NOTICE & NOTEThe Signposts and Definitions

Contrasts and ContradictionsContrasts and Contradictions The Signpost and Definition

A sharp contrast between what we would expect and what we observe the character doing; behavior that contradicts previous behavior or well-establish patterns.

Contrasts and ContradictionsContrasts and Contradictions

Contrasts and ContradictionsContrasts and ContradictionsClues to the Signpost

A character behaves or thinks in a way we don’t expect, or an element of a setting is something we would not expect.

Contrasts and ContradictionsContrasts and ContradictionsThe Question That Follows

Why would the character act (feel) this way?

Aha MomentAha Moment The Signpost and Definition

A character’s realization of something that shifts his actions or understanding of himself, others, or the world around him.

Aha MomentAha Moment

Aha MomentAha MomentClues to the Signpost

Phrases usually expressing suddenness, like:

“Suddenly, I understood…” “It came to me in a flash that…” “In an instant, I knew…”

Aha MomentAha MomentThe Question That Follows

How might this change things?

Tough QuestionsTough QuestionsThe Signpost and Definition

Questions a character raises that reveal his or her inner struggles.

Tough QuestionsTough Questions

Tough QuestionsTough Questions Clues to the Signpost

Phrases usually expressing serious daoubt or confusion:

“What could I possibly do?” “How could I ever understand why she…?” I couldn’t imagine how I could cope with…”

Tough QuestionsTough QuestionsThe Question That Follows

What does this question make me wonder about?

Words of the WiserWords of the Wiser The Signpost and Definition

The advice or insight a wiser character, who is usually older, offers about life to the main character.

Words of the WiserWords of the Wiser

Words of the WiserWords of the Wiser Clues to the Signpost

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.

Words to the WiserWords to the WiserThe Question That Follows

What’s the life lesson and how might it affect the character?

Again and AgainAgain and Again The Signpost and Definition

Events, images, or particular words that recur over a portion of the novel.

Again and AgainAgain and Again

Again and AgainAgain and Again Clues to the Signpost

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.

Again and AgainAgain and Again The Question That Follows

Why might the author bring this up again and again?

Memory MomentMemory Moment The Signpost and Definition

A recollection by a character that interrupts the forward progress of the story.

Memory MomentMemory Moment

Memory MomentMemory Moment Clues to the Signpost

The ongoing flow of the narrative is interrupted by a memory that comes to the character, often taking several paragraphs to recount before we return to events of the present moment.

Memory MomentMemory Moment The Question That Follows

Why might this memory be important?

Work Cited

Beers, K., & Probst, R. E. (2013). Notice and Note: Strategies for Close Reading. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.