Contents. Unit 1 The Reading Process... 7 Lesson 1: Main Idea and Supporting Details... 8 Content Standards: 1-H4-GLE 4, 7-H1-GLE 9

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2 Contents Unit 1 The Reading Process... 7 Lesson 1: Main Idea and Supporting Details... 8 Content Standards: 1-H4-GLE 4, 7-H1-GLE 9 Lesson 2: Vocabulary Content Standard: 1-H1-GLE 1 Lesson 3: Reading Strategies Content Standards: 1-H3-GLE 3, 7-H1-GLE 9, 7-H4-GLE 13 Unit 2 Literary Text Lesson 4: Literary Forms and Structures Content Standards: 6-H2-GLE 6, 6-H3-GLE 7, 6-H4-GLE 8 Lesson 5: Literary and Rhetorical Devices Content Standards: 1-H2-GLE 2, 1-H3-GLE 3, 6-H2-GLE 6, 7-H1-GLE 9 Unit 3 Going Beyond the Text Lesson 6: Literature Across Cultures and Time Periods Content Standards: 6-H1-GLE 5, 6-H2-GLE 6, 7-H1-GLE 9 Lesson 7: Author s Influence and Argument Content Standards: 7-H1-GLE 9, 7-H2-GLE 11, 7-H3-GLE 12, 7-H4-GLE 13 Unit 4 Informational Text Lesson 8: Graphic Features Content Standard: 5-H6-GLE 41 Lesson 9: Resources and Research Content Standards: 7-H2-GLE 10, 5-H1-GLE 34, 5-H2-GLE 35, 5-H2-GLE 36, 5-H3-GLE 37, 5-H3-GLE 38, 5-H5-GLE 40 Unit 5 The Writing Process Lesson 10: Prewriting Content Standards: 2-H1-GLE 14, 2-H3-GLE 16 Lesson 11: Drafting Content Standards: 2-H3-GLE 16, 2-H4-GLE 17, 2-H6-GLE 20 Lesson 12: Developing Style and Voice Content Standards: 2-H2-GLE 15, 2-H5-GLE 18, 2-H5-GLE 19 4

3 Contents Lesson 13: Paragraphs and Transitions Content Standard: 2-H1-GLE 14 Lesson 14: Editing Content Standards: 2-H3-GLE 16, 3-H2-GLE 21, 3-H2-GLE 22, 3-H2-GLE 23, 3-H3-GLE 24 Unit 6 Forms of Writing Lesson 15: Expository Essays Content Standards: 2-H1-GLE 14, 2-H2-GLE 15, 2-H5-GLE 19 Lesson 16: Persuasion Content Standards: 2-H1-GLE 14, 2-H2-GLE 15, 2-H4-GLE 17, 2-H5-GLE 19, 5-H6-GLE 41 To the Teacher: Content Standards codes are listed for each lesson in the table of contents and for each page above the dotted line that runs across the tops of the pages in the workbook. (See the example at right.) These codes indicate the Benchmarks and Grade-Level Expectations for a given page. 100 Standards: A1, B2, C3 5

4 Lesson1 Content Standards: 1-H4-GLE 4, 7-H1-GLE 9 Main Idea and Supporting Details I read the most fascinating article the other day, you tell a friend. Really? says your friend. What was it about? To answer your friend s question, you re unlikely to state every single detail included in the article you read. For one thing, your friend would be better off reading the article herself, rather than listening to you go on and on about it. For another thing, you probably wouldn t even remember all the details from the article. If the author of the article did a good job, however, you would certainly remember the main idea, the most important idea in the article, which you could sum up in a sentence or two. The tips in this lesson will help you identify the main idea as well as the supporting details in whatever you read. Read the following passage. It will be used to help you practice the tips in this lesson. Cabeza de Vaca s Travels by Alan Noble The Spanish conquest of the Americas was particularly brutal. History has recorded how Cortés 1 entered Aztec Mexico, murdering many members of the great nation and stealing their riches. A similar conquest was repeated in Peru by Pizarro 2 against the Incas. In 1500, around the time of Spain s entry into the New World, an estimated 25 million Native Americans lived in North and South America. By the end of that century, native populations had been reduced to one million by warfare, enforced slavery, and diseases brought into the New World by the European conquerors. Yet the story of Alvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca tells a different tale. In 1528, Cabeza de Vaca landed in Florida as second in command of three hundred Spaniards who were attempting to discover and take control of land for the Spanish king. During the next eight years, Cabeza de Vaca wandered more than 6,000 miles through uncharted Florida, around the Gulf of Mexico, into Texas, through southern Arizona, and down along the west coast of Mexico. Of the three hundred men who started this journey, only four survived. In 1542, Cabeza de Vaca presented his story, titled La Relación, to the king. It remains a classic. 1. Cortés: Hernán Cortés ( ) was a Spanish explorer who conquered Mexico for Spain. 2. Pizarro: Francisco Pizarro ( ) was a Spanish explorer who conquered the Inca Empire in South America for Spain. 8 Unit 1 The Reading Process

