Monday, April 21, 2003--Main Idea / Details
-All information is based around a main idea; each main idea is supported by details.

-You can often find the main idea in the topic sentence, which usually can be found in the first sentence of the paragraph.

-In passages with many paragraphs, the main idea may be in the introductory paragraph

-The main idea can also be in the title.

-Distinguish between details and main ideas.

Tuesday, April 22, 2003--Making Inferences and Drawing Conclusions
-When drawing a conclusion or making an inference, look carefully at the passage and think logically about it.

-Look at the details of the passage to draw your conclusion.

-Do not draw inferences that are too broad or too general.

Wednesday, April 23, 2003--Cause and Effect
-a cause is why something happens; an effect is what happened as a result of that cause.

-Cause and effect are often signaled by words such as because, since, as a result, so, therefore, consequently, or due to.

Thursday, April 24, 2003--Comparison and Contrast
-Comparison:  look for words such as like, similarly, in the same way, both

-Contrast:  look for words such as instead, on the other hand, however, on the contrary

-When looking for similarities between two things, eliminate answer choices that are true of only one or that are true of neither.

-When looking for differences between two things, eliminate answer choices that are true of both or that are true of neither.

Friday, April 25, 2003--Context Clues
-Context clues give you some understanding of a word that is difficult or unfamiliar.

-When you have a vocabulary word, substitute each answer choice in the sentence of the word.  Choose the substitution that makes the most sense.

-Be sure to read the sentence before the vocabulary word as well as the sentence after it.