CONTEXT CLUES

Text book writers usually know when they must use a word that will be new to their student readers. So they often
include other words or phrases to help with the understanding of the new word. These words or phrases are referred
to as context clues. They are built into the sentences around the difficult word. If you become more aware of the
words around the difficult words you encounter in your reading, you will save yourself many trips to the dictionary.
You will be able to make logical guesses about the meanings of many words.

Next time you see a word you don't know, take a minute to reread the context, or the words around it. You just
might find the clue you need to figure out what the word means. So, by reading carefully, you'll not only absorb
more information, but you'll also expand your vocabulary

 Used the context to figure out new words.

 Practiced using context clues.
 Define words in sentences.
OWN YOUR OWN:

When you come across a new word in an article or story, try to figure it out using the context. Then look it up in the
dictionary to make sure you got it right. Keep a list of new vocabulary words.

To help learn these new words, try using them in sentences. It's easier to remember words in context (especially
when you created the context, or sentence, yourself) than dictionary definitions.

Here's another tip: Invent a memory trick for learning new words. Let's say you're trying to remember that "callous"
means "insensitive to emotion." It might help to think of the word "callus," which refers to a patch of thickened skin
on your hand or foot that prevents you from feeling.

CHRONOLOGOCAL SEQUENCE
JUST EXACTLY WHAT does the word chronological mean? It helps to know that the Greek
root chron means "time" and logical means "valid or true." So chronological means "in true time
order" or sequence.

We do everything in sequence, one step at a time. First, you wear your clothes, then you wash
them, dry them, fold them or hang them up, and put them away. Authors often use words like
first, second, next, last, before, after, then, now, later, or finally as signals that the events in a
story are being told in sequence.

Example

Before the concert, we were excited because we had awesome front row seats. Then the
show began, and for awhile, it was great. But soon I couldn't even hear the music over the
screams of the audience! After the concert, when we could hear again, we had pizza and
listened to some quiet rock!
But sometimes the author doesn't use signal words, and readers must figure out the sequence
from details in the text.

Example

I'm so glad to be home now, where it's quiet! Yesterday I went to a concert and it was
unbelievable . . . not in a good way. The music and the crowd were so-o-o loud! At the
beginning, I thought I was lucky because I got front row seats. Boy was I wrong!

The sequence of getting front row seats for a concert, suffering through the loudness of music
and concertgoers, and coming home are the same, but they aren't spelled out in step-by-step
order. The ability to recognize chronological order can help you understand what you read. A
sequence chain can help you organize the events in a selection and help you remember what you
read.

Besides using time order, an author may sequence things by ranking them in order of
importance, speed, size, age, and so on.

DESCRIPTION/ENUMERATION
Used to elaborate or describe features & attributes of people, places and items.

COMPARE & CONTRAST

Overview

Comparison and contrast are ways of looking at objects and thinking about how they are alike and
different.

For instance, all of these items are alike because they are kinds of food, but there are many ways that
they are different. For instance, they belong to different food groups. Some must be cooked before
eating, and some can be eaten raw.

When you write comparison and contrast, you will pay attention to these kinds of details.

Purpose

There are two main reasons that people use comparison and contrast:

1. To Explain--You might compare and contrast kinds of food, for instance, to help someone understand
which food need to be refrigerated and which can be stored in a cabinet or in a bowl on the counter.
2. To Evaluate--You might compare and contrast kinds of food to show why one kind of food or brand of
food is better than another. For example, apples are a better snack than butter.

Choosing Items

When you choose items to compare and contrast, make sure that you choose items that have
similarities.

You have to choose things that will make sense for comparison and contrast. For instance, it wouldn't
make sense to compare a truck with crayons or crayons with a birdhouse.

Be sure to compare things that belong together. Compare crayons to pencils or pens, or compare trucks
and cars.

Comparison

When you compare items, you look for their similarities--the things that make them the same.

For example:

Apples and oranges are both fruit.

They're both foods.

Both are made into juice.

Both grow on trees.

Contrast

When you contrast items, you look at their differences.

For example:

Apples are red. Oranges are orange.

The fruits have different textures.

Oranges need a warmer place to grow, like Florida. Apples can grow in cooler states, like
Washington.

Sample Situation

You probably use comparison all the time. Maybe you want to buy some candy, so you go to the store
and look at all of the candy that is available.

You can't buy all the candy, so you have to narrow down your choices.
You compare and contrast the different kinds of candy so that you can make your decision.

Comparison

You can compare the kinds of candy by looking at the things that makes the candy alike.

