Author’s Purpose

1. Author’s Purpose 8th Grade

2. AUTHOR’S PURPOSE WHAT IS IT? When an author writes something he chooses his words for a purpose. The author’s purpose is the MAIN REASON that he is writing the article. WHY? Knowing the author’s purpose will: Give you a better understanding of what you are reading Help you to know how to read the selection READING STRAND - Critical Thinking TARGET – LT08/IT18

3. What is the author’s purpose? • In literary text, it includes the ability to: • Analyze author’s purpose • Analyze the effectiveness for different audiences • Identify fact and opinion • Identify the author’s assumptions and beliefs

4. What is the author’s purpose? In informational text, it includes the ability to: • Analyze author’s purpose • Evaluate the effectiveness for different audiences • Identify fact and opinion • Identify the author’s point of view • Identify the author’s use of persuasive devices • Identify the author’s assumptions and beliefs

5. Why do we need to work with the author’s purpose? • It helps us make sense of and comprehend text • It helps us understand the reasons the authors wrote the piece • It help us distinguish between fiction and non-fiction • It helps us understand how to read the selection • It allows us to think critically about techniques the author included • It allows us to acknowledge the author’s point of view

6. AUTHOR’S PURPOSE TO ENTERTAIN TO TELL A STORY THAT AMUSES PEOPLE

7. AUTHOR’S PURPOSE TO INFORM-TO EXPLAIN- TO DEMONSTRATE- TO PROVIDE ACCURATE INFORMATION

8. AUTHOR’S PURPOSE TO PERSUADE TO CONVINCE SOMEONE TO DO SOMETHING TO CONVINCE SOMEONE TO ACCEPT THE AUTHOR’S POINT OF VIEW

9. AUTHOR’S PURPOSE TO DESCRIBE TO GIVE AN ACCOUNT OF IN WORDS TO PAINT A PICTURE IN THE READER’S MIND

11. To Describe • When an author uses description in their writing, they often use vivid verbs and figurative language. They pay attention to sentence fluency and to their audience.

12. Rachel put on her jacket and her mother’s gardening shoes. She took her gloves, too. Then she went out into the rain, splashing through puddles in the garden. Rachel crawled under the soggy bushes, hoping to find a creepy-crawly insect. Each leaf she disturbed dropped more water down her back. With a muddy hand, she wiped away a spider’s web that had stuck to her clammy face. Damp leaves clung to her stringy, brown hair while a yellow dandelion clasped to her soaked jeans.

13. To Entertain • When an author writes to entertain readers, he or she tries to amuse them!

14. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (an excerpt) The Widow Douglas, she took me for her son, and allowed she would sivilize me; but it was rough living in the house all the time… The widow rung a bell for supper, and you had to come in time. When you got to the table you couldn’t go right to eating, but you had to wait for the widow to tuck down her head and grumble a little over the victuals, though there warn’t really anything the matter with them… After supper, she got out her book and learned me about Moses and the Bulrushers; and I was in a sweat to find out about him; but by and by she let it out that

15. Moses had been dead a considerable long time; so then I didn’t care no more about him… Her sister, Miss Watson, a tolerable slim old maid, with goggles on took and sat me down now, with a spelling book… Then for an hour it was deadly dull, and I was fidgety. She would say things like, “Don’t put your feet up there, Huckleberry;’ and “don’t scrunch up like that, Huckleberry.” Then she told me all about the bad place, and I said I wished I was there!

16. To Inform • When an author writes to inform readers, he or she tries to teach them about a topic by defining it, explaining it, or analyzing it.

17. Crazy About Messaging Think Fast! Write this exchange in proper English. “Wass^?” “N2M, U?” “JC.” “G2G. BFN.” Don’t get it? The dictionary will not help you out, but our useful guide will. You may be one of the many kids online who use instant messaging or, IM. With the right software, they can talk to each other online in real-time in pop-up text windows. When they type instant messages, they don’t slow down to use capital letters, periods, and commas or to spell out words. Kids are thinking up IM words as fast as they can punch their keys.

18. GET THE MESSAGE bfn: bye for now sry: sorry brb: be right back sup, wass^: What’s up? g2g: got to go ur: your jc: just chillin’ wat: what l8r:later wuz: was lol: laugh out loud nm: not much oic: oh, I see pos: parents over shoulder rly: really

19. To Persuade • When an author writes to persuade readers, the author tries to convince readers to agree with his or her position on an issue and, perhaps take an action.

