Question

    Today’s students are surrounded by information. The ability to figure out exactly why authors write—and not accept every opinion as fact—is a key skill. 1. The following strategies teach them how to figure out why authors really write.

Start with why.  “Why did the author write this piece?” is the key question asked to identify author’s purpose. To help students expand their understanding of “why,” post various types of nonfiction (an advertisement, opinion article, news article, etc.) around your classroom and have students quickly identify a purpose for each. 2.

Talk about structure. Authors use different structures for different purposes. For example, one author may use time order to explain an event, while another author uses compare and contrast to put that event into context.

3.Often when authors write, they’re trying to get readers to feel a certain way. Perhaps the author of an article about whale conservation wants readers to feel sad about the difficult situation of whales. Or the author of a letter may want to make the recipient feel better about a situation. After students read a text, stop and ask: How do you feel? And how did the author get you to feel this way?

Connect it to students’ own writing. It doesn’t have to be said that writing and reading go hand in hand. 4. When students are asked to write about a topic that they think everyone should know about, to explain a procedure or to share a personal memory, they’ll become more conscious of how authors approach writing.

Observe how purpose changes within a text. Author’s purpose is often studied through the text as a whole, but authors have different reasons for writing within texts as well. 5. Then, they may launch into a list of facts that make the reader feel discouraged about the situation. And finally, they may conclude with an appeal. Take a short article and break it apart, identifying the different purposes so that students see how author’s purpose changes as they read.

A. Get to the heart.

B. Identify the topic.

C. The readers may get more advanced in their work with informational text.

D. For example, an author may include a funny anecdote (轶事) to draw the reader in.

E. In particular, they'll need to figure out author’s purpose and draw their own conclusions.

F. Expand students' awareness of why people write by having them write for different purposes.

G. Or keep a running Author's Purpose board with a list of the various reasons that authors write.

Answer

1.E

2.G

3.A

4.F

5.D

【解析】

本文是一篇说明文。文章作者介绍了如何找出作者真正写作原因的策略。

1.考查承上启下句。根据前句The ability to figure out exactly why authors write—and not accept every opinion as fact—is a key skill.明确作者写作目的，并且不把每个观点当成事实，是一项关键能力，和后句The following strategies teach them how to figure out why authors really write. 下面的策略教他们如何找出作者真正写作的原因，可知，学生需要弄清楚作者的意图并得出自己的结论。故选E。

2.根据文章首句Start with why. “Why did the author write this piece?” is the key question asked to identify author’s purpose.弄清作者写作目的，和空前一句提及到的具体的操作方法，可知，这里与前句是并列关系，其内容也是具体的办法。故选G。

3.考查本段主题句。根据后句Often when authors write, they’re trying to get readers to feel a certain way. 当作者写作时，他们常常试图让读者有某种特定的感觉，后文反复提到feel这个词，让学生挖掘自身的感受，并思考作者是如何让人产生这种感受。对应这A选择项中的heart。故选A。

4.根据前句It doesn’t have to be said that writing and reading go hand in hand. 写作和阅读是相辅相成的，和后句When students are asked to write about a topic that they think everyone should know about, to explain a procedure or to share a personal memory, they’ll become more conscious of how authors approach writing.当学生被要求写一个他们认为每个人都应该知道的话题，解释一个过程或分享个人记忆时，他们会更清楚作者是如何写作的，可知，这里都提及到读与写之间的关系，提出要以写作促进阅读。所以，这里为：通过让学生为不同的目的写作来提高他们对写作原因的认识。故选F。

5.考查承上启下句。根据前句Author’s purpose is often studied through the text as a whole, but authors have different reasons for writing within texts as well. 作者的写作目的通常是通过文本整体来研究的，但作者在文本内部写作的原因也不尽相同，和后句Then, they may launch into a list of facts that make the reader feel discouraged about the situation. 然后，他们可能会列出一系列事实，让读者对这种情况感到气馁。所以这里为：例如,作者可能包括一个有趣的轶事来吸引读者。故选D。