Informational Texts

Unit Review Sheet

Facts and Definitions

Lesson 1: What Are Informational Texts?

• Informational texts are nonfiction works whose primary goal is to share information with readers.
• Sidebars are short discussions or descriptions that are set off from the main text but are related to it in some way.
• Footnotes and endnotes provide extra information about a topic being discussed. They can also contain citation information about sources used; footnotes appear at the bottom of the page, and endnotes are found in a separate section near the back of a book.

Lesson 2: Outliers

• An analogy is a comparison showing the similarities between two things or ideas.

Lesson 3: The Matthew Effect

• [none]

Lesson 4: The 10,000 Hour Rule

• [none]

Lesson 5: Harlan, Kentucky

• [none]

Lesson 6: The Ethnic Theory of Plane Crashes

• Mitigated speech is when speakers try to reduce the emphasis or value of something or say something in a more pleasing manner. It is used to show respect, honor, or submission to those in authority.
• Euphemisms substitute mild or vague phrases for statements that may embarrassing or upsetting.

Lesson 7: Rice Paddies and Math Tests

• [none]

Lesson 8: With Malice Toward None

• Rhetoric is the art or technique of using language effectively to persuade the reader.
• Parallelism involves the repetition of a grammatical structure.
• Antithesis is a rhetorical tool that succinctly and directly describes two opposing ideas in the same sentence, or one right after the other. The brevity and proximity of the two ideas demonstrates the stark contrast between them.

Lesson 9: Writing about History

• Primary sources include diaries and journals, speeches, interviews, objects, photos, and recordings — anything that does not rely on hearsay. Legal documents and reports recorded immediately or soon after the event are also often considered primary sources.
• Secondary sources are created from primary sources and offer an interpretation of those primary sources.
• "Squaw" is an antiquated term for a native-American woman. It was more commonly used in the 1800s, and using it today would be offensive.

Lesson 10: Science Writing

• Science writing takes complex concepts from scientific research and communicates them in a clear, concise way that a general audience can understand.

Lesson 11: Technical Writing

• Technical writing is designed to give instructions and other information in the clearest, most straightforward way possible.
• Infographics (information graphics) are diagrams, charts, and graphs that communicate information quickly and clearly.
• Jargon or specialized vocabulary are terms and ways of using words which are particular to a specific professional field.

Lesson 12: Logical Fallacies

• A logical fallacy is an argument that that cannot be true because it breaks the rules of reasoning.
• Actual logical fallacies are less typical in speaking and writing than informal fallacies.
• Informal fallacies are common methods of making arguments that prompt readers and audiences to make assumptions based on flawed reasoning or incorrect information.
• A premise is an idea or piece of information that is expressed, implied, or accepted as true by the person putting forth an argument.
• Non-sequitur means "does not follow." A non-sequitur is a non-valid argument. For example: People from Mexico City are from Mexico. Juan is not from Mexico City; therefore, he is not Mexican.
• A straw man argument distorts, exaggerates, or oversimplifies someone's viewpoint and then attacks that version of the claim. For example: Person 1 — We should consider small cuts to the city parks budget. Person 2 — You want to close parks and deprive children of park services!
• A bandwagon argument assumes that the more popular and trendy an idea is, the more likely it is to be true. For example: More and more people are using coconut oil in place of other types of oil, so it must be a healthier choice.
• A slippery slope is present when someone argues, with insufficient supporting evidence, against allowing or enabling a certain event because that event will cause a chain of other, loosely related events to occur. For example: If we allow town residents to have chickens in their yard, soon it will be legal to keep horses and cows, and some residents will end up having small zoos!
• An ad hominem argument attacks the person or group making the argument instead of focusing on the content of the claim. For example: We should ignore Jake's ideas about immigration because he spent time in jail.
• Ethos is an appeal to the character of the speaker or writer to establish why he or she should be trusted.
• Pathos is an appeal to the reader's/audience's emotions.
• Logos is an appeal to reason and logic using facts, examples, statistics, etc. to support ideas.

Final Project: Argumentative Research Essay

• A counterargument is a claim that opposes your own claim.
• The classical argument is a five-part pattern that the Greeks developed to make a claim, often in court. The method is still used in debate today.
• Websites whose URLs (web addresses) end in .edu or .gov are generally considered trustworthy.
• Library research databases are created specifically for student research. Information found in one of these databases is usually trustworthy, accurate, and up to date.
• A visual aid is any tool such as an illustration, a graph, a chart, a photograph, or a drawing that helps an audience understand and retain information.