Notice & Note: Nonfiction
Contrasts & Contradictions
Ask yourself this question: What is the difference and what does it matter?
Answering this question will help you see details that show you:
- Main ideas, compare and contrast,author's purpose,inferences,generalizations,cause and effect.
Signal Words: alternatively, by contrast, however,none the less, otherwise,then again, unlike,yet,still,instead,on the other hand,although
Extreme/Absolute Language
The author uses
Answering this question will tell you:
- About the author's point of view
- The author's purpose
- If the author is exaggerating to make you think a certain way.
Signal Words: every, all, always,indisputably, never, none, unconditionally, unquestionably, entirely, completely, exclusively
Numbers & Stats
The author uses specific numbers,number words, or amounts.
Answering this question will help you:
- come to a conclusion
- make a comparison
- see details
- make inferences
- find facts or recognize evidence.
Quoted Words
The author quotes a voice of authority, a personal perspective, or cites other's words.
Answering this question will help you :
- Think about the author's point of view and purpose
- Think about the author's bias or conclusion
- Gain a perspective
- Decipher between facts and opinions/make generalizations
Word Gaps
The author uses a word or phrase you don't know.
Ask yourself this question:
- Do I know this word from someplace else?
- Does this seem like technical talk for experts about this topic?
- Can I find clues in the sentence to help me understand the word?
Answering these questions will help you decide if:
- You need to look the word up
- You need to keep reading for more information/look for context clues
What did the author think I already knew?
- I did not know...
- I was confused by....
- The author assumed...
- The author thought I knew...
What surprised me?
- I was shocked about...
- I was surprised when...
- I never thought....
- I could not believe....
- Really?
What challenged,changed,or confirmed what I knew?
- At first I thought, but....
- I had to rethink...
- My understanding changed when....
- I was right/wrong about....