Reading Comprehension and Paragraph Development Vernon E. Reyes

Good news! 1.No prior knowledge about the topic needed. 2.You will only be tested on the passage presented. 1.Must know where and how to find information quickly. 2.You must have good vocabulary. Bad news 

Questions frequently asked:  Determine the main idea  Identify a specific fact/detail in the passage  Identify topic sentence  Discern fact from opinion  Making inferences based on the passage  Define a vocabulary word from the passage

Mental highlighting/underlining: 1.Be selective. Identify the what is most important in the paragraph. Ask yourself: a.What is the main point?/what is the main idea? b.What information is emphasized in the paragraph?

Mental highlighting/underlining: 2. Watch for word clues. The following words usually indicate that a key information will follow: Most important... The key is... Significantly...

Mental highlighting/underlining: 3. Watch for visual clues. Keywords that are bold, underlined, italicized, with commas, with quotation marks, etc.

Practice! Read the passage and answer the following questions:

I. Main idea question What is the main idea of this paragraph? A.The post office offers many services B.Express Mail is a good way to send urgent mail. C.First class mail takes three days or less. D.Mail services today is more effective and dependable.

A. The post office offers many services This is the SUBJECT of the paragraph and not the main idea! The main idea must be something about the subject. The MAIN IDEA: usually an ASSERTION – a statement that requires evidence or proof to be accepted as true! THEREFORE, other sentences and ideas in the passage should relate and serve evidence to the main idea to make the assertion true! Usually the main idea is general/big enough to cover other ideas.

B. Express Mail is a good way to send urgent mail. This sentence is too specific, and tells you only about Express Mail. No information of Priority mail, First class mail, etc. C. First class mail takes three days or less. Again, too specific.

Main idea question - answer What is the main idea of this paragraph? A.The post office offers many services B.Express Mail is a good way to send urgent mail. C.First class mail takes three days or less. D.Mail services today is more effective and dependable.

Today’s mail is transported by? A.Foot. B.Horse. C.Trucks, trains, and planes. D.Overnight services. II. Fact/Detail Question

Choices A and B are wrong. Choice C is the correct answer Choice D is misleading. Overnight mail services are transported by truck, train and plane as well.

III Topic Sentence Of the following sentences, which one is the topic sentence? A. Mail that used to take months to move by horse and by foot now moves around the country in days or hours by truck, train, and plane. B. Today’s postal service is more efficient and reliable than ever before. C. If your letter or package is urgent, the U.S. Postal Service offers Priority Mail and Express Mail services. D. Express Mail will get your package there overnight.

Topic sentence Notice: the main idea is expressed clearly in the first sentence (Choice B) which is called the topic sentence. Usually, topic sentences are found at the beginning of the paragraph, BUT NOT ALWAYS! Remember: A topic sentence is an assertion that needs proof. Choices A, C & D are specific facts/proofs that support choice B

IV Fact/Opinion Question “Express Mail will get your package there overnight, or your money will be refunded.” This statement is a/an: A. Fact. B. Opinion.

Answer is A – A FACT Fact KNOWN for certain that have happened, true or exists. Not debatable Opinion BELIEVED to have happened, true, exists Debatable Opinions may be based on Facts, but they are still what we think, NOT what we know.

V. Inference Question Based on the information in the paragraph, it is safe to say that A. it is economical for businesses to take advantage of Express Mail services. B. the old fashioned pony express system of mail delivery did not work. C. first class mail service is unreliable. D. there is no way to deliver urgent mail.

Inferences Inference is a conclusion that can be drawn based on fact or evidence. CHOICE A is an inference, based on the sentence “Express Mail will get your package there overnight,” CHOICES B, C, & D can NOT be inferred because they lack concrete evidence from the paragraph

LAST TIPS Time-pressured: skim and scan passages You may want to look at the questions first so that when you read the passage, you have an idea of what, where and how you will look for the information being asked for. Read read read.... Be conscious! Relax! Manage your time well!