20. I am writing in opposition to the proposed ban on the use of cell phones while driving. Though I understand and respect people’s concerns about the role cell phones play in certain types of accidents, I believe in all-out ban would unfairly penalize all cell-phone users, most of whom are careful drivers. No statistical studies have been done to prove that accident rates fall in areas where cell phones have been banned. In fact, bans have not even successfully curtailed cell-phone use. In New York, for example, rates of use dropped after a ban was enacted but crept back up to pre-ban rates within a few years. Highway safety expert Tom Benson, who once supported a ban, now agrees that “cell-phone bans are unenforceable.”

21. We already have laws in place to discourage reckless driving. We do not need to add a ban that is likely to make law-abiding citizens into criminals. If a cell-phone user drives carelessly, the police can ticket him or her for reckless driving. Don’t penalize all cell-phone users just because a few are careless.

22. Practice WASL Question What is the Author’s Purpose for writing the story/selection/poem?

23. THINK……. “The author's purpose for writing this selection is to _________ the reader about _____ .” CHOICES: TO persuade TO describe TO inform TO entertain

24. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (an excerpt) The Widow Douglas, she took me for her son, and allowed she would sivilize me; but it was rough living in the house all the time… The widow rung a bell for supper, and you had to come in time. When you got to the table you couldn’t go right to eating, but you had to wait for the widow to tuck down her head and grumble a little over the victuals, though there warn’t really anything the matter with them… After supper, she got out her book and learned me about Moses and the Bulrushers; and I was in a sweat to find out about him; but by and by she let it out that

25. Moses had been dead a considerable long time; so then I didn’t care no more about him… Her sister, Miss Watson, a tolerable slim old maid, with goggles on took and sat me down now, with a spelling book… Then for an hour it was deadly dull, and I was fidgety. She would say things like, “Don’t put your feet up there, Huckleberry;’ and “don’t scrunch up like that, Huckleberry.” Then she told me all about the bad place, and I said I wished I was there!

26. What is the author’s purpose for writing this selection? The author’s purpose for writing this selection is to entertainthe reader about Huck Finn, a character in one of Mark Twain’s novels. Two examples that support this idea are when the author uses the dialect that Huck uses. When he says that the Widow Douglas wants to “sivlize” him. Also, when Huck talks about the lessons he learns from

27. “Then for an hour it was deadly dull, and I was fidgety. She would say things like, “Don’t put your feet up there, Huckleberry;’ and “don’t scrunch up like that, Huckleberry.” Then she told me all about the bad place, and I said I wished I was there!” The reader can relate to this grueling experience because of the comments she makes to Huck and about him wanting to be in the bad place because it would be better than what he is having to endure! the Bible and Moses. It is humorous when Huck is fearful of Moses until he finds out he is dead! An additional example is when Huck details his encounter with Miss Watson.

28. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (an excerpt) The Widow Douglas, she took me for her son, and allowed she would sivilize me; but it was rough living in the house all the time… The widow rung a bell for supper, and you had to come in time. When you got to the table you couldn’t go right to eating, but you had to wait for the widow to tuck down her head and grumble a little over the victuals, though there warn’t really anything the matter with them… After supper, she got out her book and learned me about Moses and the Bulrushers; and I was in a sweat to find out about him; but by and by she let it out that

29. Moses had been dead a considerable long time; so then I didn’t care no more about him… Her sister, Miss Watson, a tolerable slim old maid, with goggles on took and sat me down now, with a spelling book… Then for an hour it was deadly dull, and I was fidgety. She would say things like, “Don’t put your feet up there, Huckleberry;’ and “don’t scrunch up like that, Huckleberry.” Then she told me all about the bad place, and I said I wished I was there!

