English Language Arts 8
Good thing I learned a lesson from last year to start study notes early. Note from future (second last week of school): nope, you didn’t learn a single lesson, you idiot.
Sentences
- An independent clause consists of a subject (mostly a noun) and a predicate (mostly a verb). (Alice scorned Bob, subject: Alice, predicate: scorned bob)
- A dependent clause, or subordinate clause, consists of a subject and predicate, but can’t function on its own. (Since the boys burnt the school down)
- A fragment is a group of words that lack either a subject, predicate, or both (slammed the door and left).
- A compound-complex sentence includes both a compound and complex sentence in one. (Because of the constant segmentation faults, he decided that it was time, and he took his life.)
Grammar
- Commas have many uses:
- They can separate several adjectives. (The old, dusty book lied on the top of the shelf.)
- They can separate items in a list. (Among the list were many items: fruits, vegetables, bread, milk, and meat.)
- The use of a comma before the last item is called the Oxford Comma and serves to prevent ambiguity.
- To separate independent clauses in a compound sentence, commas are used with coordinating conjunctions. (She walked up the stairs, and he walked down the stairs.)
- A lack of a coordinating conjunction (just a comma) is called a comma splice and is a mistake. (Eat it, go upstairs.)
- Commas are used to separate introductory elements in a sentence. (Although it was almost 30 degrees Celsius outside, he was still wearing his winter coat.)
- They can be used to enclose an aside. (The boy, who disliked the existence of nonsensical and inconsistent grammar, proceeded to study for his English finals test.)
- Commas can be used to separate direct speech or quotations. (“Don’t be stupid”, he said.)
- They can be used to separate elements of contrast. (It downloaded the virus, not the actual program.)
- The semicolon can be used in two ways:
- In a list with where each element contains internal punctuation, the semicolon can be used in place of the comma. (The winners of the contest came from all over the country: Jeff, from Vancouver, Marcus, from Saskatoon; and Daniel, from Edmonton.)
- Instead of using a period or coordinating conjunction to separate two independent clauses, one can use a semicolon to do so. The word that follows shouldn’t be capitalized unless if it’s a proper noun. (He keeps spending all of everyday staring at that monitor; he’s addicted.)
- Colons are useful in mainly three ways:
- A list can be introduced with one. (The following people should report to the principal’s office: Danny, John, Suzy, and Rob.)
- An explanation can be linked to a main clause. (The message was clear: kill, or be killed.)
- Colons can introduce a quotation. (The headline read: “New SSH Vulnerability Discovered!”)
- Hyphens, not dashes, also have three purposes:
- They can form compound words. (The sugar-free cookie tasted good.)
- Hyphens can be used to join prefixes to words. (The pre-algebra test was very annoying.)
- Word breaks can be represented by inserting a hyphen at the part where a word abruptly ends before continuing on the next line. This is, however, becoming less common with the advent of computers being more commonly used.
- There are two types of dashes (note that I will be using a plain hyphen instead to support ASCII):
- Em dashes have the width of the letter m and have some uses:
- They can include parenthetical elements. (All the animals–the elephants, giraffes, gorillas, and lions–escaped from the zoo.)
- An abrupt change of thought in dialogue can be represented with an em dash. (“I have something really important to tell–Oh wait… wrong number.”)
- Em dashes can add extra information after a list. (“Peanuts and gluten–she is allergic to them.”)
- En dashes have the width of the letter n and are used to represent spans of numbers. (The 2013–2014 season was horrible for the team.)
Paragraphs
- There are several ways to arrange ideas in a paragraph:
- Ideas are presented in chronological order (the same order that they occurred in time).
- Ideas can be described in the order of some kind of space. (left to right, top to bottom, outside to inside)
- Ordering by importance could mean starting with the least or most important idea and ending with the least or most important idea.
- When a paragraph’s ideas are ordered by climax, the writer can build suspense up to it.
Nonfiction
- Nonfiction writing, as opposed to fiction, is about real things: people, events, things, places, etc.
- Common forms of nonfiction include:
- Letters and journals contain personal thoughts and reflections.
- Biographies are about the life story of someone other than the author.
- Autobiographies are biographies, but they’re about the author.
- Memoirs are about the author’s records or experiences from their life.
- Media accounts are works written for newspapers, magazines, television, or radio.
