Page 16 - SpringBoard_CloseReading_Workshop_Grade7_Flipbook

Check your Understanding
Questioning the Text: Using the question format of Key Ideas and Details as a model, ask a question about the author’s purpose or Harriet Tubman’s point of view. Begin your questions with “why” or “how.” Remember that though you may not know the answer to the question, you think the answer might be important to understanding the meaning of the passage.
Understanding Subject, Purpose, and Tone: Refer back to Activity 1 and review subject, purpose and tone. Reread the passage about Harriet Tubman and underline sentences that you believe express important ideas about the subject, purpose, and tone of the passage. Then, respond to the questions below.
1. What is the subject? Who and what is this excerpt about? Be as specific as you can in identifying the subject of the passage.
2. What is the purpose? Now that you have identified the subject of the passage, explain why Ann Petry would choose this biographical subject. What does she hope to communicate to the audience about her subject?
3. What is the author’s attitude toward the subject of this passage? Tone describes the attitude of the author about the subject being discussed. Now that you have identified the subject and the purpose, make inferences about how Petry feels about her subject. What adjectives can you use to describe the author’s apparent opinion of Tubman and her actions in this passage?
Writing Prompt: Using textual evidence to support your thinking, write a paragraph in which you discuss the author’s attitude toward Harriet Tubman and her opinion of Tubman as a leader. Be sure to:
• Write a topic sentence that identifies Petry’s tone and opinion.
• Choose several pieces of appropriate textual evidence. • Explain the significance of your textual evidence
Close Reading Workshop 1 • Close Reading of Informational/Literary Nonfiction Texts 15
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