1. Grade Eight English Language Arts: Unit 3
Secrets
Grade Eight English Language Arts: Unit 3

2. Make Inferences
Inferences happen when you use your own knowledge to expand on something that is occurring in your environment.
When you make inferences you increase your understanding by making judgements, and reasoning about a text.
Making inferences can help a reader draw a conclusion about a text

3. Making Inferences Making inferences can be challenging
An important thing to do is to focus on the conclusions you are drawing as you read… Not after… During the actual reading…
Information in the text will either confirm your inferences, or the way you are thinking may have to change by the end of a piece, the important thing is that you are thinking while you read
THE WHOLE POINT IS TO BE THINKING ABOUT WHAT YOU ARE READING AS YOU ARE READING IT!!!!

4. Making Inferences
Here are some examples of what readers should be infer about works of fiction:
Moral of the story
What does the setting offer
What are the characters like? Traits, moods, motivation, values.
Is there any bias on the part of the character or author?
Is anything missing
What happened before this all started

5. Making Inferences What readers infer about Nonfiction: Main ideas
Missing details
People’s moods, motivations, values, or beliefs
Author’s or people’s biases or perspectives
Preceding events

6. Making Inferences
When trying to make inferences think of the following statements:
How does this relate to my own experiences…
I know how the author feels because…
The evidence that supports my thinking is…
By leaving out, or only including certain information the author is telling me…
I can now conclude… because…
My personal viewpoint about the topic may influence how I think about…

7. Focus on Writing: Add Voice to Informational Writing
Voice: How our words sound to the reader.
Adding voice strong voice to writing can make reading more enjoyable
Strong voice allows the reader to get a sense of the writers personality

8. Add Voice to Informational Writing
How to improve voice in your writing:
Provide details and examples to back up the basic information.
This will give your writing a confident voice and show you really understand your topic
Show how you feel about the topic.
Show curiosity, surprise, or worry
Use lots of sensory language.
Compare one item or idea to another by using metaphor, simile, metaphor, or analogy.

9. Add Voice to Informational Writing.
Your voice in writing should be influenced by your purpose and audience.
You need to tune in to what your audience will expect
Are you angry, sad, curious?

10. Adding Voice to Informational Writing
Informational Essay: How to drive a car.
How do I feel about the topic?
I feel that driving a car is wicked fun.
2. What details should I include?
Can be dangerous, you need to be careful
Getting the car to move.
Some rules of the road.

11. Adding Voice to Informational Writing
3. Sensory language that can be used Sounds: Loud… Rumble… Purr… Clunk… tap tap bang Screech Feels: bumpy, Compressed, vibrating, rusty, smooth, Smells: Gasoline, New car smell, Burning rubber, Air conditioning Looks: shiny, curvy, clean, fast, 4. Comparisons I can use. like a wild stallioin Cuddly like a koala bear…. Not very cuddly…. It’s a bear…. It will bite you Flies better than a goose Like a great white shark

12. Make Inferences While Listening
When listening to a speech, T.V. show or even friends talk you make inferences by combining what you are hearing to what you know about how it is being said.
By making inferences and thinking about how things are being said you are better able to understand the message that is being communicated.

13. Making Inferences While Listening
Strategies to help make good inferences while listening:
Try to identify the speakers viewpoint
Listen closely to the points they are making that will add knowledge and help you make inferences
Reflect on the speakers tone or mood
Study the tone, body language, and facial expressions .
Be actively involved in taking notes, making graphic organizers or asking questions

14. Focus on Media: Create a Comic
Making a graphic comic can be fun.
The best way to learn about the different styles of comic is to experience them personally.

15. Focus on Media: Create a Comic
Steps to making a comic:
Step 1: Decide what your story will be about.

16. Step 2: Create an outline and a character web for your main character:
How many characters will you need?
What will happen to them?

17. Step 3: Experiment with drawing your characters.
What should they look like?
Draw some sketches…

18. Step 4: Create a first draft layout showing every frame with rough sketches and speech bubbles
Not all frames need to be the right size or shape
Not all features need to be drawn perfectly
Mostly just an outline

19. Step 5: Create a final draft
Re-draw each panel with speech bubbles that read from left to right, top to bottom.
Write the dialogue first then draw the bubble
Draw your text, then draw in your characters.

20. Focus on Text Pattern: Generalization
Generalization text pattern organizes information in the following way:
It begins with a general statement
Next it uses facts to support the statement
Sometimes the author will provide facts that oppose the statement and then argue against them
Some say the sky is blue, this is not a valid point because…
It ends in a conclusion that sums up the statement and main points.

21. Focus on Text Pattern: Generalization
To create a strong piece all elements should work together.
Effective writers follow the following guidelines:
State viewpoint clearly, in first sentence of first paragraph
Check that the points supporting the argument are trustworthy, good sources.
Consider opposing views fairly and use logical arguments.

22. Focus on Text Pattern: Generalization
Analyzing a generalization:
Consider how the general statement is supported.
Look for bullets, lists, or key words like “theory, reason, as a result, one reason, therefor, in conclusion, argument” to identify the arguments an author is making.
Use tools like headings, subheadings, pictures, and font styles to help evaluate the text