30. An example of ???? Yesterday, someone in math class said,” Ben, give me one good reason to vote for you for student-council president.” I replied, “Because I am the best-qualified candidate. I have been a member on the council for three years. During that time, my goal has always been to make this school a better place. That is why I voted yes on the requests for money to have an international food fair, to buy new uniforms for our football teams, and to help finance a tutoring program. In fact, I am a math tutor in that

31. program. Now, in case you think I only vote yes on requests I like, let me remind you that last year I voted no to a request for funds to build a skateboarding course on school grounds, even though I am an avid skateboarder. I did so because after listening to your opinions, I learned that the majority of you think skateboarding would make the school a more dangerous place. In closing, I have learned a lot from being on the student council and am eager to put that knowledge to use for you. But I can’t do it without your support. Please give me your vote.

32. An example of ???? Eric Le Marque’s situation was grim. He was alone and lost in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in frigid weather, he had no food, and his cell phone was dead. What was suppose to be an exhilarating day of snowboarding became a seven-day struggle to survive. Yet he did survive, and his story has lessons to teach about what to do- and what not do- in the wilderness. First, the “don’ts”: Le Marque went into the mountains alone and unequipped. According to experts, you should bring a companion and

33. and certain supplies with you when you go into the wilderness, even if you plan to be there only a day. Those supplies include a compass, a map, extra food and water, extra clothing, waterproof matches, and a candle or a fire-starting tool. Le Marque brought none of those and it almost cost him his life. Now, the “do’s”: Once LeMarque knew he was lost, he stayed calm and confident, and he did some creative thinking. To avoid starving, he ate tree bark. To insulate himself from the cold at night, he slept on wood chips he made by using his snowboard as an ax. Most important, he thought

34. of a new use for the MP3 player he had with him. He realized that the player, a portable device that plays computer files of music, picked up radio signals. The stronger the signals, he reasoned, the closer he was to civilization. He was correct. Using the signals as a guide, he began walking in the right direction, back to safety. Experts say if you do become lost in the wilderness, do what LeMarque did. Keep a cool head, persevere, and be creative.

35. An example of ???? The gusts seemed to rip the world apart, crashing and shrieking even louder than ever. This time, the wind was hitting the outside of the wall facing the girls. The storm had come back with even greater fury than before.. Would the walls of their shelter crumble? Would something huge come crashing through the roof? Families were holding each other in the deafening darkness. Comforting whispers filled the ears of trembling children.

36. An example of ???? “The Fish,” by Elizabeth Bishop I caught a tremendous fish……….Here and there his brown skin hung in strips like ancient wall-paper: shapes like full blown roses stained and lost through age. He was speckled with barnacles, fine rosettes of lime and infested with tiny white sea-lice, and underneath two or three rags of green weed hung down. His gills were fresh and crisp with blood, that can cut so badly-and the dramatic reds and blacks of his shiny entrails.

37. An example of ???? Yesterday, someone in math class said,” Ben, give me one good reason to vote for you for student-council president.” I replied, “Because I am the best-qualified candidate. I have been a member on the council for three years. During that time, my goal has always been to make this school a better place. That is why I voted yes on the requests for money to have an international food fair, to buy new uniforms for our football teams, and to help finance a tutoring program. In fact, I am a math tutor in that

38. program. Now, in case you think I only vote yes on requests I like, let me remind you that last year I voted no to a request for funds to build a skateboarding course on school grounds, even though I am an avid skateboarder. I did so because after listening to your opinions, I learned that the majority of you think skateboarding would make the school a more dangerous place. In closing, I have learned a lot from being on the student council and am eager to put that knowledge to use for you. But I can’t do it without your support. Please give me your vote.

39. An example of ???? Eric Le Marque’s situation was grim. He was alone and lost in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in frigid weather, he had no food, and his cell phone was dead. What was suppose to be an exhilarating day of snowboarding became a seven-day struggle to survive. Yet he did survive, and his story has lessons to teach about what to do- and what not do- in the wilderness. First, the “don’ts”: Le Marque went into the mountains alone and unequipped. According to experts, you should bring a companion and

40. and certain supplies with you when you go into the wilderness, even if you plan to be there only a day. Those supplies include a compass, a map, extra food and water, extra clothing, waterproof matches, and a candle or a fire-starting tool. Le Marque brought none of those and it almost cost him his life. Now, the “do’s”: Once LeMarque knew he was lost, he stayed calm and confident, and he did some creative thinking. To avoid starving, he ate tree bark. To insulate himself from the cold at night, he slept on wood chips he made by using his snowboard as an ax. Most important, he thought

41. of a new use for the MP3 player he had with him. He realized that the player, a portable device that plays computer files of music, picked up radio signals. The stronger the signals, he reasoned, the closer he was to civilization. He was correct. Using the signals as a guide, he began walking in the right direction, back to safety. Experts say if you do become lost in the wilderness, do what LeMarque did. Keep a cool head, persevere, and be creative.