All these kinds of candy are sweet. None of them are sour.

All these kinds of candy are medium-sized. None are big or small.

Contrast

You also look at the things that make the candy different.

Some of the candy is chocolate. Some is hard candy.

Some pieces of the candy have a filling, like caramel or cookies. Some do not.

Some of the candy can be broken into smaller pieces while the others are harder to divide if you want to
share.

Evaluating

Now it's time to make your decision.

If you're in the mood for chocolate, you wouldn't choose the jelly beans or peppermint candy.

If you wanted to share the candy, one of the pieces that can be broken into smaller pieces would be
better.

So you could decide on the plain chocolate candy, because it was closest to what you wanted.

Organizing Paper

Comparison and contrast are used in your writing to organize an individual paragraph as well as to
organize entire papers.

For instance, you might write a paper that compares a movie and a book about the same topic. In your
paper you can compare and contrast the movie version with the book version.

Balanced Ideas

As you begin to organize your writing, it's important to make sure that you balance the information
about the items that you're comparing and contrasting.

You need to be sure that you give them equal time in what you write.

If you cover character, setting, and historical accuracy for the book, for instance, you need to be sure
that you cover the same elements for the movie
Three Strategies

There are three strategies to organize comparison and contrast papers:

1. Whole-to-Whole, or Block

2. Similarities-to-Differences

3. Point-by-Point

1. Overview - Whole-to-Whole or Block Strategy

In this structure, you say everything about one item then everything about the other.

For instance, say everything about the characters, setting, and plot for the book then everything about
the characters, setting, and plot for the movie.

Outline - Whole-to-Whole comparison and contrast uses a separate section or paragraph for each item
you're discussing.

For a paper comparing and contrasting a book to a movie, the section for Item #1 would include
everything about the book and the section for Item #2 would cover everything about the movie.

The points in each of the sections should be the same and they should be explained in the same order
(for instance, you might discuss character, setting, and plot for both, and in that order for both).

2. Overview - Similarities-to-Differences Strategy

In this structure, you explain all the similarities about the items being compared and then you explain
all the differences.

For instance, you might explain that the characters and plot were similar in both the book and movie in
the one section.

In the next section, you could explain that the settings were different. The book took place during the
summer while the movie took place during the winter.

Outline - Similarities-to-Differences comparison and contrast uses a separate section or paragraph for
similarities and differences.

In other words, the body of your paper would have two large sections: one for similarities, and another
for differences

3. Overview - Point-by-Point Strategy

In this structure, you explain one point of comparison before moving to the next point.
For instance, you would write about the characters in the book and movie in one section; then you
would write about the setting in the book and movie in the next section.

Outline - Point-by-Point comparison and contrast uses a separate section or paragraph for each point.

Point #1 for your paper could be information about the characters in the book and the movie. You'd
begin a section or paragraph for Point #2.

For consistency, begin with the same item in each section of your point-by-point paper. For instance, for
each point that you discuss, explain the information about the book first and then about the movie.

Graphic Organizers

Graphic organizers are useful tools for gathering details about the items that you are comparing and
contrasting.

Venn Diagrams help you think about where the various characteristics of the items being compared and
contrasted fit.

The Compare and Contrast Chart is more like a listing tool, where you can brainstorm a list of ways that
the items are alike and different.

2 – Circle Venn Diagram

A 2-Circle Venn Diagram is made up of two overlapping circles that allow you to organize information
about two items that you are comparing and contrasting.

You write the characteristics of the items inside the circles. Features that apply to both go in the
overlapping portion (the middle) of the two circles.

When you're done, you'll have your information divided into similarities (the overlapping part) and
differences (the non-intersecting parts).

3 – Circle Venn Diagram

A 3-Circle Venn Diagram is made up of three overlapping circles. It is more complex because there are
more ways for items to overlap.

Features that apply to two items go in the overlapping portion of their circles (for instance, the Sun and
Moon are in the Milky Way). Features shared by all three go in the middle (for instance, the Sun, Moon,
and Stars are in the sky).

As with the 2-Circle Diagram, when you're done, your information will be divided into similarities (the
overlapping part) and differences (the non-intersecting parts).

Charts
A Compare and Contrast Chart is made up of a series of boxes that you can fill in to gather information
about the two items that you are comparing and contrasting.

You write the names of your items at the top then fill in the boxes with details about how the items are
alike and different.

This chart is an easy way to divide the characteristics of the items that you are comparing into
similarities (items in the upper box) and differences (items in the two bottom boxes).

