8th Grade Reading STAAR Review | Baamboozle - Baamboozle

juxtaposition

figurative language device in which contrasting ideas, characters, or objects side-by-side to highlight their differences or similarities

rhetorical questions

asking questions with obivious answers to lead readers to agree with an argument

loaded language

using words that cannot be proven but sound important (example: the hottest new sneakers)

bandwagon

a persuasive device that makes you believe that everybody else has or likes the product ) example: "Everybody loves Freddie's Burgers")

prose

everyday writing (not drama or poetry)

assertion

an accepted and respected belief (dogs are man's best friend)

static character

a character that shows little to no change throughout the story

dynamic character

a character who changes in personality or attitude by the end of the story

round character

a character that shows different sides to his/her personality

flat character

a character that we see only on side to his/her personality

rhyme

when words have the same sound at the end (example: height, site, bite)

problem and solution organization

the author gives information about a problem and explains one or more solutions

compare and contrast organization

the author discusses similarities and differences between people, things, concepts, or ideas

chronological organization

the author presents the material in time order

cause and effect organization

the author describes an events cause and the events that follow (effect)

allusion

a reference to an important piece of literature

theme

the central message of a work of literature, often expressed as a general statement about life

stage directions

instructions written by a playwright to describe the appearance and actions of characters, as well as the sets, props, costumes, sound effects, and li...

stanza

a group of lines forming a unit in a poem

speech

a public address or talk, in most cases the speaker tries to influence the audience's behavior, beliefs, and attitudes

speaker

the voice speaking in a poem; similar to a narrator in a story

scene

a subdivision of an act in a play. each scene takes place in a specific setting and time

rhyme scheme

the pattern of rhyme formed by the end rhyme in a stanza or a poem

repetition

the recurrence of sounds, words, phrases, lines, or stanzas in a speech or literary work

protagonist

the central or main character in a story, the action revolves around the protagonist

3rd person point of view

the narrator is outside of the action of the story, uses pronouns such as he, she, it, they. can be limited or omniscient

1st person point of view

the narrator is a main character in the story, uses pronouns such as I, me, and we

point of view

the standpoint from which a story is told

poetry

a form of literature that differs from traditional literature in that it is written in lines and stanzas

exposition

part of the plot that introduces the setting, conflict, characters

persuasion

a type of speech or writing, usually nonfiction, that attempts to convince audience members to think or act in a particular way

onomatopoeia

a word or phrase that imitates or suggests the sound of what it describes, such as hiss or crack

nonfiction

writing that is about real people, places, and events

narrator

the person who tells a story

narrative poetry

poetry that tells as story and has a plot

myth

a traditional story of unknown authorship, often involving goddesses, god, heroes, and supernatural forces that attempts to explain why or how somethi...

monologue

a long speech by a single character, normally in a drama

meter

a regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in poetry, gives a rhythm or beat

metaphor

a figure of speech that compares two seemingly unlike things directly, without using like or as

lyric poetry

poetry that expresses strong personal feelings about an object, person, or event. usually short and musical

line

the basic unit of poetry. a line consists of a word or row of words

irony

a contrast between the way things seem and the way they really are, or between what is expected and what actually happens

imagery

descriptive language that appeals to one or more of the five senses: sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell

hyperbole

a figure of speech that uses exaggeration to express strong emotion, make a point, or evoke humor

free verse

poetry that has no fixed pattern of meter, rhyme, or rhythm

fiction

a literature in which situations and characters are invented by the writer

extended metaphor

a metaphor that compares two unlike things in various ways throughout a paragraph, stanza, or an entire work

drama

a story written to be performed on a stage in front of an audience

connotation

the suggested or implied meaning associated with a word, beyond its dictionary meaning

antagonist

a person or force in society or nature that opposes the protagonist, or main character

alliteration

the repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of words or syllables such as "towering, trembling trees"

act

a major unit of a drama or play

interpret

to explain

paraphrase

to restate in your own words

synthesize

to combine

identify

to single it out

distinguish

to separate

integrate

to unite

demonstrate

to clearly show

articulate

to speak it out

cite

to mention

predict

think about the future

support

back it up

evaluate

to judge

infer

read between the lines

analyze

to break it down

symbol

an object, living thing, or situation that stands for or represents an idea or feeling

summary

a shortened version of a longer work, containing the main idea/theme of a text

suffix

a group of letters added to the end of a word that changes the word's meaning

simile

a comparison of two things using like or as

sequence

the order in which information is arranged, from start to finish

root

the main part of a word and a clue to the word's meaning

personification

giving human qualities to an object or idea

opinion

what someone believes or feels, cannot be proven to be true

idiom

an expression that means something different from what its individual words mean

fact

a statement that can be proved to be true

dialogue

words the characters say to each other

contrast

to show how things are different

author's point of view

an author's opinion on a subject

author's purpose

an author's reason for writing: to entertain, inform, explain, or persuade

prefix

a group of letters added to the beginning of a word that changes the word's meaning

tone

the author's attitude toward a subject as well as his or her attitude toward the reader

supporting details

the facts, examples, or descriptions that explain or back up the main idea of a text

resolution

how the conflict of the story is ultimately solved

mood

the way the story makes the reader feel

effect

the result of the cause

context clues

information from the words and sentences around an unfamiliar word that helps you figure out its meaning

cause

the reason something happens

analogy

two sets of words that are related in the same way

conflict

the problem facing the main character or characters in a story

setting

the time and place where a story takes place

rising action

events that happen after the conflict but before the climax in a story

plot

the sequence of events in a story

main idea

who or what the article, essay, or story is mostly about

inference

a guess you make based on information you read

flashback

when the author interrupts the usual sequence to tell the readers about something that happened in the past.

foreshadow

when an author gives the reader a hint that something will happen later in the story

figurative language

language that does not mean what it says literally

falling action

the part of the story that ties up the loose ends and leads to the resolution

conclusion

an overall decision you make after reading

climax

the turning point of the story