Definition:
Author’s Purpose is the reason why the text was written. There are four main purposes to an author’s passage.
To:
1.
Persuade
2.
Inform
3.
Entertain
4.
Explain
Author’s Purpose: To Persuade
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It’s the author’s goal to persuade the reader to agree with the author’s opinion.
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Even though the author shares his opinion, he may provide facts or examples to support the opinion.
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Examples: advertisements, commercials, newspaper editorial, etc.
Author's Purpose: To Inform
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It’s the author’s goal to enlighten the reader with topics that are usually real or contain facts.
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Facts are used to teach, not to persuade.
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Examples: textbooks, cookbooks, newspapers, encyclopedias, etc.
Author’s Purpose: To Entertain
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It is the author’s goal to simply entertain; provide enjoyment for the reader
Author’s Purpose: To Explain
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It is the author’s goal to tell a story or describe real or imaginary characters, places, and events
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Examples: poems, stories, plays, comic strips, etc.
Essential Question(s):
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How can I determine the author’s purpose for writing this text/passage?
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How the text features help me identify why the text was written?
2
FCAT Stem Questions:
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What was the author’s purpose in writing this article/passage?
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What does the author mean when he/she writes “____________________”?
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Why did the author write this article?
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Which statement best describes what the author thinks?
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What is the author’s attitude towards ________ in this article?
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What kind of article did the author write?
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The author wants the reader to think ______________.
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Which feature of ________ does the author most value?
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The author/narrator could most likely agree with which statement?
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Why does the author describe _______ in such detail?
Signal Words: (Recommended for Interactive Word Wall)
Author’s purpose, article, statement, agree, why?, describes, author’s attitude, reader, feature, value, narrative, detail
Materials/Resources: What do I have or need to teach the lesson objective(s)?
Teacher: Content article/text samples or picture book related to current instructional topic; chart paper, if available – overhead projector, LCD projector or document camera, text samples, graphic organizer templates (students can also draw these on paper); magazines and newspapers
Student: Paper, pencil
Additional Author’s Purpose Mini-Lesson Resources/Links:
http://www.sanchezclass.com/docs/authorsintent-purpose.pdf