September 21, 2011

Follow-up: “Don’t Be Shy, Speak Up!”New Article: “All Grown Up and Still in Tow”

Housekeeping

• Website

Topic vs. Message

Topic =

• general subject

• can usually be expressed in a word or phrase

Message =

• theme or point of view

• what the author believes about that topic

“Don’t Be Shy, Speak Up!”Comprehension Questions 1. What is the overall topic of this article?  A: The overall topic of this article is how we communicate in public.

OR

A:  This article is about the fact that most Vancouverites are not very assertive in public situations.

assertive = asking for what you want or need assert = take what you want or need 

“Don’t Be Shy, Speak Up!”Comprehension Questions 2. What is the author’s message? A: The author, Stephen Quinn, believes that we should not be passive (or

passive-aggressive), but speak out if someone bothers us or if we have not behaved politely ourselves.

OR

A:  Stephen Quinn believes that life could be more pleasant if we would just speak up when we have a conflict.

passive = not active; not taking actionpassive-aggressive= feeling negative emotions but acting as if you are not

“Don’t Be Shy, Speak Up!”

Comprehension Questions 3. The author spends the first half of the article giving examples

of situations in which he did not “speak up,” as well as examples in which most of us do not speak up. Then he shifts his focus. Which sentence signals this shift?

A:  The author shifts his focus with the sentence, “It doesn’t have to be like this.” In the first part of the article, the author tells us about bad behaviour. This sentence signals that the author will now tell us how we can act differently.

“Don’t Be Shy, Speak Up!”Comprehension Questions

4. The author uses lots of specific examples to help make his points. What examples does he give of how speaking up can make a difference?

A: The author gives us two examples. First, he tells us about the incident on the Skytrain where a young man asked others to make room. Second, he finishes the story he started at the beginning about how he was speeding in the parking lot. In the end, he apologized to the father and the father accepted the apology politely.

“Don’t Be Shy, Speak Up!”Comprehension Questions 5. What statement does the author make three times in the article? How

does it connect the story?

A: The author repeats the statement, “I don’t usually drive like that,” three times. The first time he uses the statement it is to get our attention and suggest the story might have a bad ending. He says it again right away, but this time to tell us it applies to him (“But seriously, I don’t usually drive like that.”) He makes this statement one more time at the end of the article when he tells us how he apologized to the father and made a happy ending out of the situation. So, the statement connects the first and second parts of the story.

Answering Literature Questions

Purpose • to show the teacher you have understood and

thought about what you’ve read. So• Your answer should be clear and contain

enough detail that someone who is not familiar with the story could understand your points.

How to Answer Literature Questions

1. Begin your answer with a complete sentence that clearly reflects or restates the question and your overall answer.

Q: What is the overall topic of this article?  A: The overall topic of this article is how we 

communicate in public.

How to Answer Literature Questions

2. The first time you refer to the story or article, the characters, or the writer, you should use the title or their name . After that you can use “the story,” “the author,” “he,” “she,” etcetera.

Q. What is the author’s message? A: The author, Stephen Quinn, believes that life could

be more pleasant if we would just speak up when we have a conflict.

How to Answer Literature Questions

3. You should answer the question using your own words, paraphrasing the events and details of the story.

NOT: A young man on the skytrain trying to make his way on the train . . . (exact words from the story).

BUT: The author tells us about the incident on the Skytrain where a young man asked others to make room.

Copying the words from an article or story without using quotes or giving credit is considered plagiarism and is a serious cheating offence.

How to Answer Literature Questions

4. You should write in the present tense, as if the story is still going on, or the writer is still writing it.

Ex: The author says that . . .

Ex: Quinn states  . . .

How to Answer Literature Questions5. Support your answer with specific details from the article or story.

A: The author gives us two examples of times when speaking up made a difference. First, he tells us about the incident on the Skytrain where a young man asked others to make room. Second, he finishes the story he started at the beginning about how he was speeding in the parking lot. In the end, he apologized to the father and the father accepted the apology politely.

Once again, these details should be in your own words. If you want to use some exact words from the story to support your answer, these must be in “quotation marks” to show they are the author’s words.

“Don’t Be Shy, Speak Up!”

Practice

Q: Why does the author believe we don’t speak up when others act rudely in public?

NOTE: make sure you understand the question completely before answering.