42. An example of ???? The gusts seemed to rip the world apart, crashing and shrieking even louder than ever. This time, the wind was hitting the outside of the wall facing the girls. The storm had come back with even greater fury than before. Would the walls of their shelter crumble? Would something huge come crashing through the roof? Families were holding each other in the deafening darkness. Comforting whispers filled the ears of tremblingchildren.

43. An example of ???? “The Fish,” an excerpt of a poem by Elizabeth Bishop I caught a tremendous fish……….Here and there his brown skin hung in strips like ancient wall-paper: shapes like full blown roses stained and lost through age. He was speckled with barnacles, fine rosettes of lime and infested with tiny white sea-lice, and underneath two or three rags of green weed hung down. His gills were fresh and crisp with blood, that can cut so badly-and the dramatic reds and blacks of his shiny entrails.

44. “Staying Alive”, Time Magazine Brian Kang: A surfer saves himself from the jaws of death. In November of 2004, Brian King sat on his surfboard off a California beach. He was waiting for a wave when-BAM! Kang, 38, remembers a giant force hitting his left side. “I look over and see this huge black tail fin sticking out of the water,” he says. Kang had run into every surfer’s nightmare-a great white shark. “It had me in its mouth. “Brian was off his board and there was all this churning water,” says Jennifer Savage. She had gone surfing with Kang.

45. The 18-foot shark let go of Kang’s left hip and legs for a moment. He was bleeding, but he climbed back on his board. A few seconds later, the great white surfaced right beside him. They were almost face-to-face. Kang tried to push the shark away. Then he punched it in the nose-an easily hurt part of a shark's body. “I cut my thumb pretty bad. At that point it went back under the water,” says Kang. Kang knew he had to paddle for his life. He finally made it to shore. It took about five minutes, but to Kang it seemed like forever. Someone on the beach called 911, and Kang was rushed to the hospital.

46. The shark’s bite had sliced through part of his left hip to the bone. The shark had also come close to cutting a major nerve. If the nerve had been cut, Kang would not have been able to move most of his body. After three months, Kang is walking once again. And he is back on his board. “I just feel a deep connection to the ocean,” he says. “I’d rather take my chances out on the water than driving on a highway!”

47. “Saving Lions”, Time Magazine Will new ways to protect lions work? More than half of the lions in Africa live in protected parks. Outside these protected parks, lions are in danger. So are most of the world’s other big cats. Big cats need big spaces. When they leave the parks, they often get into trouble with people. Even inside the parks, lions are not always safe. In 1994, one-third of the lions in one of the largest parks in Africa became sick. Many of them died. Joshua Ginsberg, a scientist who works with wildlife, says that protected lands alone are not the answer.

48. Ginsberg thinks that the only way to save big cats is to let them live among people. Lions should be able to go from the parks to land shared by people, he says. There is still no simple way to meet the needs of both people and big cats. If a choice must be made, whose needs will come first? The needs of people will come before the needs of big cats. Even on Mugie Ranch, a ranger had to shoot a lion. The lion was killing sheep. “If you don’t move quickly, they teach other lions to do the same,” explains the manager.

49. Lions have to hunt in order to live. And people may have to learn to live with them. To keep lions in the world, people will have to help them. Without help, these big cats will end up living in zoos, far from the wild plains where they can live free. It is up to us, the people, to make a difference for these beautiful animals. We MUST take action to help save them from extinction.

50. “A Real School of Rock”, Time Magazine One teacher helps turn students into rock musicians. It is 7:30 a.m. at a public school in Newark, New Jersey. The school day has not even started, but the kids are noisy. Students, ages 11 to 17, are there before school to jam on guitars and crank out tunes. They want to play like rock stars. This may sound like the movie School of Rock. However, it is not! It’s real life. In 1996, David Wish started a group called Little Kids Rock. Wish is a teacher who also plays jazz guitar. He takes Little Kids Rock to different schools.