1. Bell Ringer Review: 1.How many times should you read a text? 2.What are the different focuses for each time you read.

2. IN THIS LESSON YOU WILL LEARN: What critical reading is and why it is important How to determine an author's point of view How to determine an author's purpose How to determine an author's intended audience How to determine an author's tone

3. What is critical reading and why is it important? Critical reading: Gaining additional insights and understanding that go beyond comprehending the topic, main idea, and supporting details. Critical reading is also referred to as critical reasoning or critical thinking. It is important to be able to read critically so that you can understand an author’s message accurately and completely. Reading critically involves asking certain comprehension monitoring questions after you read a passage. The purpose of asking yourself these questions is to help you think more completely and accurately about what you have read.

4. What is meant by author’s point of view, and how can you determine it? An author’s point of view is his or her position on an issue. Point of view is also known as the author’s argument (the overall main idea the author is “arguing” for) and the author’s bias (the side of an issue the author favors). An author may be in favor of an issue (that is, he or she supports it), or he or she may be opposed to it (that is, he or she is against it). You must recognize the author’s point of view in order to know which side of an issue he or she favors.

5. To determine the author’s point of view, critical readers ask themselves this comprehension monitoring question: “What is the author’s position on this issue?” To answer this question, look for words that reveal the author’s point of view.

6. What is meant by author’s purpose, and how can you determine it? An author’s purpose is his or her reason for writing. Whenever authors write, they write for a specific purpose. (For that matter, when you write, you have a specific purpose.) The author’s purpose may be to inform, to instruct, to entertain, or to persuade the reader to believe something or to take a certain action. It is important to understand an author’s purpose for writing because you will then be aware of his or her motive for writing, and you will have a greater insight as to what was important in the message.

7. To determine an author’s purpose, critical readers ask themselves this comprehension monitoring question: “Why did the author write this?” Sometimes authors state their purpose directly. At other times, authors may not state their purposes for writing because they feel that the purpose is quite clear, and they assume the reader will infer it. To determine an author’s purpose, notice the words the author has used and the way the information is presented.

8. Author’s PurposeWriting Strategies To inform Use phrases such as It is interesting to know that … or There are different types of … To instruct Give a set of directions (instructions) or a sequence of steps to follow. To persuadeDeliberately use emotional language or words that are designed to influence your thinking and make you respond a certain way. To entertainMay tell a funny story, use wild exaggerations (hyperbole), or simply describe a pleasant event or place.

9. What is meant by author’s intended audience, and how can you determine it? An author’s intended audience is whom the author had in mind as his or her readers. Having a particular audience in mind will influence the material the author includes, how he or she presents it, and how simple or sophisticated an approach he or she chooses. Critical readers ask themselves the comprehension monitoring question, “Who did the author intend to read this?”

10. Sometimes the author will state who the intended audience is. Even if the author does not state who the intended audience is, you can determine the audience by considering these three things: 1. The topic (Is it a common topic, or is it an unusual or specialized one?) 2. The level of language used (Is it simple, or sophisticated?) 3. The author’s purpose for writing (Is it meant to inform? to instruct? to persuade?)

11. Why is it important to determine an author’s intended audience? First, if you are not among those in the intended audience, you may need to do some extra work in order to understand the material. Second, if you are doing research, you can decide whether material on the topic is written for the “audience” you are part of. Third, knowing who the audience is gives you insight into the author’s purpose, his or her reason for writing. This allows you to evaluate whether or not that purpose was accomplished. Perhaps the most important reason for you to become aware of the importance of audience is that it can make you a better writer: you will learn to shape your message to your intended audience, and this will enable you to communicate your message more effectively.

12. What is meant by author’s tone, and how can you determine it? The author’s tone is the manner of writing (choice of words and writing style) that reveals the author’s attitude toward a topic. It may help you to think about what the author’s tone of voice would sound like if he or she were saying the material to you rather than writing it. It is important to determine an author’s tone because if you misunderstand an author’s tone, you may misinterpret the message.

13. How the Critical Reading Skills Are Interrelated The author’s purpose causes him or her to use a certain tone to convey a point of view to an intended audience. The author decides on a purpose (reason) for writing: to informto instructto persuade to entertain To accomplish this purpose, he or she uses an appropriate tone: seriousformalsincere enthusiastic disapprovingsympatheticinformalhumorousironic To convey his or her main idea or point of view (position on an issue): point of view (in favor of or opposed to) or argument To an intended audience: the general public a specific group a particular person

14. Things to keep in mind when reading critically: You should avoid seeing the purpose of everything you read as to inform. If the author's purpose is to persuade, you should determine which side of an issue he or she favors. Understanding the author's tone will enable you to grasp the true or intended meaning, even when the author's words may appear to be saying something different. There are two forms of irony: irony in tone and irony in situations. Sarcasm and irony are not the same thing.