- Essays are a discussion of a topic, express the author’s feelings, and can tell a lot.
- Articles are small and focus on the facts of the subject. They also express the author’s bias.
- Nonfiction also has some common features:
- Titles identify the topic of the text and what it’s going to be about.
- A table of contents tells the names of the chapter sand what page the chapters can be found.
- An index tells what pages the reader can find certain topics.
- Glossaries tell the definitions of some words found in the text.
- A heading divides text into sections and explains what the sections will be about.
- A photograph shows what something looks like (camera).
- An illustration shows what something looks like (drawing).
- A caption explains what a photograph or illustration is about.
- Labels tell the names of certain parts of a photograph or illustration.
- A graph organizes and helps compare information in a visual way.
- Tables organize facts and numbers in a visual way so that it’s easier to read.
- Maps show where places are located and where events took place.
- A diagram explains information or how something works in a visual way.
- Bolded or italicized words put extra emphasis.
- Bullet points make lists easier to read and understand.
- Sidebars give extra information about a topic.
Short Stories
- The setting of a story is where and when it takes place.
- There are three types of irony:
- Verbal irony is when a speaker says the opposite of what they mean (similar to sarcasm). (Man, I love it when it rains every time I go outside!)
- Situational irony is when the opposite of what’s expected happens. (the protagonist was meant to meet a friend, but they instead meet the antagonist)
- Dramatic irony is when the reader knows more than a character or some characters. (the reader knows there’s a monster inside a closet, but the protagonist doesn’t know)
- Symbolism is associating something with something else. (a dove with peace, a skull with human mortality, a flower with love)
- The genre of a story is the “category” it fits in. (science fiction, historical fiction, comedy, romance, mystery, adventure, dystopian, horror)
- There are different variations of the third person point of view:
- Objective is when the reader doesn’t exactly know about the characters’ thoughts and feelings.
- Omniscient is when the reader knows about all the characters’ thoughts and feelings.
- Limited omniscient is when the reader knows about only one of the character’s feelings (usually the protagonist).
Figurative Language
- An assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the middle of words. (The rain in Spain falls mainly on the plain.)
- An allusion is a reference to something from an unrelated context used to represent something going on in the text. (Bro thinks he’s Einstein…)
- Juxtaposition is the placement of two or more things or ideas side by side to develop a contrast. (It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way–in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.)
- An understatement is the opposite of a hyperbole; it states less than what’s necessary. (I lost all my work, so it’s not really a big problem.)
- Repetition is the… repetition of words. (No, no, no, no, no, no!)
Reading Strategies
- When reading a text, you might come across an unfamiliar word or phrase and may not have access to a dictionary or the like. However, you can use clues and context to find out the meaning:
- The author provides an actual definition next to the word. (His emaciation, or his bony appearance, was awfully obvious.)
- A synonym might be provided close to the unknown word. (There was a state of tumultuousness and uproar form the crowd.)
- Antonyms can provide contrast when used. (The evening was supposed to be calm, but it was instead chaotic.)
- Prefixes or suffixes along with a root word give the meaning away. (The vase is quite breakable, so she better not misbehave.)
- An example can be given to help the reader. (The desk was completely disheveled: papers tossed all over, books stacked in a scattered way, and open folders lie everywhere.)
- An unstated or unimplied clue has hints dropped. (He found himself at the edge of a precipice; clinging to a boulder, he gazed down dizzily at the blue ribbon of water below.)
- The mood or tone of the surrounding text can aid in knowing the definition of the word. (The aura of the place was lugubrious: the mournful wails matched the dreary whistling of the wind in the grim cemetery.)
Visual Literacy
- The dominant impression of any narrative is the overall feeling or effect on a reader or viewer (and even video game player). Some film techniques that are used to aid in the process:
- Music can be a very powerful tool if used correctly. Things that can be taken into consideration include the instruments chosen, the melody, and the accompaniment.
- Sometimes, different characters or events can have a repeating theme (called a leitmotif). (Darth Vader’s Imperial March theme, Undertale’s countless different leitmotifs and themes)
- Lighting, shading, and illumination allows viewers to take note of what is being highlighted.
- Costumes can help the viewer be immersed into the setting.
- Cinematography and special effects are all techniques that can be used to enhance the dominant impression of a film too.
- Motion lines can be made pointing in the direction of something to indicate speed and movement.