Notice and Note Nonfiction Signposts

Contrast and ContradictionsThis is similar to when we used CC with fiction. Sometimes it will be obvious

and easy to spot…

“Sparta was content to keep to itself and provided army assistance when

necessary. Athens, on the other hand, wanted to control more and more of

the land around them.”

“On the other hand,” is the author’s signal word that he’s going to show

how Athens differed from Sparta. Authors often use signal words to help us

notice contrasts/contradictions.

When you notice a CC like this, you should ask yourself, “What is the contrast

or contradiction, and why does it matter?”

At other times the CC are between what we know about a place and what’s in

the text. Let’s look at the beginning paragraph from “Garana’s Story,” which

appeared in National Geographic Explorer a few year ago.

The sun has not yet risen over the rocky hills outside the city of Peshwar,

in Pakistan. Loudspeakers from the top of the mosque or Muslim house of

worship, call out to the people., “God is Great! It is better to pray than sleep!

Come to prayers.”

Ten-year-old Garana rises from a mat on the dirt floor of her family’s

house. She puts on her black robe and covers her head with an old shawl.

Then she walks to the mosque to pray.

I’ll stop here because I see several contrasts between the city in this text and where I live. A voice over the loudspeaker tells the people of Peshwar when to wake up? Really? Alarm clocks-or parents-wake people up here in the US. And these people are told to go pray? Here, no one can force you to pray. Finally, Garana is only 10, but she gets up, puts on a shawl, and seems to take off on her own to go to her mosque while it’s still dark. In the US, not too many people send a 10 yr old out walking alone in a city when it’s dark.

These contrasts matter because they point out to me not only how different Garana’s life is from my own, but how her country is different from the US. I’m wondering why her country would be that way.

You TryGet out the story from our Questioning Stance lesson, “Hard at Work.”

I want you to think about the contrasts and contradictions you notice

as you compare what you understand about something with what’s in

the text.

As you reread, mark any CC that you notice. Remember some will be

easily spotted by signal words; others will be between what you know

and what’s being presented in the text.

Turn and talk about what you marked. You may want to refer to your

Signal Words chart.

Cornell NotesTopic: Nonfiction Signposts

EQ: How can thinking about nonfiction signposts help me

deepen my thinking about the text?

Don’t forget to add the date.

Question:How do I use the

Contrast and

Contradiction

signpost to help me

understand

nonfiction?

Notes:When you’re reading and the author shows you a

difference between what you know and what is happening

in the text, OR a difference between two or more things in

the text, you should stop and ask yourself,

“What is the difference and why does it matter?”

The answer will help you see details that show you the

main idea, compare and contrast, understand the author’s

purpose, and notice cause and effect.

Extreme or Absolute Language

Turn and talk about the following comments:

All students are very disruptive when they have a guest teacher.

That was the funniest movie ever!

I can’t wait for lunch. I’m starving.

All students are very disruptive every time they have a guest teacher.

The words all, very, and every make that statement extreme and

absolute.

That was the funniest movie ever!

Funniest is extreme and means no movie can ever be funnier. This is used

just to make a point.

I can’t wait for lunch. I’m starving.

This is another example of extreme language. He probably can wait for

lunch, but doesn’t want to.

We use extreme language all the time. Once you begin listening for it, you’ll

probably notice it often. Sometimes it doesn’t mean too much; it’s just how

we’re describing things right then. But other times, extreme or absolute

language should rightly raise some questions about why the author has chosen

the words.

Absolute language is simply the most extreme of extreme language. We pay

attention to it because it comes with such obvious clues: always, never, all,

none, no one, everyone, etc. Other words slip by often, but they too should be

noticed: undoubtedly, no doubt, totally, undisputedly, unquestionably. Tallest,

funniest, most, hardest, meanest, hungriest- all of those suggest an extreme

and should be considered carefully.

Let’s take a look at how some extreme or absolute language looks in a text. Here

are the first two sentences of an article by a man named Dahr Jamail about climate

change.

“No one on this planet will be untouched by climate change,” the International

Panel on Climate Change announced. The report warned that climate impacts are

already “severe, pervasive, and irreversible.”