10 minute break

Fiction vs. Non-Fiction

The most general way to categorize literature is as either fiction or non-fiction.

• Fiction is made-up stories. It includes short stories, novels, and plays.

• Non-fiction is writing based on facts, but can include some opinion. It includes, news articles, essays, biographies, etc.

Dealing with Unfamiliar Words

All readers come across unfamiliar words when they read

• On first reading, if you understand the “gist” of what is being said, then try to guess the meaning of unfamiliar words from the context (the words around them).

• On second reading, highlight important points, make notes, and look up unfamiliar words

Unfamiliar Words - Examples

• As we passed the rotting garbage, we tried covering our noses to keep out the vile stench.– Vile (adj.) = terrible, really bad (evil)– Stench (n.)= bad smell

• When his father asked, “And where do you think you’re going?” the teenager looked back at him sullenly.

• Sullen (adj.)= resentful, unsociable, sulky• Sullenly (adv.)

Unfamiliar Words (Cont’d.)

• You can also figure out meaning by looking “inside” the word

• Look for familiar prefixes, suffixes, and roots– Prefix: a word part (affix) added to the beginning

of a root word to create a new meaning– Suffix: an affix added to the end of a root word to

create a new meaning– Root: the basic form of the word

Unfamiliar Words - Example

• indeterminate (adj.)– in = prefix that makes the root negative– determine = root that means “to find facts about

something”• So, “indeterminate” probably means • “impossible to know or find out”• The store is closed for an indeterminate period.• Haitians have an indeterminate future.

Unfamiliar Words - Example

• Naysayer (n.)– nay = prefix, negative, usually means “no”– Say = root, means to speak something– er = suffix, shows someone who does something

• So, a “naysayer” is a person who . . . • . . . says no to something; in other words, he

or she speaks against something

Practice

Use context and word form to help figure out the meaning of the underlined word.

1. It was serendipity (n.) that I came across that article. I wasn’t even thinking of my research project when I found it, but it has just what I need.

“All Grown Up and Still in Tow”

• Any questions about the words in the title?

• What does the title suggest the article might be about?

Read the Story

“All Grown Up and Still in Tow”, p. 264

What does the author mean by “baby-boomers”?

Read the Note on the top of p. 264.

“All Grown Up and Still in Tow,” p. 265

• On your own paper, without the use of a dictionary, do the brief vocabulary quiz on p. 265-267.

• Refer back to the article to help you understand the meaning of the word.

• Put your name on the paper.

All Grown Up and Still in Tow

1. cringe

c) move away in fear or embarrassment

2. euphemism

  b) more polite way of saying something

3. catapult

a) throw suddenly

4. inevitable

a) unavoidable

5. morsel

b) small piece

All Grown Up and Still in Tow

6. painstakingly

d) taking care to do things right.

7. infuriated

b) very angry

8. enlightened

d) having achieved understanding

9. navigate

d) direct or find the way to something

10. peril

d) danger

All Grown Up and Still in Tow 11. indifferent

b) not caring about something

12. choreograph

b) determine movements, how something is done

13. triumph

a) win, defeat someone or thing

14. anomaly

c) unusual occurrence

15. negotiate

c) try to reach agreement

All Grown Up and Still in Tow

• Add up the correct answers to get your total out of 15.

• Take a look at your mark. Congratulate yourself for all the words you were able to understand without looking at a dictionary!

All Grown Up and Still in Tow

• So, when reading stories or articles try to guess the meaning from the context.  Only look up unfamiliar words on your second reading or when you are answering questions.

• On the other hand, when reading directions and questions, always look up unfamiliar words.  Be sure you understand what the question is asking before you attempt to answer it!

Homework1. Website• Make a post in the social forum• Review the slides from this class (just to make sure you can do it)• Online Grammar Practice – do the “Parts of Speech” review.

2. Pre-Reading for next Monday  • English Skills, p.47-49 only.

3. “All Grown Up and Still in Tow” for next Wednesday

• Re-read the article as many times as you need to understand it (we will be doing in-class work on it next Wednesday)

• Word Families, p. 267 /5 marks

– Write a short paragraph using the following words: adolescent (adj.), advice (n.), advise (v.), intervene (v.),  negotiation (n.)   Copying sentences from the dictionary, website, or other sources is considered plagiarism (cheating) and will receive a mark of zero (0).