Introduction – 45 to 60 seconds Audio George knows all about the three reasons why authors write. He has been writing short stories and poems since he was in fourth grade. He has written stories intended to inform audiences, persuade them, and also merely entertain them. He enjoys writing for entertainment the most. With each piece of writing, he conveys his purpose differently. For example, George has been tasked with writing an article for the front page of the school newspaper. The article gives the details about the upcoming school prom.
It includes information about the prom’s location, dress code, and where to buy tickets. George knows that he can’t write the article in the same way he writes his entertaining short stories. In order to properly convey that this is an informational piece about the prom, George included a lot of factual information. He included driving directions to the prom’s location and instructions on where to purchase tickets. Build on Introduction – 25 to 35 seconds George attended the prom with a close friend.
He enjoyed the music, dancing, and the crowning of prom king and queen. Mentally, George was also gathering information for his follow up article in the school newspaper. He planned to write an article covering the events of the prom. This article is for the purpose of entertainment, unlike the first one meant to merely inform. In order to properly convey the purpose of entertainment, George focused on the exciting events of the prom. He told amusing stories about the prom, including a humorous tale about who was crowned king and queen and other events of the night.
Build on Clip B – 25 to 35 seconds Audio George’s newspaper articles fall into a specific category. Categories in literature are referred to as genres. Popular genres include fiction, non-fiction, poetry, drama, and comedy. Because George’s articles were about a real event, they would be considered non-fiction. George wrote about the school prom in the school newsletter, but imagine if he wrote a short story about a fictional school prom. In a fictional story, George would not have to stick to the events that actually happened. Instead, he could make up any or all of the details and events!
Build on Clip C – 25 to 35 seconds Audio Themes and topics are perceived differently when presented in different genres. Let’s take George’s first article about the prom. It was meant to give information. Because of that, readers approach the article with a serious mindset in hopes of learning something new. Let’s pretend George took that article and made it a fictional piece intended to entertain readers. In the new story, the prom is held in the forest, and the attendees must use magical powers to find their way to the dance floor!
Remediation for Clip A – 25 to 35 seconds Audio Walter is helping his sister with her English homework. She is identifying the author’s purpose in a variety of texts. One of the texts was a speech asking the student body to vote for a specific student for class president. Walter’s sister identified this text as informational, but Walter told her that it was persuasive because it attempts to get the reader to do something. Walter explained to his sister that if the text was meant to only convey information that the author would include a lot of facts and no opinion.
Remediation for Clip B – 25 to 35 seconds Audio Nora loves to keep track of some of her favorite authors. She often reads magazines, news articles, and books all written by a handful of people. Over time she has acquired a vast and impressive library. All of the resources she has in her library could keep someone reading for days! If you were to take a reading selection from Nora’s library, you can expect to read texts that are designed to entertain and amuse you. Texts that are designed to be entertaining may or may not contain factual information.
Remediation for Clip C – 25 to 35 seconds Audio LaToya is completing a homework assignment where she needs to identify the literary genre the text represents. So far she has identified the short story as fiction, the poem as poetry and the play as drama. She has only two left to identify. One of them is an essay about the life cycle of whales. The other is a collection of tales about people living in a small town. LaToya has to choose between non-fiction which is based on facts, fiction which is comprised of invented stories, and comedy which features humorous tales.
Remediation for Clip D – 25 to 35 seconds Audio Stacey loves the outdoors and she often reads about things in nature such as plants, flowers, and long hikes up tall mountains. She read a poem about picking flowers on a hot summer day. The language the author used made her feel connected to the events in the text. It reminded her of an essay she read on plant identification and what time of year is best to pick certain flowers. The essay was very technical and offered information that she needed. However, the poem was more enjoyable to read and reflect on.