Transitions

In comparison and contrast, transition words tell a reader that the writer is changing from talking about
one item to the other.

Transitional words and phrases help make a paper smoother and more coherent by showing the reader
the connections between the ideas that are being presented.

For Comparison

When you're comparing items, using a transition from this list will signal to readers that you're changing
from one item to the next and it will also tell the reader that the two items are similar.

Here are some examples: The characters in the movie were very similar to the characters in the book.
Both the characters in the movie and in the book were interested in detective work.

For Contrast

On the other hand, using one of the transitions from this list of words will signal readers that the two
items you're discussing are different.

Here are some examples: The setting in the book was summer while the setting in the movie was winter.
The events in the book took place during several afternoons, but the events in the movie took place
during the evening.

Checklist

There are three main things to pay attention to as you write a comparison and contrast paper:

1. Purpose & Supporting Details

2. Organization & Structure

3. Transitions & Coherence

In addition, be sure to pay attention to the usual requirements for writing, such as spelling, punctuation,
and grammar.

1. Comparison & Contrast Checklist

1. Purpose & Supporting Details

a. The paper compares and contrasts items clearly.

b. The paper points to specific examples to illustrate the comparison.

c. The paper includes only the information relevant to the comparison.

2. 2. Organization & Structure

a. The paper breaks the information into the whole-to-whole, similarities -to-
differences, or point-by-point structure.

b. The paper follows a consistent order when discussing the comparison.

c. The paper breaks the information into appropriate sections or paragraphs to the
ideas.

3. 3. Transitions & Coherence

a. The paper moves smoothly from one idea to the next.

b. The paper uses comparison and contrast transition words to show relationships
between ideas.

c. The paper uses a variety of sentence structures and transitions.

Compare /Contrast Guide

Topics

 High school and College

 Raising a pet and raising a child
 Two career choices or majors you're contemplating
 Two colleges you've considered attending
 Two jobs you've had
 Two books you've read, or two movies you've seen
 Two close friends
 Two teachers

Sample Exercise

"Learning to write is like learning to play a musical instrument."

STEP 1: Establish categories to focus your analysis.

Brainstorm and then decide upon several appropriate categories for your topic which will focus how
you look at each subject. List them below:

 The degree to which each one can be an art form

 The kinds of skills each one requires
  The kinds of effects each can have on audiences

STEP 2: Brainstorm raw material by applying these categories to questions about

your subject.

Ask what is similar and what is different about my two subjects based on the categories you arrived at
above. Write down everything you can think of—you can rearrange it later.

Comparisons (similarities) between learning to write and learning to play an instrument

1. when you do it well, it's an art

2. it's a skill you acquire with time and patience. Process is as important as end-product when you are
beginning to pick up the skill.
3. learning the scales is a lot like learning structure. It's what you personally do with these
foundations that makes your writing stand out.
4. like music, good writing has "color" and "tone"-it can evoke emotion.
5. like music, good writing can be created collaboratively (though this is less common).

Contrasts (differences) between learning to write and learning to play an instrument

1. Unlike music, writing evokes thought as well as feeling.

2. Unlike music, it's usually created solo rather than as a group effort. The closest analogy is the
singer/songwriter who's been traveling alone his or her whole career. Sometimes
3. Unless we are professional musicians, we don't need music skills on a daily basis; writing, however,
is something we use in a variety of practical ways in a variety of environments other than leisure.

Step 3: Assemble your analysis.

Now examine the points you made and compile your raw material into paragraphs by using one or
both of the methods described in Chapter Six (pp. 339-341). Write a topic sentence to focus your
comparison/contrast; it should state your subjects and the assertion you want to make about them as
a result of your analysis. After you write your topic sentence, write the paragraph(s) below. Attach
extra paper if you run out of room.

Do you see where the paragraphs below use the subject-by-subject method and where it uses the
point-by-point method?

Even if you've never tried to learn a musical instrument, you can probably relate to the way learning
to write can be compared to learning a musical instrument. They both require a set of skills and both,
when they're performed well, can be considered an art with power to greatly move audiences.

In the first place, learning any musical instrument can be a grueling process, but once you learn to
play competently, you're rewarded by the beautiful sound of music at your fingertips. Once you gain
control over the notes you're trying to reach, and the tones those notes create, you can consciously
set a mood, create an atmosphere. You can make people dance for joy or make them weep. But you
don't gain that control overnight. Learning an instrument requires a big time investment, a lot of
patient practice. Your fingers have go over and over the same positions as you learn scales and
practice exercises that increase dexterity. The sounds you produce may be ugly at first: discordant,
disjointed, off rhythm. But through continued practice you'll begin to play more smoothly, with greater
feeling, and with fewer mistakes. Pretty soon, you'll feel like you've arrived. You can play.

