Prose Prose is writing that is true to how people would speak. It includes almost all kinds of writing, except most poetry. This ranges from shorts stories to novels and from research papers to biographies. Notice these examples are fiction and non-fiction. Fiction stories are not true and are usually used to entertain or teach lessons. Some examples of fiction are novels, novellas, and short stories. We read fiction throughout the year.

Non-fiction Non-fiction is any kind of prose that is true; it contains real people and real events! It includes Newspaper articles Magazine articles Biographies Autobiographies Instructional manuals and directions Essays And many more!!

Skill #1: Type of Writing and the Author’s Purposes for Writing There are 3 major types of writing! Argumentative is meant to persuade you to believe a certain way or to do a certain thing. Narrative is meant to entertain you or to teach you a lesson. Expository is meant to inform you about a particular topic Explanatory is a type of expository. Its purpose is to explain how to do something.

Skill #1 cont. You should be able to read any type of nonfiction writing and determine the type of writing and its purpose! We will practice this using many types of nonfiction, including newspapers, magazines, essays, etc. You will then use this skill when you are learning about our next skill, main idea.

Skill #2: The Main Idea All nonfiction pieces have a main idea. This is the main thing (one sentence) that the WHOLE nonfiction piece is about. Be careful when finding the main idea! It should not describe only one section of the nonfiction piece; it has to describe what the entire piece is about.

Main Idea cont. Often times you will use the author’s purpose when you state the main idea. For example, if you have just read an article about chimpanzees and the ways they find food, your main idea might be, “This newspaper article is meant to inform you about chimpanzees and how they find food.”

Main Idea Cont. 3 Ways to Find the Main Idea: Look at the title of the article; the title usually gives you a good idea as to he main idea. Ask yourself, “What does each paragraph have in common?” If you’re looking for the main idea of each paragraph, look at the first (topic) sentence. This often tells you the main idea. The main idea should be a complete sentence!

Skill #3: Structures of Non-fiction Texts Can be set up in many ways: 5 paragraph style, upside down triangle, sequential order, compare/contrast, cause/effect, etc. (We’ll talk about more about these later.) Often times, non-fiction includes many text features that are meant to help readers organize and understand the information in the text. Some of these are: Titles and Sub-titles: Titles tell you what you are getting ready to read about. Sub-titles usually break down topics even more so that you know specifically what you are getting ready to read about.

Structure cont. Illustrations: These are usually pictures, photographs, or maps that are meant to show you what you are reading about. Captions: Illustrations usually have captions (a sentence or two under the picture) that describe what is happening in the photo or what the map is showing. Diagrams: These are usually graphs, charts, etc. that are meant to help you understand what you are reading about.

Structure cont. Unique type (bold face, italics, etc.): This usually indicates the word or words are important and /or new vocabulary to know. Directions/Steps: Many instructional manuals often use step by step directions to explain how to do something. These steps are usually numbered or use bullet points to help you follow along in the correct order. Numbering and bullet points can also help you to understand what was also in the reading.

Skill #4: Fact and Opinion A fact is a statement that cannot be debated. It can be proven using credible (good) sources. Fact: Christmas is always on December 25 th. This cannot be debated, and no one can have a different idea about when Christmas takes place. Fact: Indianapolis is in Indiana. Fact: 2+2 = 4 Fact: The Earth rotates around the Sun.

Fact and Opinion cont. An opinion is a statement that someone believes to be true, but other people can have a different opinion. Opinion: Saturn is the coolest planet because it has a ring. This is an opinion because someone else may believe Mercury or Jupiter is the coolest planet. Opinion: IU is the best school in Indiana. This is an opinion because while I may believe it’s true, someone can debate this. Mr. Ellington, for example, would probably say that this is extremely untrue!

Fact and Opinion cont. You should be able to read a nonfiction text, and determine what is fact and what is opinion. You will then use your knowledge of fact and opinion to help you understand the next skill, point of view.

Skill #5: Point of View All nonfiction is based on truth! However, sometimes opinions can sneak into nonfiction. You must be able to distinguish between fact and opinion to determine what non-fiction writings are believable or not. Some types are based solely on fact, which has the point of view of being objective. Other types are based on fact and opinions and is called subjective. If a piece is subjective, it is BIASED. Bias is an author’s strong opinion about a topic. Bias should NOT be included in objective writing!

Textbooks What is it?: A textbook covers a very broad topic of knowledge. For example, your Social Studies textbook gives you a lot of information about the Eastern Hemisphere. There is a lot of different information but it is all centered around the Eastern Hemisphere countries. Type or Writing/Purpose: Expository; to inform Structure: uses titles, sub-titles, bold/italics, graphics, illustrations, captions- meant to help you POV: objective because it uses only facts

Essays What is it?: Can be story-like or very formal about a narrowed topic; A textbook has a LOT of information whereas an essay is usually on a much smaller topic, so there’s not nearly as much information. Type of Writing/Purpose: Can be expository, argumentative or narrative; usually to inform or persuade; can sometimes be to inspire you to be a better person or teach you a lesson Structure: Introduction (usually includes a hook to get people interested), Body Paragraphs, and Conclusion POV: Can be either subjective or objective; sometimes essays contain facts only, but sometimes can include opinions

Newspaper or Magazine Articles What is it? Much like an essay; usually covers only a small topic of information; many times these articles are of high interest to the public Type or Writing/Purpose: Expository or Argumentative; to inform or to persuade Structure: Upside down method, leads with a hook to get you interested, most important info to least important; uses titles and sub-titles, illustrations, captions, bold/italics, etc. POV: Can be both objective and subjective; sometimes they use only facts, other times they use both fact and opinion

Biography/Autobiography What is it?: Bio- an author writes about the life of another person, Autobio- a person writes about his/her own life; can be written as a formal piece of writing or can be story-like Type of Writing/Purpose: Usually Expository; to inform you about a person’s life; can sometimes be to teach a lesson through a person’s experiences Structure: Can be written formally like one long essay, or it can be story-like; may not have many text features but probably includes chapter titles and illustrations with captions POV: Bios are usually objective while autobios are subjective

Instructional Manuals What is it?: These are usually sets of instructions telling you how to do something, step by step. Examples: Directions of how to set up your new iPad or a recipe of how to make cookies Type of Writing/Purpose: Expository/Explanatory; to inform/to explain Structure: Usually includes numbering or bullets to give directions, diagrams to show you what you are supposed to do POV: Objective, should only include facts

Why learn about non-fiction? Have you ever bought something electronic? Phone, iPad, TV, video game system, etc.? I bet it came with directions of how to set it up! Plan on having kids? Almost every toy comes with directions too! Many jobs require that you can write and read memos, business letters, s, job descriptions, etc. These are all non-fiction! Do you like sports? Fashion? Current events? Magazines and newspaper/online articles are a great place to learn about those topics! NON-FICTION IS EVERYWHERE!!