CONTEXT CLUES

 They are words and sentences that surround an unfamiliar word and help explain the word’s meaning.
 Same sentence
 Preceding sentence

 Inference
The meaning of an unfamiliar word can be inferred (guessed) from the description of a situation

Look for clues over several words or sentences.

Clues/Signal Words

Ex. Their vociferous chatter made me wish I had earplugs.

She was so famished that people felt sorry for her and gave her food.

 Definition
The meaning of an unfamiliar word is directly/explicitly explained in the sentence.

Clues/Signal Words

 Is / are
 Is / are called
 That is
 Is defined as
 Means
 Refers to

Ex: He knew his future was precarious which means likely to fall apart.

His emaciation, that is, his skeleton-like appearance, was frightening to see.

 Example
An example of the word is in the sentence or nearby sentences.

Clues/Signal Words

 For example
 For instance
 Including
 Such as
 Specifically
 To illustrate

Ex: Celestial bodies, such as the sun, moon, and stars are governed by predictable law.

Erick was suspended from school because of several infractions of the rules, including smoking in the toilet and not
dressing properly.
 Antonym
A word with opposite meaning is used in the sentence or nearby sentences

Clues/Signal Words

 But ✔ on the contrary

 However ✔ while
 Although ✔ unlike
 Otherwise ✔ on the other hand
 Unless
 Instead

Ex: While Chad is hardworking, his indolent brother spends most of the time watching TV or sitting along with friends.

Chad is calm and quiet but his brother is boisterous.

 Synonym
Words with similar meaning are used in or near the sentence

Clues/Signal Words

 Comma (,) ✔ or
 Semi-colon (;) ✔ that is
 Dashes (-) ✔ in other words
 Parenthesis ()

Ex: His animosity or hatred of his brother divided the family.

It was an idyllic day – sunny, warm and perfect for a walk in the park.

Activity:

1. I meandered through the mall taking time looking at all the clothes in the windows

Hurried wandered ran jogged CLUE: INFERENCE

2. The debris on the basketball court included numerous paper cups, ticket stubs and cigarette butts.

Products trash papers money CLUE: EXAMPLE

3. The couch takes every opportunity to censure his players, yet he ignores every opportunity to praise them.

Approve criticize choose treat CLUE: ANTONYM

4. Jackie was filled with mortification or shame because of her careless remark.

Proud confident shame sad CLUE: SYNONYM

5. Marisa was indignant which means she was fuming mad when she discovered her brother had left for the party
without her.

Calm furious excited glad CLUE: DEFINITION

MAKING CONNECTIONS
Connected

 Physically linked, joined or attached together

 Related ideas or information

 Good connection requires good communication.

 Reading comprehension is indeed an essential skill in improving one’s language ability.
 Reading is a must if we want to further improve our ability to write and to speak.
 Ability to make a connection to the text we read
 Whether it be poetry or prose, literature provides insight, knowledge and emotion or the person who partakes of it
entirely.

“Books are mirrors: you only see in them what you already have inside you” - Carlos Luis Zafon

 Life is manifested in the form of literature. It is an embodiment of words based on human tragedies, desires and
feelings.
 Comprehension is the ability to fully understand what we read.

What is connection?

Connection is a relationship in which a person, thing or idea is linked or associated with something else.

YOU CAN MAKE CONNECTIONS BETWEEN:

1. Text -to-self
You connect what you are reading to your personal experiences.

Example: This story reminds me of a vacation that I had on a beach, just like the main character.

Guide questions in making Text-to-self Connections:

 What does this reminds me of in my life? • How does this relate to my life?
 How is this similar to my life? • What are my feelings while reading this?
 How is this different from my life?
 Has something like this ever happened to me before?

2. Text-to-text
You connect what you are reading to other books that you have read before.

Example: I read a book about venomous spiders. Then, I remember an article that I have read before showing the top
10 dangerous spiders in the world.

Guide questions in making Text-to-Text Connections:

 What does this remind me of in another book I’ve read? • Have I read about something like this before?
 How is this text similar to other things I’ve read?
 How is this different from other books I’ve read?

3. Text-to-world
You connect what you are reading to real events, whether in the past or present time, social issues, other people and
happenings going on in the world.
Literature as a Means of Understanding Unchanging Values in the VUCA

UNCERTAINTY
 The lack of predictability, the prospects for surprise, and the sense of awareness and understanding of issues and
events.
 When the availability or predictability of information in events is unknown.

COMPLEXITY
 The multiplex of forces, the confounding of issues, no cause-and-effect chain and confusion that surrounds
organization.
 Refers to the interconnectivity and interdependence of multiple components in a system.

AMBIGUITY
 The haziness of reality, the potential for misreads, and the mixed meanings of conditions: cause-and-effect
confusion.
 Refers to when the general meaning of something is unclear even when an appropriate amount of information is
provided.

How is the concept of VUCA integrated in literature?

Conflict – the concept of VUCA is expressed

 Social discrimination
 Love conflicts
 Religious conflicts
 Personal challenges

The Raisin in the Sun

 This play tells the story of a lower-class black family’s struggle to gain middle class acceptance

How is the concept of VUCA integrated in the play “The Raisin in the Sun”?

 VOLATILITY
 UNCERTAINTY
 COMPLEXITY
 AMBIGUITY

How can we connect the concept of VUCA in literature?

1. Study the characters

What are the challenging roles they experience in the story?
2. Take time to research on the background of the writer. Sometimes literary works reflect the situation of the writer in
writing literature, be it a play, novel, poem, short story and the like.
3. Focus on the theme and conflict of the literary piece. It is always on the theme and conflict we can identify the
volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity of the story.

Unchanging Values in the VUCA world:

1. POSITIVITY
2. PERSEVERANCE
3. FLEXIBILITY