5 Cabeza de Vaca began his voyage as yet another European conqueror. Early segments of La Relación tell of battles between the Spanish troops and the tribes they encountered. By the story s end, however, Cabeza de Vaca had been taken captive by a tribe and had become a slave. He served as a traveling merchant and healer for the tribe that owned him. He survived the ordeal because he was able to adjust to the land and the people. He came to see the various Indian tribes as fellow people, and in his report to the king, he said, They must be won by kindness, the only certain way. Sadly, his advice was ignored. The Spanish Empire lasted several hundred years and remained brutal throughout. Cabeza de Vaca s story, one of the first to record the meetings between Europeans and Native Americans, stands out as a document of adventure, redemption, and understanding. Its lessons can still offer valuable instruction. 1. Ask yourself, What does the author most want me to remember about this passage? The main idea of a passage is the main point the writer wants to communicate. It is the most important idea about the topic. Every paragraph and sentence in the passage should relate in some way to this idea. In a paragraph, the main idea is often stated in the topic sentence. Ask yourself what the author of the previous passage most likely wants you to remember about Cabeza de Vaca. Check whether each paragraph in the passage relates in some way to this idea. Then answer Number What is the main idea of Cabeza de Vaca s Travels? A. Pizarro and Cortés carried out violent conquests of Native American civilizations. B. The Native American population decreased precipitously after the Spanish arrived. C. The Aztec civilization was one of the greatest and most powerful in history. D. Cabeza de Vaca s experiences were very different from those of other Spanish explorers. Lesson 1 Main Idea and Supporting Details 9

6 2. The main idea is supported by details throughout the passage. The details throughout a passage support, clarify, and extend the main idea and other important ideas in a passage. A supporting detail can be an example given in the form of a fact, a statistic, a definition, a reason, and/or a description. Details in the first paragraph of Cabeza de Vaca s Travels, for example, show why the author characterizes the Spanish conquest of the Americas as brutal. Other details in the passage show why the author claims that the story of Alvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca tells a different tale. These details both make the main idea convincing and explain it further. Consider the supporting details in the passage, and then answer Number The story of Alvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca is different from those of other Spanish explorers for all of the following reasons except that A. he was enslaved by Native Americans. B. he came to see the Native Americans as fellow humans. C. he advised his government to treat Native Americans with kindness. D. he engaged in battles with Native Americans. 3. When answering test questions about the main idea, look out for details that are in the passage but are not the main idea. Every passage you read will contain many details. Incorrect answer choices often look good because they state information found in the passage. But what information is the focus of the entire passage? Remember, you are looking for a statement of the major focus of the entire passage. For this reason, it is important to read all of the answer choices. Let s look at Number 1 again. What is the main idea of Cabeza de Vaca s Travels? A. Pizarro and Cortés carried out violent conquests of Native American civilizations. B. The Native American population decreased precipitously after the Spanish arrived. C. The Aztec civilization was one of the greatest and most powerful in history. D. Cabeza de Vaca s experiences were very different from those of other Spanish explorers. 10 Unit 1 The Reading Process

