Mrs. Friedman's Grade 7 Reading Blog

Welcome grade 7 reading students and parents.  Click in the comment section of this post to chat about your independent reading book from our trip.  Remember to tell us the title and author of your book and not to sign your whole name (first names with the 1st letter of your last name only please).

Chat Suggestions

- What did you think of the book?  Explain why.

 - What was your favorite part?  Explain why. 

- What surprised you?  Explain why.

- What reminded you of your own life or personal experiences?  Explain.

- What do you think will happen to the main characters?  Tell why.

- What do you think was the most important part of the story.  Tell why.

- Talk about something you learned from the book.

- Explain what you were picturing in your head.

- What thought provoking questions do you have? 

Click on the amazing video below: Gotta Keep Reading.
I hope you all learn to love reading this much!

Gotta Keep Reading

Knowing text organization, also known as text structure, helps us to better understand what we are reading.  It also helps us to study for tests.  Review these 4 ways that writers organize their writing.

Main Idea/Supporting Details 

* Often begins with a topic sentence, or main idea sentence;

* Also gives explanations and examples about the topic;

Sequence of Events

* Presents ideas or events in order;

* Can use signal words such as to begin, first, second, next, later, finally, after, before, prior to, following, then;

Compare/Contrast

* Tells likenesses and differences between 2 things or ideas;

* Can use signal words such as like, unlike, different from, same as, compared, alike, contrary to, howver, but, on the other hand, even though, similar;

Cause/Effect

* Tells what happened, or the cause, and what it caused, or the effect;

* Can use signal words such as cause, as a result, since, the reasons for, why, therefore, consequently, because, if, so;

Authors have a purpose, or reason, why they write (and so should you when you write).  As good readers, we need to be able to identify what the purpose is.  When you are looking for the author’s purpose, look for the main idea.  

 These are the main reasons why authors write:

* to inform - the author wants to tell the reader something that he or she may not know

*to instruct  – the author wants to teach the reader something

*to amuse – the author wants to give the reader an enjoyable experience

*to persuade - the author wants to convince the reader of something

Here are some questions that are asking about the Author’s Purpose.

Why did the author include this paragraph?

What is the purpose of this paragraph? 

Would you like to hear how your ASC paragraph sounds?  Go to  readthewords.com.  Type in your paragraph and give a listen.

ASC – You will be hearing these letters all year.  They stand for Answer, Support and Closure.  These need to be included in every successful answer to an open-ended question.  An open-ended question is one that asks your opinion.  When you answer it, you must include evidence from the text to support your answer.  Or in other words;  What did you read in the text that made you give your answer?  Any time you need an ASC reminder, just look here.  Remember to always begin by reading the question more than once to be sure you understand what it is asking.

A  Answer the Question.  When you write your answer, use some of the words in the question.

S   Support your answer by using information from the reading, such as examples and quotes.  You should include at least 2 pieces of support.

C  Closure is given in the last sentence.  Do not repeat what you have already written.  Instead, try using one of the these ideas and be sure to relate it to your answer:  What did you learn?  What is your opinion?  Make a connection.  Why is this important?

Your ASC paragraph will be about 5 0r 6 sentences in length. 

Write to me with your questions about ASC.  Or try a paragraph and I’ll let you know how you did.  

There’s so much to say about why everyone should be independently reading, but let’s stick to the main points.  I love to read because reading is enjoyable.  It can give us pleasure.  If you find the right book to read, reading is a joy.  In fact, when I have free time, it is one of my favorite activities.  It has taken me around the world and into the lives and cultures of people I’ve never even met.  It has peaked my imagination and inspired me to think about new ideas.  Reading has made me smarter.   It’s one of the best ways to make yourself smarter and one of the best ways to increase your vocabulary.  Increasing your vocabulary will make you a better student, speaker and writer.

If you have never had the experience of reading a book that is so wonderful or exciting that you cannot put it down, then come see me and together we will find you a book that will make you feel this way.

Send me your comments about some good reading experiences you’ve had, or about a book which you enjoyed so much, you could not stop reading it.