Do Now

1. Do Now • What is author’s purpose? • What are the six purposes for text? • What is the difference between fact and opinion? • Complete a Frayer Model of the following word: Bias Noun 1. An unfair influence, a partialness that prevents an issue from being looked at objectively, a preference for a particular perspective

2. MSA PREP COURSE 28 DAYS UNTIL WE ROCK OUT THE MSA! Today’s lesson: Only the boring get bored.

3. How does the MSA translate to our BIG GOAL? • We can translate the MSA to our BIG GOAL in lots of different ways, but we are going to use the MSA as an extension of our big goal. • OUR MSA BIG GOAL – 85% of students will score PROFICIENT or ADVANCED on the MSA.

4. SHE’S BACK!

5. These tests are not interesting. • We know this. It does not mean we should try any less. • If you get bored on a test that is SO incredibly important in identifying what type of student you are, it means one thing: you, yourself are boring. • If you are boring enough to allow something like that to affect your performance in how you are labeled as a student, it will be obvious to colleges that you do not have the work ethic needed to succeed at their schools. • REMEMBER: COLLEGES ARE LOOKING AT HOW YOUR PERFORM ON THESE TESTS!

6. Tips for self-motivation • Think critically about what you are reading: you can learn a lot about subjects you never thought about if you allow yourself to be interested in the text you are reading. • Remind yourself of the fact that your results will label you as a student. • Remind yourself that colleges will see these scores. • Remind yourself that you are NOT boring. • Remind yourself that you are SMART ENOUGH to get through boring passages.

7. Practice time

8. Note-taking time! • Author’s viewpoint: The author’s view or perspective on a subject, the author’s opinion on a subject. • An author can be PRO-[SUBJECT] ANTI-[SUBJECT] or NEUTRAL. • Pro – opinion favors the subject • Anti – opinion against the subject • Neutral – no opinion voiced • Argument: The way the author presents or argues his or her viewpoint; the facts the author uses to back up his/her opinion.

9. DIRECTLY STATED OR IMPLIED?! • An author’s view can be DIRECTLY STATED or IMPLIED. • Directly stated – said right out in the open • Implied – inference time!

10. Ye Old Viewpoint Identification Process • Ask: what is the subject? • Look for positive, negative, and neutral choices in words • Ask: what is the viewpoint? • Ask: is it directly stated or implied? • Find a text detail that led you to find this viewpoint. • Describe the author’s argument: What does the author do to make the argument stronger?

11. Draw it!

12. I DO: MY EXTENDED THINKING     It is important for a person to realize the importance of spending less money than he or she makes. Throughout the last forty years, the debt of the average American has skyrocketed, with no small thanks to the advent of the credit card. Workers everywhere fall prey to the allure of ever-newer products and gizmos, only to work, work, work with no end to financial worry. How revolutionary it would be if young citizens took control of their habits and their lives and threw off the chains of debt and rampant consumerism? The problem, it seems, is that most people accept the idea of debt. They just pay their monthly bills on time and refuse to look at the big picture. One fifty dollar meal put on a credit card could end up costing twice that if it's not paid off quickly.

13. I DO: Selected Response     It is important for a person to realize the importance of spending less money than he or she makes. Throughout the last forty years, the debt of the average American has skyrocketed, with no small thanks to the advent of the credit card. Workers everywhere fall prey to the allure of ever-newer products and gizmos, only to work, work, work with no end to financial worry. How revolutionary it would be if young citizens took control of their habits and their lives and threw off the chains of debt and rampant consumerism? The problem, it seems, is that most people accept the idea of debt. They just pay their monthly bills on time and refuse to look at the big picture. One fifty dollar meal put on a credit card could end up costing twice that if it's not paid off quickly. The author has a strong bias against debt. How does this bias affect the way he describes debt? A. He asks that we get another credit card. B. He compares debt to chains. C. He compares debt to a flower. D. He compares debt to a skyrocket.

14. WE DO: FengShui for a Happier Life? There is a new study out showing that people who live in houses in which the furniture is arranged according to FengShui live happier, more fulfulling lives. This was based on a survey of 100 people. The counter argument to this study, however, is that people who study FengShui tend to be more content with their lives generally speaking, so it is really not the furniture arrangement at all which causes this extra happiness.