Similarly, writing well is an art in the sense that it has an "aesthetic" experience to offer us-when
we're finished we may have created something truly beautiful. Reading a good piece of writing, we can
experience its truth and beauty. It has the power to affect us intellectually, emotionally. But learning
to write well is a skill we can acquire only through time and patience. In the beginning, "process" is as
important as "product." While we're learning drafting, revising, and editing skills, our first attempts
may be fumbling or unfocused, incoherent, and full of error, but if we keep practicing the
fundamentals, before long we get the hang of it. Concepts like structure, unity, coherence,
development, style, and syntax aid rather than intimidate us. They provide the solid foundation upon
which we express new ideas.

Writing and making music aren't always similar. In a few key ways, these skills are more different
than they are the same. First, whereas music and writing both have the power to evoke strong feeling,
writing is probably better at making audiences think. Second, whereas music is often created
collaboratively, writing is often created solo. Even when writing projects are collaborative, individual
writers often work separately on unique tasks and then assemble the group's work into a whole. They
rarely do the work of writing face to face with other group members, though they may seek advice
and feedback from group members. Finally, the biggest difference between writing and making music
is that, unless a person is a professional musician, we don't use music skills on a daily basis in the
variety of environments that we use writing.

Given that learning to write and learning to play music can be so similar, it makes sense to evaluate a
writer's skills at the end of a course rather than at the beginning. It isn't what students know when
they start that counts, or even what you know along the way; it's what a student can do by the end
that really matters.

CAUSE & EFFECT

Summary of Cause–Effect Connectors

COORDINATING CORRELATIVE SUBORDINATING CONJUNCTIVE  ADVERB

TERM
CONJUNCTION CONJUNCTION CONJUNCTION / TRANSITION

DEFINITION A coordinating A correlative A subordinating A transition word is

conjunction conjunction is paired conjunction introduces used at the beginning
occurs mid- with another word and a dependent clause, of a sentence with a
sentence and joins is used to join which comma after it. It marks
two independent equivalent sentence requires attachment to a change in thought
clauses. A comma elements such as one an independent clause from one sentence (or
is placed before noun or noun-phrase to complete the rest of paragraph) to the next.
the conjunction with another noun or the thought. When the A period or semicolon
(for and, nor, but, noun-phrase. dependent clause comes before it.
or, yet, so). See occurs: (1) before the
FANBOYS independent clause, a
comma separates the
clauses; (2)  after the
independent clause ,
no comma separates
the clauses.

SENTENCE  He saw starving  He raised so much  The children survived People helped. As a
children, so he money that they because they had help.  consequence, the
helped. created a food bank. children survived.
Because they had help,
He helped, for he He raised such a large the children survived. People helped; as a
knew they could amount of money that consequence, the
survive. they created a food
 bank. The children survived children survived.
because of the help.
(noun phrase)  
 

CAUSE *for (reason or cause)   so . . . that   (emphasis on because, since, now For this reason, For
EXPRESSIONS  *rarely used cause) that, as, as long as , all these reasons
such . . . that (emphasis inasmuch as, because
on cause)
of, due to, owing to,
on account of, despite
, if only because

EFFECT so (result)   so that    (purpose-result) Therefore,

EXPRESSIONS
in order   (purpose-result) Consequently, As a
consequence, As a
result, Thus, Hence

Sentence Patterns that Indicate Cause and Effect

(a)

Because of / Due to } X, there is Y.

Or

Because of / Due to } X, Y happens.

(b)

X { affects / influences } Y.

Or
Y { is affected / is influenced } by X.

(c)

X { causes / produces / results in } Y.

Or

Y { is caused / is produced by / is a result of / is due to } X.

(d)

When / If / Because } there is X, Y happens.

(e)

X is { the cause of / the reason for } Y.

Transitions that Indicate Effect

thus, as a consequence, 

therefore, consequently,

Exercise 1
Read the following paragraphs A & B. Underline the topic sentence and also
underline words that specify cause and effect.

A.
The ocean's delicate coral reefs are affected by changes caused by
humans. To illustrate, dumping waste products and garbage in the sea
results in changes in the natural environment. Due to these changes the ocean
becomes polluted, and as a consequence, coral reefs are damaged. When the ocean
becomes extensively polluted, coral reefs die.

