RI 6.8 Station Information (Math Conference)

Essential Skills/Concepts Related to RI 6.8

The 12 Power Words (Trace and Evaluate)

Trace	List in steps; outline
Infer	Read Between the lines
Analyze	Break apart
Evaluate	Judge
Formulate	Build and Create
Describe	Tell all about
Support	Back up with details
Explain	Tell how/why
Summarize	Give me the short version
Compare	All the ways they are alike
Contrast	All the ways they are different
Predict	What will happen next

  

Essential Skills/Concepts Related to RI 6.8

Chronological Order

JUST EXACTLY WHAT does the word chronological mean? It helps to know that the Greek root chron means “time” and logical means “valid or true.” So chronological means “in true time order” or sequence.

We do everything in sequence, one step at a time. First, you wear your clothes, then you wash them, dry them, fold them or hang them up, and put them away. Authors often use words like first, second, next, last, before, after, then, now, later, or finally as signals that the events in a story are being told in sequence.

Example

Before the concert, we were excited because we had awesome front row seats. Then the show began, and for awhile, it was great. But soon I couldn’t even hear the music over the screams of the audience! After the concert, when we could hear again, we had pizza and listened to some quiet rock!

But sometimes the author doesn’t use signal words, and readers must figure out the sequence from details in the text.

Example

I’m so glad to be home now, where it’s quiet! Yesterday I went to a concert and it was unbelievable… not in a good way. The music and the crowd were so-o-o loud! At the beginning, I thought I was lucky because I got front row seats. Boy was I wrong!

The sequence of getting front row seats for a concert, suffering through the loudness of music and concertgoers, and coming home are the same, but they aren’t spelled out in step-by-step order. The ability to recognize chronological order can help you understand what you read. A sequence chain can help you organize the events in a selection and help you remember what you read.

get front row seats                    go to concert                   music and crowd loud                  go home to quiet

Besides using time order, an author may sequence things by ranking them in order of importance, speed, size, age, and so on.

 Essential Skills/Concepts Related to RI 6.8

Cause and Effect

THINGS DON’T JUST happen; living things and forces make them happen.

Whatever or whoever makes something happen is the cause; what happens is the effect. For example, a singer hits a very high note and a glass shatters. Vibrating sound waves are the cause; broken glass is the effect.

As you read, look for clues to what makes things happen. Authors may use words to signal a cause-and-effect text structure. Words like because or since may indicate a cause, and so or therefore indicate an effect.

Examples

I missed the bus because I overslept.

I overslept, so I missed the bus.

In the examples above, the signal words point out that oversleeping was the cause and missing the bus was the effect. But sometimes there are no signal words. Readers must figure out the cause-and-effect relationship from the text.

Example

A car drove through a huge puddle and splashed water all over me!

In this example, tires splashing water are the cause; a wet person is the effect. A cause may have more than one effect and an effect more than one cause.

Example

I was late for school because I overslept and a car splashed water on me on my way to school, so I had to go back home and change clothes! As you read, use a cause-and-effect chart to keep track of how things or people affect others.

Cause	Effect
It rained all day.	The parade was cancelled.
I didn’t study.	I failed the exam.

Think about it. Couldn’t you predict that, since it rained all day, that parade would be canceled, and if someone didn’t study, he or she might fail an exam? Figuring out why something happened and thinking about what might possibly happen next gets you involved and helps you better understand what you read.

Extension Activity for RI 6.8

Use a Flowchart to trace the claims presented in the article.  List the information in chronological/sequential order.  Evaluate which claims are valid or invalid.