7 Consider choice A. The passage says that Pizarro and Cortés conquered the Native American nations they encountered. This idea is important to the passage, but is it the main idea? Or is it a detail that supports the main idea? Consider choice B. The passage says that the Native American population decreased after the Spanish arrived, but is this fact the focus of the entire selection? Consider choice C. The passage describes the Aztec civilization as a great nation. But is this idea what the selection is mostly about? Or is it a detail that supports the main idea? Consider choice D. This statement sums up the passage well because most of the information in the passage supports the main idea. 4. When answering questions about details, scan the selection for keywords from the question. Keywords are the most important words in the question, the ones most likely to help you find the answer in the passage. Scanning involves running your eyes across the text, looking for specific words or phrases. Circle the keywords in the following question: Why did Cabeza de Vaca sail to Florida with a crew of three hundred Spaniards? Next, go back and scan the passage for the keywords you circled. Then read the sentences or paragraphs surrounding those keywords. Use what you find to answer Number Why did Cabeza de Vaca sail to Florida with a crew of three hundred Spaniards? A. He was second in command of a mission to discover and take over land for the king of Spain. B. He wanted to show the king of Spain that the native population of Florida should be treated with kindness. C. He had been hired to serve as a traveling merchant and healer for a Native American tribe. D. He wanted to write a book recording the meetings between Europeans and Native Americans. Lesson 1 Main Idea and Supporting Details 11

8 5. The main idea might be stated directly or implied. You cannot always count on finding the main idea stated directly in the passage. Sometimes it is implied, and you will have to figure it out on your own. (This is particularly true when you are determining the main idea of fiction and drama passages.) Ask yourself, What is this passage mostly about? What does the author most want me to remember? Think about the big picture the author s major focus. Practice Activity Directions: Read the letter from Abigail Adams to her husband, John Adams, a delegate at the Continental Congress, and then answer the questions that follow. adapted from Letter from Abigail Adams to John Adams, 31 March 1776 I feel very differently at the approach of spring than I did a month ago. We knew not then whether we could plant or sow with safety, whether when we had toiled we could reap the fruits of our own industry, whether we could rest in our own cottages, or whether we should not be driven from the sea coasts to seek shelter in the wilderness. But now we feel as if we might sit under our own vine and eat the good of the land. I long to hear that you have declared an independency and by the way, in the new code of laws, which I suppose it will be necessary for you to make, I desire you would remember the ladies, and be more generous and favorable to them than your ancestors. Do not put such unlimited power into the hands of the husbands. Remember all men would be tyrants if they could. If particular care and attention is not paid to the ladies, we are determined to foment a rebellion, and will not hold ourselves bound by any laws in which we have no voice or representation. 1. What is the main idea of the first paragraph of the letter? A. Abigail feels secure in a way that she did not feel previously. B. Abigail is worried that the harvest will be poor. C. Abigail prefers summer to spring. D. Abigail fears that she will lose her home and be forced to live in the wild. 12 Unit 1 The Reading Process

9 2. What is the main idea of the second paragraph of the letter? A. The colonies should declare their independence. B. Women should be empowered by the laws of the new government. C. Men are tyrants who are likely to abuse their power. D. Women are likely to start a rebellion in order to gain representation. 6. A thesis is the main idea of a persuasive passage. A proposition is an idea that is proposed, or put forth for consideration. When the main idea of a passage offers an idea to be considered and accepted, it can be called the thesis of the passage. For example, the main idea of a persuasive passage is called a thesis because the writer argues in favor of an idea or action that he or she wants the reader to support. The main idea of some expository essays may be called a thesis, as well. Read the following passage. from The Declaration of Independence IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776 We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains Lesson 1 Main Idea and Supporting Details 13

10 them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world. Notice that the thesis is not the first statement in this passage. In the Declaration of Independence, the Continental Congress is not arguing in favor of the idea that all men are created equal and endowed with certain unalienable Rights. This idea is just one of several rationales, or reasons, underlying the main argument, which is that the colonies should no longer be ruled by Great Britain. Other rationales given for the main argument put forth in the Declaration of Independence include the following: Governments are instituted to protect the rights of their people. Governments get their power from the consent of the people whom they govern. If a government is not protecting the rights of its people, the people have the right to change it or to form a new government. What argument do these reasons support? Answer Number What is the thesis of the Declaration of Independence? A. that people have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness B. that governments should be overthrown only for serious reasons C. that people tend to tolerate difficulties rather than make radical changes D. that it is necessary for the colonies to change their government 7. A summary includes the main idea and the most important details from a passage. Whereas a main idea expresses the most important idea of a passage in a sentence or two, a summary gives the main idea of a passage along with its most important supporting details. In other words, a summary gives not just the most important point but all the important points. A summary of the excerpt from the Declaration of Independence would include the thesis as well as the rationales for the thesis. 14 Unit 1 The Reading Process

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