gives general information about the topic, introduces main points, states claim

a statement that shares a writer's viewpoint on an issue; a stated idea or opinion that not everyone believes is true

a position taken by someone with an opposing viewpoint

refutation; response to the counterclaim with contrary evidence

who or what the sentence is about

tells what the subject is or does

subject and predicate

anything that stands for or represents something else

background information presented in a literary work

a struggle between two opposing forces; an important part of a narrative because it is the reason for the story; must take place in the center of the story to allow for transitions and suspense

the time and place of a story

the series of conflicts or struggles that build a story toward a climax

the most exciting moment of the story; turning point

events after the climax, leading to the resolution

the end of the story where loose ends are tied up

special words or expressions that are used by a particular profession or group and are difficult for others to understand

conversation between two or more characters

exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally; example: she was so hungry she could eat a horse

repetition of initial consonant sounds; example: the sound of the slithering snake was soothing

a figure of speech that combines opposite or contradictory terms in a brief phrase; examples: bittersweet, act naturally, tragic comedy

factual, not influenced by emotions, unbiased

based on or influenced by personal feelings, tastes, or opinions

a statement that can be proved; facts are objective, unchanging, and accurate; speakers use them to provide evidence

a personal view, attitude, or appraisal; cannot be proved; is subjective, changeable, and personal; a speaker uses them to provide perspective

introduction, body, conclusion

restates the claim, sums up the essay's main points; does NOT introduce new evidence

most effective: statistical evidence (data; can be proven as fact)

See image

See image

start with a topic sentence (addressing one main point), provide supporting details and evidence, have a transition sentence

an indirect, less offensive way of saying something that is considered unpleasant; example: "Nancy's grandmother 'passed away'" instead of "Nancy's grandmother 'died'"

a comparison of two things WITHOUT using the words 'like' or 'as'; example: "She is the sun of my sky"

a comparison of two things using the words using 'like' or 'as'; example: "She runs like the wind"

generalizations about groups that are often applied to individual group members; example: "English teachers spend every weekend reading"

an unexpected turn of events in a plot

a character who contrasts with another character (usually the protagonist) in order to highlight particular qualities of the other character

a character that is both round and dynamic... they have internal conflicts and change over the course of a piece of literature

not literal; example: "I couldn't get out of bed this morning" means that I was really tired, not that I was actually trapped under the covers

the actual meaning of a word or phrase; example: If you say you "literally couldn't get out of bed this morning," it means you were trapped under the covers and could not escape

descriptive language that attempts to invoke one or more of the five senses

meaning culturally applied to a term; the implied or associative meaning of a word; can be positive or negative; example: "determined" has a positive connotation, while "stubborn" has a negative connotation, even though they have similar dictionary definitions (denotations)

the dictionary definition of a word

part of the word that shows its central meaning; main part of a word without affixes; example: instructor has the root word "struct" (and the prefix "in" and suffix "or")

a word part that is added to a word root to make a new word; prefixes and suffixes are affixes

word part that is added to the beginning of a word root; a syllable or word that comes before a root word to change its meaning; example: uninteresting has the prefix "un"

a word part that is added to the end of a word root; a word or letter placed after the root word; example: smokeless has the suffix "less"

hints to a word's meaning found in the text around the word; examples: synonym, antonym, example, explanation, and definition clues

the author's most important ideas in a text, supported by key details; topic + supporting details = central idea

the reason the author has for writing; examples: to inform, persuade, express, or entertain; questions that help identify the author's purpose: what kind of text is this?, what is the central idea?, how does the text make the reader feel?

a logical interpretation based on clues presented in the text as well as prior knowledge and experience; a conclusion made on the basis of unstated or stated details

ideas or qualities that are specific to a group of people; examples: child rearing, religion, work ethic, equality, gender roles, peace vs. war, freedom, etc.

words that are pronounced the same, but have different meanings; example: their, there, they're

the events and conflicts that make up a story

the customs and beliefs of a group of people; examples of values of a culture include religion, work ethic, freedom, peace vs. war, discipline, equality, gender roles, child rearing, etc.

