 How do I identify cause and effect relationships?  How do I identify cause and effect in text structures?  How does cause and effect help us understand text?

There is a reason for everything that happens. What happens is called the effect. Why it happens is called the cause. To find the cause, ask yourself, “What happened first?” To find the effect, ask yourself, “What happened second?” Tim forgot his math book, so he was unable to complete his homework. What happened first? Tim forgot his math book What happened second? he was unable to complete his homework

There can be more than one cause and effect: The girl studied and got help from a tutor, so she did well on the test. The girl studied (cause) got help from a tutor (cause) she did well on the test (effect) The heat from the sun caused the snow to melt and puddles to form on the ground. The heat from the sun (cause) snow to melt (effect) puddles to form on the ground (effect)

In real life the cause always comes first. In writing, the author may sometimes tell the cause first or the effect first. The boy was grounded (effect) because he did not do his homework (cause). Erin’s car had a flat tire (cause), so she called a tow truck (effect).

Cause and Effect Relationships can be directly stated (explicit) or you must read between the lines (implied). The discovery of life in other solar systems (cause) would change the way we see our place in the universe. (effect).

 because  because of  cause  consequently  effect  effect of  for this reason  if…then…  due  so  since  accordingly  nevertheless  therefore  thus  may be due to

 Since I dropped my fork, I had to get a new one.  I shut my finger in the car door, so I had to go to the doctor and get x-rays.  She had lots of free time, consequently she spent the day reading a book.  Due to many stores being close together, people choose to shop at a mall.

 When the light said “Walk”, the man crossed the street.  The player was angry so he yelled at the referee.  Hannah’s desire to visit Paris motivated her to master French.  A person’s heart rate will accelerate during a workout.  Because Sam’s sister was sad, he tried to cheer her up.

Bryan had just finished painting a chair for his grandmother. He stepped back to admire his work and saw a few spots that he missed. Bryan stepped forward to touch up the spots. But Bryan wasn’t watching where he was going. He stepped right into the can of paint. What was the effect of Bryan stepping back to admire his work? What was the result of Bryan stepping forward to touch up his spots? Let’s “Kick It Up a Notch”

On August 6, 1944, an atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan. The United States dropped this bomb in order to end World War II. It was a long war. America entered the war on December 7, 1941, when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The atomic bomb immediately killed 100,000 people, and another 100,000 died from the aftereffects. The dropping of second atomic bomb on Nagasaki three days later forced Japan to surrender. Today, a large number of Japanese citizens suffer from cancer because of the radiation from the bomb. What caused the United States do drop an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan? What was the effect of the United States dropping the second atomic bomb? What effects did the dropping of the bombs have on the citizens of Hiroshima and Nagasaki?

Nitrogen is a gas that makes up about 78 percent of Earth’s atmosphere. Nitrogen is very important for our Earth. Bacteria remove nitrogen from the air and add it to the soil. Plants use the nitrogen. Then animals take it in by eating the plants. When plants and animals die, nitrogen is released and returned to the air. Then the cycle starts over again when bacteria remove the nitrogen from the air. What is the effect of bacteria removing nitrogen from the air and adding it to the soil? What causes nitrogen to be released into the air?

You now have the ability to unlock Cause and Effect Relationships.