Definitions of Reading terms

Question 1

Primary Sources

Answer 1

firsthand records of events, theories, opinions, or actions

Question 2

Facts

Answer 2

information based on real, provable events, or situations

Question 3

Opinions

Answer 3

beliefs based on personal judgements, rather than on indisputable facts

Question 4

Biases

Answer 4

opinions or beliefs that affect a person’s ability to make fair, unclouded judgements or decisions

Question 5

stereotypes

Answer 5

oversimplified opinions, that do not account for individual differences, about an entire group of people or things.

Question 6

Critical reading

Answer 6

a reading style in which the reader carefully analyzes the text, judging its credibility & the author’s intentions, rather than simply accepting the material as fact, its generally preferable to passive reading

Question 7

author’s purpose

Answer 7

main reason for writing a particular piece

Question 8

narrative

Answer 8

text that tells a story, or relates a chain of events

Question 9

expository

Answer 9

passage that introduces or explains a subject, gives groundwork information that is necessary for understanding later ideas, or analyzes information objectively

Question 10

technical writing

Answer 10

passes along precise information, usually about a specific topic, and usually in a formal or semi-formal style

Question 11

persuasive writing

Answer 11

tries to get reader to agree with author

Question 12

Topic

Answer 12

the general subject matter covered by the work

Question 13

Main Idea

Answer 13

the work’s specific message

Question 14

Supporting details

Answer 14

explain the main idea

Question 15

Themes

Answer 15

subjects that a written work frequently touches upon

Question 16

Topic sentences

Answer 16

express the main point of a paragraph, or of a larger text structure (such as an essay or a book chapter)

Question 17

Summary sentances

Answer 17

generally appear at (or near) end of paragraph, chapter, section, or document. sometimes they sum up the point of earlier text, driving the message home so the reader doesn’t forget it or miss it

Question 18

Logical conclusions

Answer 18

an idea that follows from the facts or ideas presented in the text. Merely has to be consistent with the ideas in the text; the reader is not obliged to agree

Question 19

Inferences

Answer 19

drawing inferences “reading between the lines”
a next step or logical conclusion that is not actually written in the text; rather, it is deduced by the reader, based on information that is in the text

Question 20

Text structure

Answer 20

a way in which a given text is organized

Question 21

context

Answer 21

consists of surrounding words, sentences, or paragraphs that usually help reveal the word’s meaning

Question 22

table of contents

Answer 22

an overview of a document, outlining its basic structure & allowing the reader to quickly look up (and skip to) the section they want to read

Question 23

Index

Answer 23

provides a way of looking up various topics in the document.

Question 24

map’s legend

Answer 24

a small area on a map that explains the symbols & notations used on the map

Question 25

compass rose (on a map)

Answer 25

indicates cardinal directions (North, South, East, West)

Question 26

Distance scale (on a map)

Answer 26

tells readers how to interpret distances on the map

Question 27

Headings

Answer 27

titles that preface section of the text

Question 28

subheadings

Answer 28

headings that appear below other headings, within the same category

Question 29

Text features

Answer 29

include such formatting devices as bold or italicized fonts, indented text, & bulleted or numbered lists