Genres: Language Arts and Reading

Fairytale

similar to a folktale, but with fantasy and magical elements; children are often the audience

Order of Importance

organizational approach where ideas are arranged with the most important claim at the top or bottom

Nonfiction

writing based on factual information that may tell a story or give information such as how to do something

Example: An example of a nonfiction book for children is The Evolution of Video Games.

Alliteration

A sentence or phrase in which most of the beginning letters or sounds begin with the same consonant sound

Example: Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.

Onomatopoeia

words that make the sound of what the text is describing

Example: The buzzing bee flew into the room.

Caption

short explanations below photos

Fantasy

a story that takes place in an imaginary world with unreal features and creatures

Example: Lord of the Rings

Graphic Features

charts, graphs, photos, and graphic organizers

Expository Writing

A writing style in which students investigate an idea, evaluate evidence, and develop a clear argument

Example: Newspaper articles, how-to manuals, and assembly instructions are examples of expository writing.

Author’s Purpose

the general reason an author writes a text (persuade, inform, entertain, explain)

Compare and Contras

an organizational approach where the author provides similarities and differences about two ideas

Index

a catalogue list at the end of the text containing all of the topics discussed

Idiom

a phrase or expression that does not mean the same as the literal words

Example: "Break a leg" "back to the drawing board" "spill the beans"

Rythym

the beat and pace of a poem, produced by the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables

Dialogue

conversation between two or more characters

Logic Appeal

Using figures, graphs, statistics, historical analogues, or studies to persuade an audience from a fact-based perspective

Example: an advertisement that claims a certain type of cleaner removes 99% more germs than its competitor

Simile

making a comparison of two or more things including the use of the words "like" or "as"

Example: My brother was as strong as an ox

Persuasive Writing

writing intended to convince its audience to embrace a particular idea or opinion and possibly take action

Symbolism

an object stands for an idea or a greater meaning

Example: dove=peace, red rose = love and romance

Poetry

creative writing written in verse and often including rhymes or heavy use of figurative language

Informational Text

Text that provides factual information such as in newspapers, magazines, chapters in a textbook, how-to manuals or directions.

Analogy

Comparisons between two things, often to drive home a point.

Example:“That's as useful as rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic”

Metaphor

a literary device that describes a person, object, or concept by asserting that it is something else, creating a figurative comparison between the two.

Example: Her voice is music to my ears

Figurative Language

a word or phrase that does not have its normal everyday, literal meaning

Example:

hyperbole: I'm so hungry I could eat a horse!

Rhetorical Appeal

a strategy of persuasion that seeks to convince an audience, most often through credibility, emotion, or logic

Example: A commercial suggesting that buying a certain smartphone will make the buyer popular

Fiction

writing that describes imaginary events and people

Example: Alice and Wonderland

Problem and Solution

an organizational approach where the author presents a problem and possible solution

Genre

various forms of texts including short stories, essays, folktales, fairy tales, poetry, historical fiction, biographies and autobiographies, memoirs, comedies and tragedies

Example: Night by Elie Wiesel

Folktale

Stories that are orally passed through generations

Example: “The Three Little Pigs” and “Little Red Riding Hood” are examples of folktales featuring animals

Irony

an incongruity between what the reader expects the author to mean and what they actually mean

Subheading

a title for a smaller portion of text

Memoir

a story or account of someone's life or a part of that person's life

Example: A Moveable Feast is a memoir written by Ernest Hemingway during his time living in Paris.

Table of Contents

a text feature found on a page before the start of a written work that lists chapter names or section titles along with their corresponding page numbers

Claim and Refutation

organizational approach where the author argues against a statement, fact, or claim

Emotional Appeal

using strong language to persuade an audience by evoking feelings

Example: commercials advertising animal welfare organizations might show ill or unhealthy puppies and kittens in an effort to engage the audience’s feelings

Appeal to Authority

using someone’s status, position, or background as a way to persuade an audience

Example: celebrity endorsements

Narrative Text

fictional stories, plays, and poems; usually contain some element of plot or conflict

Example: Petter Pan, Romeo and Juliet

Rhyme Scheme

the pattern of end rhyme in a stanza or poem

Personification

giving human traits to inanimate, non-living objects

Example: The stars seemed to dance in the glow of the moon.

Autobiography

a non-fiction text that an author writes about their own life

Sequential Order

organizational approach following an orderly progression of events, ideas, or steps

Imagery

heavily descriptive language

Fable

a short story with a moral

Example: Aesop's "The Fox and the Crane"

Chronological Order

an organizational approach that follows an orderly progression of events based in time

Repetition

use of the same word, phrase, or idea to call attention to its significance

Mythology

a set of legends, stories, and beliefs concerning gods, monsters, and heroes

Example: Greek mythology (Zeus, Heracles, Jason and the Golden Fleece, etc.)

Biography

a non-fiction text that an author writes about a different person's life

Dramatic Literature

written works crafted explicitly for performance on stage or screen

Cause and Effect

a writing method in which the author explains reasons why something happened or the effects of something that has happened

Example: A politician's speech in which all of the bad actions of an opponent are listed to argue that the politician should be elected instead.

Glossary

a list of important words to know along with their meanings

Oxymoron

Using contradictory terms in conjunction with each other.

Example: Walking dead or disgustingly delicious

Hyperbole

to exaggerate or overstate something that is being described

Example: Some of my clothes seem as old as the hills.

Spatial Order

organizational approach where ideas are arranged according to physical space

Heading

a title of a section