Grade 10 Notice & Note Signposts
Use these signposts to help you make sense of the text!
There are 6 signposts
Contrasts and Contradiction
Aha Moment
Tough Questions
Words of the Wiser
Again & Again
Memory Moment
Contrasts and Contradiction
An Overview: A sharp contrast between what we would expect and what we observe the character doing; behavior that contradicts previous behavior or well-established patterns.
- A character behaves or thinks in a way we don't expect, or an element of a setting is something we would not expect.
Literary Elements:
- Character development
- Internal conflict
- Theme
- Relationship between setting and plot
Annotation Symbol: CC
Aha Moment
An Overview: A character's realization of something that shifts his actions or understanding of himself, others, or the world around him.
- Phrases, usually expressing suddenness, like:
- "Suddenly I understood..."
- "It came to me in a flash that..."
- "The realization hit me like a lightning bolt..."
- "In an instant I knew..."
Literary Elements:
- Character development
- Internal conflict
- Plot
Annotation Symbol: Aha
Again & Again
An Overview: Events, images, or particular words that recur over a portion of the novel.
- A word is repeated, sometimes used in an odd way, over and over in the story.
- An image reappears several times during the course of the book.
Literary Elements:
- Plot
- Setting
- Symbolism
- Theme
- Character Development
- Conflict
Annotation Symbol: AA
Tough Questions
An Overview: Questions a character raises that reveal his or her inner struggles.
- Phrases expressing serious doubt or confusion:
- "What could I possibly do to...?
- "I couldn't imagine how I could cope with..."
- "How could I ever understand why she..?
- "Never had I been so confused about..."
Literary Elements:
- Internal conflict
- Theme
- Character development
Annotation Symbol: ???
Words of the Wiser
An Overview: The advice or insight a wiser character, who is usually older, offers about life to the main character. The main character and another are usually off by themselves, in a quiet, serious moment, and the wiser figure shares his wisdom or advice in an effort to help the main character with a problem or a decision.
What's the life lesson, and how might it affect the character?
Literary Elements:
- Theme
- Internal conflict
- Relationship between character and plot
Annotation Symbol: WW
Memory Moment
An Overview: A recollection by a character that interrupts the forward progress of the story. The ongoing flow of the narrative is interrupted by a memory that comes to the character, often taking several paragraphs to recount before we are returned to events of the present moment.
Why might this memory be important?
Literary Elements:
Character Development
Plot
Theme
Relationship between the character and plot,
Annotation Symbol: MM