Right at the beginning of the article, I’m struck by some extreme or absolute

language. “No one on this planet,” is definitely absolute language. No one? How

could he know that?

Seeing this language makes me wonder why the author included it. I first wonder if

it’s true. Maybe he’s just trying to catch my attention.

Then I noticed the most startling claim: “Climate impacts are already ‘severe,

pervasive, and irreversible.’”

That is very frightening and seems extreme. If it’s already irreversible, we’re doomed!

Again, the question is, Why would the author use this language? And as I think about

it, I wonder why others aren’t reporting that our problems are irreversible. Shouldn’t

that be making a lot of news? I have to wonder if I’m seeing some bias from the

writer.

When I notice extreme or absolute language that is this troubling, I have an obligation

to think about it, wonder why the author chose those words, and recognize that I

might be seeing clues to the main idea, the author’s purpose, or the author’s bias.

You TryI have an article for you to use to practice this strategy, “Vampires Prey on

Panama.” Read the article and mark with an E or A when you find examples of

extreme or absolute language.

When you finish, turn and talk with your partner and discuss the question,

Why did the author use this language?

Reflect: How did reading with this signpost in mind affect your reading?

Cornell Notes

When you’re reading and you notice the author uses language that leaves no doubt, exaggerates, or pushes to the limit, you should stop and ask yourself,

“Why did the author use this language?”

The answers will tell you something about the author’s point-of-view and purpose. Or, you might realize the author is exaggerating to make you think a certain way.

Notes:Question:How can I use the Extreme or Absolute Language Signpost to help me understand nonfiction?

Numbers and StatsSpecific numbers in texts help you have a clear understanding of what’s going

on. That’s the main reason we use numbers- to give specific details about

what we’re discussing. That’s the same reason authors use number and stats-

to help you better understand the topic.

But too often, numbers are simply skipped over as people read. We see a

number and think, “Oh, there’s a date,” or “That’s how many soldiers were in

the war, or “That’s the ratio of people who live in cities compared to those

who live in the country,” and then just keep reading. We see the numbers, but

many times we don’t actually pause and ask ourselves, “Why do I think the

author included these numbers and stats?”

When we do think about that question, we will sometimes realize that the

reason wasn’t critical. The author was just telling you someone’s age, or the

author was simply saying that it was a two-story house.

Other times, though, when you ask yourself, “Why did the author include

these numbers or stats?” you’ll discover that it was to help you visualize

something or make an inference about a comparison or draw a conclusion.

Sometimes it helps you figure out what’s a fact and what’s an opinion. And

sometimes it helps you decide if the author is biased about something.

Let’s look at this short passage:

Garana and her family have lived in their one-room house for two years.

It’s one of thousands of mud-brick homes in the Shamshatoo Afghan Refugee

Camp. The camp holds about 50,000 Afghan refugees.

Notice the numbers I found in bold type. Notice that some of these numbers

are written out as words. That’s Ok. As I ask myself, “Why do I think the author

included these numbers,” I realize that all of them give me information about

where Garana is living. I think the author suspects that most readers have

little first-hand knowledge of refugee camps. All the details that the numbers

provide help me understand how awful the conditions are.

Here’s another example:

In fact, nearly half of all bottled water is reprocessed tap water, sold at prices up to 3,000

times higher than consumers pay for tap water.

The obvious number is 3,000, but I also need to see that “half of all bottled water” represents

an amount, too. I don’t know how many bottles of water there are, but I’ve seen how many are

in a single grocery store, so I know that half of all bottled water is a lot. Now I want to ask

myself, “Why did the author use this specific number- 3,000?”

I think he wants me to realize that it’s ridiculous that we’d spend 3,000 times more for bottled

water than what tap water costs. This number is so extreme that it makes me wonder if this is

right. I might want to see if someone else says the same thing before I accept this. But the

number caught my attention, and now I’m rethinking how smart it is to drink bottled water.

You TryGet out the handout “Up Before Daybreak” and try this signpost yourself. As

you read, mark where you find numbers or stats and jot down why you think

the author used those numbers.

You will turn and talk in a few minutes.

Cornell Notes

How can I use the Numbers and Stats Signpost to help me understand nonfiction?