B.
Good health is affected by a balanced diet. On the other hand, if we do not eat well,
this could cause problems and we could become very sick. For instance, if our diet
lacks Vitamin A, blindness may result. Many problems affecting the skin and the teeth
are due to a lack of Vitamin C. When our diet contains recommended amounts of
Vitamin A and C, however, our ability to fight diseases like cancer is greatly affected.
So it makes sense to eat well because this results in a longer and healthier life.

PROBLEM – SOLUTION
Definition

Selling approach in which the salesperson attempts to identify the customer's problems and come up
with one or more alternatives that solve the problem by using the product he or she is selling.

Problem Statements – Discuss in groups probable solutions for the same

 An average of 15% of the candidates in a class strength of 50 arrive late beginning of the day and from
their breaks which impedes productivity of the session.
 25% of the candidates do not take initiative in class and remain silent without active participation which
hampers constructive learning.
 Can’t make ends meet
Have them develop specific problem statement based on domain knowledge & arrive at probable solutions for
the same.

Key – A good problem statement will help address the core issue & arrive at solutions saving time & cost.

The problem statement must be clear and concise.

When to use it

Use it when defining the problem, to get a clear definition of what you want.

Use it to cause people to all focus their ideas in the same area.

Use it as a discussion point to help people understand what is needed. 

How to use it

When starting to solve a creative problem it is a good idea to define the problem you are trying to solve.

Discuss the context

Start by discussing the overall context and situation in which the creative activity is aimed. Chunk up to see the
bigger picture and all the actors involved.

Seek the pain

Solving problems often means removing pain, difficulty, discomfort and unhappiness of some sort. So look at the
people and ask why their lives are not perfect. Seek where they are unhappy. Find where they are doing
unnecessary work. Root out the pain in their lives.

Seek pleasure, too

'Problem solving' sounds like a negative thing and can lead people to focus only on pain. You can reverse this by
looking for ways to increase happiness and comfort, for example giving people things they never even realized they
wanted.

Write down problem statement drafts

Write down more than one draft of the problem statement. Remember that defining the problem is almost a
complete project in itself and you may benefit from going through iterative stages of convergence and divergence.

Resolve differences

Listen and write down everybody's opinion of what the problem really is. Find the points of agreement and then
discuss the differences. Discover how they are thinking differently and why they have concluded that the problem is
different.

KISS (Keep it short and simple)

Keep the final problem statement simple. Find a balance between something that is simple and easy to remember
and something that is comprehensive and covers all bases. A good way of doing this is to use a short sentence
that is a trigger to the conversations you have had.

Balance

Also remember to balance close focus with enough space for creative exploration. If the problem statement is too
broad (‘save the whales') then probably will be insufficient focus on finding a practical single solution. If the problem
statement is too narrow ('Get customers to buy this one product tomorrow') it may miss broader opportunities. Only
you can tell which is best, by the way. But do explore.

Example

Not a good example:

'We are going on a round-the-world journey in which we need to make sure that we always are ready for whatever
things the world will throw at us and in consequence we need to have some kind of way of detecting when we are
about to run into problems with some of the environmental issues that we will face that threaten our subcutaneous
conditions.'
 A better example:

'How to keep skin safe from the sun'

How it works

Stating the problem may seem obvious, yet many creative efforts fail because the problem is either unclear or it is
focused in the wrong place. If people have different opinions of what the problem really is, they will constantly
diverge and never be able to find closure on a suitable solution.

The way you state a problem is half the problem and half the solution. Once you have identified a good problem
statement, sometimes the solution is so obvious that you need little, if any, creative thought afterwards.

Rules of Summary Skills

Do
 Use a concise, formal, impersonal style
 Use key words from the question, e.g. “ … is a sign of the past remaining”
 Remember to cover approximately 20 different points
 Consider the word limit given on the exam paper. If you write a lot less, you haven‘t included enough
information, if you write a lot more, you must have included irrelevant information, repeated points or given
your opinion

Don’t
 Don’t include an introduction or conclusion
 Don’t copy the wording from the passages – the information needs to be the same, but the wording needs to
be different - Use your own words throughout.
 Don’t write using “I” or “you”
 Don’t use informal language or slang
 Don’t add to descriptions using unnecessary adjectives or adverbs.
 Don’t repeat any information – even if a point was made twice in the given passage you should only make it
once.

Your Opinion is not wanted in a summary - don’t give it!