Post Test 1 Review

Post Test Unit 1
Practice and Review

Identifying Theme

​What is a theme?

A theme is a central message that the author of a book or story wants readers to understand as a result of reading the work. Think of it as the lasting lesson from a story.

Step 1: My story is about a man who hunts down the men who were acquitted after they killed his family.
Step 2: My story says that when the system fails a person who has lost everything, he will find out how far he is prepared to go.
Step 3: People with nothing to lose are dangerous. (This is the theme)

Example

1. What is the story about? This is the plot of the story. 

2. What is the meaning behind the story? This is usually an abstract result of his actions.

3. What is the lesson? This is a statement about the human condition.

3 Steps

Identifying Theme

Now let's practice!

Multiple Choice

In a spell of dry weather, when the Birds could find very little to drink, a thirsty Crow found a pitcher with a little water in it. But the pitcher was high and had a narrow neck, and no matter how he tried, the Crow could not reach the water. The poor thing felt as if he would die of thirst. Then an idea came to him. Picking up some small pebbles, he dropped them into the pitcher one by one. With each pebble the water rose a little higher until at last it was near enough so he could drink.

What is the theme of the story?

• 
  Be honest.

• Always share with others.

• Be persistent.

• Respect your family.

Multiple Choice

• 
  What thematic idea is conveyed in this poem?

Grass

Pile the bodies high at Austerlitz and Waterloo.
Shovel them under and let me work—
I am the grass; I cover all.

And pile them high at Gettysburg
And pile them high at Ypres and Verdun.

Shovel them under and let me work.
Two years, ten years, and passengers ask the conductor:
What place is this?
Where are we now?

I am the grass.
Let me work.

• The horrors of war

• The evils of jealousy

• The healing power of nature

• The unconditional love of family

Citing Textual Evidence

​What is textual evidence?

Textual evidence is a piece of information taken directly from the text. Textual evidence is used by a writer to support their ideas or opinions. You will use textual evidence to support your identification of theme and of concepts presented in a text.

Citing Textual Evidence: Example

Ever wonder what it takes to be a competitive eater? Just ask Joey Chestnut, eight-time winner of Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest. Joey, who once ate 69 hot dogs in 10 minutes, told Eat It Magazine that being a competitive eater is all about finding your rhythm and getting your hands, mouth, throat, and stomach all working together. Having been a competitive eater for almost 10 years now, Joey knows what works. “Jump up and down a little bit,” Joey advises. “It helps the food settle to the bottom of your stomach.” Oh, and don’t forget the Pepto Bismol.

​Paraphrase=
"told Eat It Magazine that being a competitive eater is all about finding your rhythm and getting your hands, mouth, throat, and stomach all working together"


Direct Quote=
“Jump up and down a little bit,” Joey advises. “It helps the food settle to the bottom of your stomach.”

Now let's practice!

Multiple Choice

Appetite

Will Wordy

In a house the size of a postage stamp
lived a man as big as a barge.
His mouth could drink the entire river
You could say it was rather large
For dinner he would eat a trillion beans
And a silo full of grain,
Washed it down with a tanker of milk
As if he were a drain.

Which does NOT describe how much the man can eat or drink?

• • 
    Lived a man as big as a barge

• • Washed it down with a tanker of milk

• • His mouth could drink the entire river

• • For dinner he would eat a trillion beans

Multiple Choice

Miniver Cheevy

Edwin Arlington Robinson

Miniver loved the days of old
When swords were bright and steeds were prancing;
The vision of a warrior bold
Would set him dancing.

Miniver sighed for what was not,
And dreamed, and rested from his labors;
He dreamed of Thebes and Camelot,
And Priam's neighbors.

Minever mourned the ripe renown
That made so many a name so fragrant;
He mourned Romance, now on the town,
And Art, a vagrant.

Miniver Cheevy can be seen as representative of

• • shiftless and lazy drunkards

• • anyone with an interest in history

• • everyone who romanticizes the past

• • anyone who prefers chain mail to khaki

Using Context Clues

​What are context clues?

Context clues are hints found within a sentence, paragraph, or passage that a reader can use to understand the meanings of new or unfamiliar words.

When you read a text, you don't just take the words at face value. You also try to figure out what the author is trying to say, how they feel about the topic, and what their purpose is. This is called finding the author's perspectie based on context clues.

Here, even if you don’t know the word “pedagogy” you can use the context clues in brackets to infer that pedagogy probably means ‘teaching methods’ because some examples and synonyms were provided to help you to understand the concept.

Explanation

Teachers use pedagogy (for example, research-backed teaching strategies like differentiation) to help their students learn.

​Example
What does the underlined word mean?

Context Clues

Now let's practice!

Multiple Choice

The ____________ bridge that stretched across the chasm appeared unstable and dangerous.

Which word would make the sentence MOST clear and precise?

• brown

• old

• rickety

• wooden

Multiple Choice

Though the fisherman and his wife were struggling to survive without much money, he thought happily of the meager but delicious dinner of homemade bread that was waiting for him at home.

What does the word meager mean?

• • indignant

• • insufficient

• • insulting

• • interesting

Multiple Select

Sympathy

Paul Laurence Dunbar

I know what the caged bird feels, alas!
When the sun is bright on the upland slopes;
When the wind stirs soft through the springing grass,
And the river flows like a stream of glass;
When the first bird sings and the first bud opes,⁵
And the faint perfume from its chalice steals--
I know what the caged bird feels!

I know why the caged bird beats his wing
Till its blood is red on the cruel bars;
For he must fly back to his perch and cling¹⁰
When he fain would be on the bough a-swing;
And a pain still throbs in the old, old scars
And they pulse again with a keener sting--
I know why he beats his wing!

Determine which lines are written from a perspective of anger. More than one answer possible.

• When the sun is bright on the upland slopes

• When the wind stirs soft through the springing grass

• Till its blood is red on the cruel bars

• When the first bird sings and the first bud opes

• And a pain still throbs in the old, old scars

​Post Test Unit 1

• You will be asked similar questions to the ones you practiced here on your test.

• Make sure to try your best, read questions carefully, and don't second guess yourself!

• The test will be 20 questions long, all multiple choice. There are reading passages that you will need to read prior to answering questions.

• You will have one class period to complete the test.

• Answer the final question on the last slide. I will provide a hand out with this basic information as well, to help you prepare for the test.

Poll

How ready do you feel for the post test?

Note: If you have any questions please ask before you leave today or email me with questions.

• I am super confident!

• I think I understand and can do this.

• I'm about half and half on my understanding still.

• I am struggling!