a traditional story that explains a belief system, a natural phenomenon, or a worldview of a group of people

an even or occurrence that defies easy explanation

a statement of the central ideas of a text in one's own words; steps: identify key words and phrases, eliminate extra words, restate the key points and central ideas, connect ideas with transitions

the surrounding environment; words that help explain another word's meaning

a category of words with a similar grammatical function; examples: nouns, verbs, adverbs, adjectives, etc.

a words whose meaning is the same or similar to that of another word

a word that means the opposite of another word

when the text itself defines a difficult word

when examples of the difficult words are provided

when the text uses a word that has a similar meaning

when the text uses a word that has an opposite meaning

provide a description or explanation that you can use to infer the most likely definition of the word

tells a story about the writer's life; reflects on something that has happened, presents the reader with an experience, shares events in an engaging order, and uses a clear point of view (which can be 1st or 3rd person)

planning to write and setting up an order of events

writing in full sentences

the final editing of a piece of writing

contains a noun or pronoun (may be a group of words if it is a compound subject); examples: she, Margot, or David and Margot

include all of the words that tell about the subject; examples: the brave young lady, the spotted dog

a verb that tells what the subject is or does; examples: was, ran, has

contains all the words that tell about what the subject is or does; examples: was hiding in the closet, ran around the lake, has a lovely library

the quality of a verb that shows the time of the action; the three basic verb tenses are past, present, and future

contain one subject and one predicate, express a complete thought, begin with a capital letter, and end with a period.

effective participants must be prepared to both listen and speak; prepared speakers have read and reviewed materials, conduct outside research, bring notes, support opinions with evidence, respond to questions thoughtfully, reflect on points made by others; unprepared speakers have not read or conducted research, don't have notes, do not support opinions, ignore or dismiss questions, focus only on one viewpoint

identify the type of work, the title, the author, and the central idea; include key supporting details in your own words (called paraphrasing); write an objective analysis of the text; objective summaries are based on facts, and are not influenced by feelings or opinions

used to convince readers to believe or do something (the purpose of an argument); rhetorical appeals include logos, ethos, and pathos

appeals to reason; examples: evidence and logical arguments

appeals to character; examples: authority and credibility

appeals to emotion; examples: values and feelings

types of evidence: statistical evidence such as data (most effective), testimonial evidence such as expert opinion or authority, anecdotal evidence such as personal stories (less effective)

the way a character is presented and developed

the author uses actions, thoughts, and speech to show the reader who a character is

the author uses specific details to tell the reader about a character

a quality that contributes to who a person is and makes them different from other people; to make inferences about personality traits, look at the character's thoughts, words, and actions

a text about a writer's own life and is a true story with real people, settings, and events

a made-up story with made-up characters, settings, and events

a struggle within the character; character vs. self; example: every morning when the alarm goes off the character wants to push snooze and keep sleeping but they know they need to be responsible and go to work so they make themself get out of bed

a struggle between a character and an outside force; character vs. society, character vs. character, character vs. nature, character vs. technology

introduces the topic and states why it matters, states the difference of opinion about the topic, and states the claim and lists the main reasons to support it

include a topic sentence giving a reason, give evidence to support the reason, and connect back to the claim; one of the body paragraphs should include a rebuttal to a counterclaim

choose the strongest counterclaim, address the counterclaim objectively, and provide evidence against the counterclaim

restate the claim, sum up the reasons that support the claim, sum up the disagreement with the counterclaim, and end by making a judgment or a call to action

words and phrases that signal relationships between ideas; commonly used to show similarity, difference, or sum up or conclude

examples: similarly, in fact, in addition, for example, specifically

examples: however, in contrast, conversely, although, compared to

examples: therefore, as a result, to summarize, finally, in conclusion

formality is determined by the topic, audience, and purpose of the discussion; in a formal group discussion, participants discuss their viewpoints on a topic and share both facts and opinions

prepared speakers have read and reviewed materials, conduct outside research, bring notes, support opinions with evidence, respond to questions thoughtfully, reflect on points made by others

unprepared speakers have not read essential material or conducted research, does not bring notes, does not support opinions, ignores or dismisses questions, focuses on only one viewpoint

conclusion made on the basis of stated or unstated details

ideas or qualities that are specific to a group of people

developed over the course of a text or poem, makes multiple comparisons in support of the main comparison, and conveys a complex idea or set of ideas

to examine the similarities between subjects

to examine the differences between subjects

a structure that compares two subjects one point at a time;