15. WE DO: Selected Response The reader is exposed to a viewpoint in this text that • Is in favor of people using FengShui to make their lives more content • Is against the use of FengShui to add happiness to their lives • Looks at both sides of the FengShui issue in a neutral manner • Is impossible to tell based on the information

16. One Dude's Opinion  Some people think that getting hit by a car is a bad thing, but I’m here to tell you that it is not. I was riding my bike across an intersection one day when a car that had stopped at the light charged forward and hit me. Now, I’ll be the first to tell you that getting hit by a car did not tickle, but, then again, it did not hurt as bad as I expected it to. Sure, I was flat on my back for a few minutes, but I ended up walking away from it.     As I was walking toward the corner, I looked behind me and saw that my bike was destroyed, and then I looked forward to see a beautiful girl rushing toward me. She asked if I needed help. I told her I didn’t, but she helped me anyway. I made a few jokes, and she found the fact that I was making jokes minutes after getting hit by a car to be unbelievably charming. We ended up going on a date the next day.     While we were on the date, I got a call from the man who hit me. He was a local politician who did not want news of the accident to get out. He offered me a ton of money to not say anything about the wreck. I took the money and, to make a long story short, I haven’t had a job in 5 years, and I’m married to the girl I met after getting hit by the car. Awesome!

17. The validity question • Sometimes we need to ask ourselves, “Is this for real?” • Turn-n-talk: Do you think the author really wanted to encourage readers to get hit by cars? If not, what WAS the author’s purpose?

18.      Some people think that getting hit by a car is a bad thing, but I’m here to tell you that it is not. I was riding my bike across an intersection one day when a car that had stopped at the light charged forward and hit me. Now, I’ll be the first to tell you that getting hit by a car did not tickle, but, then again, it did not hurt as bad as I expected it to. Sure, I was flat on my back for a few minutes, but I ended up walking away from it.     As I was walking toward the corner, I looked behind me and saw that my bike was destroyed, and then I looked forward to see a beautiful girl rushing toward me. She asked if I needed help. I told her I didn’t, but she helped me anyway. I made a few jokes, and she found the fact that I was making jokes minutes after getting hit by a car to be unbelievably charming. We ended up going on a date the next day.     While we were on the date, I got a call from the man who hit me. He was a local politician who did not want news of the accident to get out. He offered me a ton of money to not say anything about the wreck. I took the money and, to make a long story short, I haven’t had a job in 5 years, and I’m married to the girl I met after getting hit by the car. Awesome! When writing this article, the writer hoped A. to instruct the reader on how to drive. B. to inform the reader about taking bribery. C. to persuade the reader to take money. D. to entertain the reader with his experience.

19. School Sports Matter  Re: "Put academics first," by Bob Kirby, Wednesday Letters.      Hey, Bob, I disagree with your opinion about high school sports and extracurricular activities. I think you're missing the bigger picture.      What about enjoyment, involvement, and becoming a well-rounded person? What about life?      High school is about a lot more than just academics. Not everybody achieves in the classroom—but many do well enough in class and then excel on the playing field. Student athletes have a better chance of gaining a scholarship to a college than "just" a good student.      I am a football player at Bishop Lynch and have a 4.0 grade point average. However, I would prefer to be playing on the field than sitting in any class.      My favorite high school memories will be of my friends on the football team, not my classmates in school.

20. Which of the following statements does the author of the letter include to make his argument stronger? A. However, I would prefer to be playing on the field than sitting in any class. B. I am a football player at Bishop Lynch and have a 4.0 grade point average. C. What about enjoyment, involvement and becoming a well-rounded person? D. Hey, Bob, I disagree with your opinion about high school sports and extracurricular activities.

21. What is the author's purpose in writing this letter? A. to entertain with stories about football B. to inform readers about football clubs C. to describe the school's football team D. to persuade readers about school sports

22. Do Now • What is an author’s viewpoint? • What is an argument? • What are the steps for identifying viewpoint and argument? • What is bias? • Complete a Frayer Model of the following word: Perspective

23. MSA Prep Course 27 Days til the MSA! Today’s lesson – show your work in reading!

24. Strength of an argument • A strong argument has lots of facts, statistics, and examples from reliable sources to support the author’s viewpoint. • A weak argument lacks facts, statistics, and examples, or it uses them from an unreliable source. STRENGTH-O-METER WEAK STRONG

25. Reliable Sources • Universities, government agencies, or well-respected organizations are often reliable sources. • Random websites, people you’ve never heard of, and organizations that have extreme biases are usually not considered very reliable.

26. EVALUATING THE STRENGTH OF AN ARGUMENT 1. Read the text. 2. Determine the viewpoint and ask yourself if the author has a bias. • A very strong bias might weaken an argument. 3. Look for facts, statistics, and examples from reliable sources. • Lots? Probably strong. • Some? Probably mediocre. • None? Probably weak. • DRAW AN ARROW ON YOUR STRENGTH-O-METER!

27. But, you are smarter than that… 4. Write down some additional things the author COULD include to make the argument stronger!