of shared history, linking people together.
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Provide entertainment.
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Provide psychological healing. Reading or listening to the
narrative of someone who faced a life crisis similar to one
you are experiencing can help you through the crisis.
Provide insight. Narratives can help you discover values,
explore options, and examine motives.
Characteristics
A narrative essay should:
presents
is told from a
makes a point,
important
point of
communicates
relates
changes,
view-a main idea or
contrasts, or
usually the
events in
dominant
conflicts and
author's
impression.
sequence.
creates
point of
tension
view. focuses on
includes
connection
detailed
Involves
between
observations
past events,
readers in
of people,
people, or
the
story.
places, and
places and
events.
the present.
Persuasive Writing
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A persuasive essay is an essay that utilizes logic
and reason to show that one idea is more
legitimate than another idea.
It attempts to persuade a reader to adopt a
certain point of view or to take a particular
action.
In the real world, a persuasive essay can be a
sales letter, a job application or even a
presentation to a group of people.
Persuasive Writing
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In persuasive or argumentative writing, we try to
convince others:
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to agree with our facts
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share our values
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accept our argument and conclusions
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adopt our way of thinking
Persuasive Writing
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In persuasive or argumentative writing, we try to
convince others:
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establish facts to support an argument
clarify relevant values for your audience
(perspective)
prioritizing, editing, and/or sequencing the facts and
values in importance to build the argument
Persuasive Writing
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In persuasive or argumentative writing, we try to
convince others:
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form and state conclusions
"persuading" your audience that your conclusions
are based upon the agreed-upon facts and shared
values
Paragraph Structure
Paragraph Structure
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Cause and Effect: shows the relationship between
one and another.
Compare and Contrast: compares the relevant
similarities and differences between two people,
places, or objects. Compare and contrast essays
can have a point-by-point or subject by subject
organization
Paragraph Structure
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Descriptive: depicts the attributes of a person,
place, or object.
Process Narration: explains how an event unfolds
using time or space sequencing
Problem and Solution: describes a problem and
relays potential solutions
Previewing and Inferring
Previewing
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Previewing is a rapid kind of reading that allows
you to get a general sense of what a passage,
article, or book is about and how it is organized.
Your eyes scan quickly over the page looking
for answers to general questions about the
material.
Previewing
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People usually preview:
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Articles
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Essays
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Research Papers
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Textbooks
Previewing
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When previewing an article or essay, you
should:
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look at most of the first paragraph, the first sentence of
each paragraph, and the concluding sentences.
That will provide you with an idea of what you will
further read about.
Previewing
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These are general questions that you should ask
when previewing an article or essay:
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What is it about?
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What is the title?
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What do I already know about this?
What kind of text is this?
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Descriptive
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An explanation
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Argumentative
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Narrative
Previewing
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Is the text divided into parts?
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How is it organized?
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Are there any maps, numbers, italicized words,
or names in the text?
Previewing
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Previewing textbooks:
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You should always read the table of contents and
the outline of a chapter to find out what they
contain.
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You should also preview the text in a chapter
or a section of a chapter before reading it.
Making Inferences
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Writer’s expect readers to use their imagination
and their knowledge about the world to fill in
facts and ideas that are not stated in the text.
It is often necessary to read between the lines
because a writer cannot include all the possible
information about a topic or situation.
Making Inferences
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Writers leave out information that they think
readers will know already or will be able to
guess.
Separating Facts from Inferences
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In many kinds of writing, the author presents
facts about a situation or topic and also makes
inferences from those facts.
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Facts are statements of information that can be
verified.
Inferences are educated guesses that are
based on facts.
Making Inferences in Fiction
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Writers of fiction often choose not to tell "the
whole story" to the reader.
They may have stylistic reasons for this, or they
may keep back some information from the
reader in order to increase the mystery or the
suspense.
When you are reading fiction, you should look
for words and phrases that will help you fill in
the information that the writer has left out.