Texting

Essential Question: How do I infer the main idea of an expository text?

 * How can I use questioning to help me comprehend as I read?
 * How can I use mapping or outlining as a strategy to distinguish main ideas and supporting details?
 * How can the title point me to the author's purpose?

Directions:

 * 1) **Take SURVEY**.
 * 2) For 15 minutes, **read article INDIVIDUALLY**. R U ambu-textrous?
 * As you read, **highlight and annotate** to help you follow author's ideas. You may have to RE-READ parts of passage to understand the what the author's main idea and supporting points are.
 * Draw BOX around BIG IDEA of passage--the main idea.
 * Highlight each supporting idea. Supporting ideas are like TOPIC SENTENCES in an essay.
 * Draw brackets around the supporting ideas + details so that you can visually see the info that goes together with ONE IDEA/POINT/SUB-TOPIC.
 * Doodle QUESTIONS/COMMENTS in margin as you read.
 * Agree or disagree with author.
 * Make connections.
 * Question author's motives, reasoning, evidence.
 * 1) For 7 minutes, **discuss the article face2face with your group**. Come to a consensus about what the main idea of the passage is.
 * 2) **Map the article, using the markers and paper**.
 * In your own words, write ONE SENTENCE that captures the MAIN IDEA of the passage. Put this sentence in a bubble in the center of the paper.
 * For each sub-point, draw a bubble off the center circle. Write the point--in your own words--in the bubble.
 * For each sub-point, add at least two extending bubbles. In each, list one piece of evidence the author gives to support his idea.
 * Evidence may be any of the following:
 * Quotes from experts or first-hand testimony.
 * Statistics
 * An example or scenario
 * A personal experience
 * Facts