Springboard Unit Three Study Guide 6th Grade Language Arts

This study guide contains the major concepts we have studied. The test will cover these, but you will not need to memorize this information. Instead, you will be given new passages to read, and you will be asked questions applying what you know. DO NOT MEMORIZE THIS!

Word / Definition / Example
Thesis / A sentence, in the introduction of an essay, that states the author’s opinion on the topic of the essay; it presents the central idea of the essay / In the essay “He Might Have Liked Me Better With My Tail”: “When I was a girl, I was safe and happy and powerful, but now that I am on land, I am sick and lonely and weak.”
Topic Sentence / A sentence that states the main idea of a paragraph; in an essay, it also makes a point that supports the thesis statement / In the essay “He Might Have Liked Me Better With My Tail”: “Before I relinquished my voice, I didn’t realize how strong and happy I was.”
Supporting detail / Evidence (facts, statistics, examples) that supports the topic sentence / In the essay “He Might Have Liked Me Better With My Tail”: “I had a loving family and friends and my voice was celebrated by all who heard it.”
Main idea / The big idea in a paragraph or passage
(what it is mostly about) / In the short story “The Jacket”: The narrator hates the new jacket from his mom and blames three bad years of his life on it.
Internal conflict / The character struggles with his or her own needs, desires, or emotions (person vs. self) / In the personal narrative “My Superpowers”: Dan Greenburg feels embarrassed and humiliated as the bullies steal his cap and play catch with it in front of his girlfriend, Ann Cohn. He is struggling with his feelings, which is person vs. self, or internal conflict.
External conflict / A character struggles with an outside force, such as another character or something in nature (person vs. person, person vs. society, person vs. nature) / In the personal narrative “My Superpowers”: Dan Greenburg is bullied by a big boy named Vernon Mantueffel. This is person vs. person; it is a conflict going on outside of the character
First person point of view / The narrator is a character in the story telling what he or she sees or knows; uses the pronoun “I” / In the short story “The Jacket”: The narrator tells the story, using the pronouns “my” and “I.” “I remember the green coat that I wore in fifth and sixth grades…”
Third person point of view / The narrator is someone outside the story; uses pronouns like “he,” “she,” or “they.” / In the folktale “How Fire Came to the Six Nations”: It is an Iroquois tale about a boy named Three Arrows, but Three Arrows is not telling the story. The pronouns “he” and “they” are used. “He could travel in the forest as softly as the south wind…”
AQQS/hook / A compelling idea or statement designed to grab the reader’s attention; Four strategies: Anecdote, Quote, Question, or Statement of Intrigue / The hook in the excerpt “Kira-Kira”: “My sister Lynn taught me my first word: kira-kira.” That’s a statement of intrigue. It makes the reader curious and interested.
Author’s purpose / The reason for writing; what the writer hopes to accomplish, such as to narrate, to explain, to entertain, to persuade, etc. / The purpose of the essay “He Might Have Liked Me Better With My Tail” is to explain. The mermaid is explaining how she used to be happy and carefree in the sea, but when she became human she got her heart broken and was miserable.
Simple sentence / One complete thought; an independent clause / In the short story “The Jacket”: “My clothes have failed me.”
Compound sentence / Two or more independent clauses joined with a comma and a coordinating conjunction or a semicolon / In the short story “The Jacket”:
“I finally Scotch-taped it closed, but in rain or cold weather the tape peeled off like a scab.”
Semicolon / Used to join two independent clauses; does not use a coordinating conjunction; the word after the semicolon is not capitalized unless it is a proper noun or “I” / In the essay “He Might Have Liked Me Better With My Tail”: “I wasn’t happy or strong; I was sad and weak.”
Transition / Words or phrases that connect ideas, details, or events in writing / In the essay “He Might Have Liked Me Better With My Tail”: “But even though I was able to run, and walk, and dance, I still was unable to win the prince’s love.”
Context clues / Information in words or phrases surrounding an unfamiliar word that hint at the meaning of the unfamiliar word / In the folktale “How Fire Came to the Six Nations”: “He was not permitted to eat anything during the days and nights of his dream fast.”
Simile / A literary device that compares two unlike things using the words like or as / In the essay “He Might Have Liked Me Better With My Tail”: “My singing was like the gentle sound of wind chimes swaying in the sea breezes.”
Metaphor / A literary device that compares two unlike things without using like or as; one thing becomes the other / In the poem “…Little Mermaid…”: “My tongue was payment for the witch’s potion”
Personification / A literary device in which an object or abstract idea takes on human qualities / In the poem “…Little Mermaid…”: “I left behind sweet sisters and kind waters”
Sensory detail / Words or information that appeals to the five senses (What do I hear, see, taste, touch, or smell?) / In the excerpt “Kira-Kira”: “The dog burst from the field suddenly, growling and snarling. Its teeth were long and yellow.” This descriptive language appeals to the senses of sight and sound.