Notes:Question:When you’re reading and you notice specific numbers,

number words or amounts, you should stop and ask

yourself,

“Why did the author use those numbers?”

The answers might help you come to a conclusion,

make a comparison, see the details, infer, find facts, or

recognize evidence.

Quoted WordsI want to share some comments from kids and I want you to see what they have in

common.

“Did you hear what she said? She was like, ‘It’s not my fault’ and saying that over

and over again, but everyone knew it was.”

“So then, he went, ‘So let’s all go to the game,’ but she said, ‘No, let’s all go to

the mall,’ and it was like no one could decide.”

“The teacher said that this wouldn’t be on the test. Remember, her exact words

were, ‘You do not have to study this section because it will not be on the test.”

Why do you think conversational talk often includes quoting others?

Authors do the same thing- quote people to help make the text more interesting or to help

prove a point. For instance, let’s take a look at this article that appeared in the newspaper, USA

Today. It was titled, “New Citizen Exam is Democracy 101.”

The first few paragraphs of this focused on how the questions on the immigration test will

change, but now the author has quoted someone. When I notice an author using a quote, I want

to stop and ask myself why that person was quoted. I obviously don’t know Gonzalez, so I notice

that the author told me what he does- he’s the director of the Citizenship and Immigration

Services. I suspect he’s got some real opinions about this new exam. It looks like he thinks these

changes are important.

He says this makes the exam more meaningful, and his comment, about knowing what someone

is swearing allegiance to, shows me he thinks this test is very important. I think the author is

showing me a Voice of Authority who supports this change.

Let’s read a little more of the article.

I see that the author has turned to high school students. Now he’s giving me the personal

perspective of people who have taken the test. Their comments are interesting, but it makes me

wonder, why didn’t he talk to immigrants? Then I realize that no immigrants have taken this new

test yet.

It’s good that the author is sharing the opinions of the high school students, because like

immigrants who have been studying for their citizenship exam they, too, have been studying U.S.

history and U. S. government. This use of personal perspective is a powerful reminder that this

test will affect regular people.

Remember- finding Quoted Words is easy. What’s important is to think about why a person was

quoted. Sometimes it will be to give us a personal perspective and other times it might be to

show us what an expert thinks. Our job is to speculate on why the author used the Personal

Perspective or Voice of Authority and then to think about how this affects our thinking about the

topic.

You TryGet out the text we used before, “Vampires Prey on Panama.”

Reread it and mark any Quoted Words (QW). Jot down your thoughts about

why those quotes were included.

Share your thinking.

Cornell Notes

How can I use the Quoted Words Signpost to help me understand nonfiction?

Question: Notes:When you’re reading abd you notice the author quoted

a Voice of Authority, a Personal Perspective, or Other’s

Words, stop and ask yourself,

“Why did the author quote or cite this person?”

The answer will help you think about the author’s

point-of-view, purpose, bias, or conclusions. Or these

words will give you a perspective, facts and opinions, or

a generalization.

Word GapsThere are four types of confusion related to understanding words.

1. Descriptive Language- Figurative language and other descriptions can sometimes

be confusing in nonfiction texts.

2. Multiple Meanings- Sometimes you might know one meaning of a word, but in the

context used, there may be a different meaning unknown to you, causing

confusion.

3. Distant References- Sometimes a context clue or reference to a confusing word

was too far away (several pages back) from the sentence to help you understand

the word.

4. Rare Words and Technical Talk- Rare words are those not used in everyday

language. Technical talk refers to words related to specific topics, etc. , similar to

what you’d find in a textbook.

You TryAs you read “The Dung Beetle as a Weapon Against Global Warming,”

circle any confusing words and jot a note in the margin about what

might be causing you problems with the words, based on the notes

from the previous slide.

Cornell Notes

How can I use the Word Gaps Signpost to help me understand nonfiction?

Notes:Question:When you’re reading and the author uses a word or phrase

that you don’t know, you should stop and ask yourself,

“Do I know this word from someplace?” OR

“Does this seem like technical talk for experts of this

topic?” OR

“Can I find cles in the sentence to help me understand the

word?”

The answers will help you decide if you need to look the

word up, or keep reading for more information.