YEAR 11

ENGLISH 6th and 7th-10-2020

UNIT 5-COMPREHENSION

In comprehension, you are required to respond to a series of questions based on a text.

Review of the Reading assessment objectives

 demonstrate understanding of explicit meaning.

 demonstrate understanding of implicit meaning
 select and use information for specific purposes.

-Closed questions (focus on literal meaning- the exact meaning) of words and what this suggests.

-Open questions (explore subtler meanings of a word or phrase).What might it suggest about a person,
place or attitude.

*Subtle-not direct or immediately obvious, not easily comprehensible)

5.1 LOCACTING AND SELECTING INFORMATION

-Skimming

-Scanning

These skills will help you to identify facts, opinions and details related to a specific topic or idea.

 Skimming is used to gain a quick, general understanding of a text.

 Scanning is used to find specific information.
-When scanning, think about key words that relate to the kind of information you have been
asked to select.

-When scanning a text, you should be able to tell the difference between factual information
and opinion.

-A comprehension question may ask you to identify several facts or opinions.

-A fact is something that can be proven-it is based on evidence and may be linked to a specific
statistic.

Eg. The fireplace at the King’s palace is 20 feet.

-An opinion is someone’s perception-what they think or feel about a subject.

Eg. Kirirom national park has the most beautiful scenery in Cambodia.
ACTIVTY.

1. Skim the following article about a national park in Cambodia, then answer the questions.

Kirirom National Park.

All that remains of the king’s palace is the fireplace. Twenty feet tall, it was built in the 1940s by the king
and his acolytes. It stands on a flattened mountain top. The view is of Cambodia’s only high-altitude
pine forest in Kirirom national park-two hours’ drive southwest of Phnom Penh. The scenery is almost
alpine, the skinny pines saluting the sun, the air aromatic and fresh. [During a period of unrest] the
palace [was smashed] along with 150 surrounding villas that once made up the king’s “Happy Mountain”
resort. Some buildings are intact – more deserted than ruined.

Today, Kirirom is popular among locals but often overlooked by forging visitors. Away from the hot
chaos of the capital, there are peaceful treks, mountain biking and dips in waterfalls. A stay at Kirirom
Mountain Lodge (doubles from US$35; from $60 on weekend), a converted 1940s villa near Oamrei
Phong village in the centre of the park, Moroccan chef Bouchaib serves flatbread, honey-dripped and
dotted with raisins. Guests can eat while surveying the green expanse of Cardamom forest below.

From ` Undiscovered South-East Asia’

By: Nathan Thomson, the Guardian.

a) Is this text fiction or non-fiction?

b) What is the purpose of the text?

c) Who do you think the writer’s intended audience is for the text?

d) Is it all the fact- based or does the text also include description?

e) How is the focus of the first paragraph different to that of the second paragraph?

2. Now scan the text to answer the following questions.

a) What nationality is the chef at Kirirom Mountain Lodge?

Top tip
b) In which decade was the king’s palace built?
When scanning, think about
c) How far is the national park from Phnom Penh? keywords that relate to the kind
of information that you have
d) What is the only remaining feature of the king’s palace? been asked to select.

e) What is the starting price of a weekend double room at the Kirirom Mountain Lodge?
3. Note down the techniques that you used when scanning the text for the answers to Task 2.

4. Skim the paragraph below and decide what it is about. Then scan the paragraph and note down two
facts and two opinions.

There are different types of chocolate, defined by the amount of cocoa solids used. All chocolate is
delicious particularly like dark chocolate which contains 70 – 85% cocoa solids. Milk chocolate uses
fewer cocoa solids and was first sold as a bar in 1875. White chocolate was first launched in the 1930s
and is a pale yellow or ivory color. It contains more sugar and no cocoa solids so it tastes a bit too sweet;
however the additional vanilla flavor is nice. Producers of chocolate include Cadbury, Hershey, and
Lindt.

Develop the skills.

Sometimes you will need to scan a text for information about a specific theme or idea. To this, you
will to scan for key words instead of facts or opinions. For example in an article about a work place, you
may be asked to find two things that workers feel about their job. You could therefore scan for words
linked to positive or negative emotions, or look for points where the workers’ speech is quoted.

5. Re-read the passage about chocolate. Locate and select two ways in which white chocolate is
different from other chocolate.

NOTE.

Key term.

Theme: A recurring idea within a piece of writing.

Top tip: Underline key phrases or make quick annotations at the side of the text to help you identify
facts and opinions.

Apply the skills

7. Read the text on page130 about the Kirirom national park again. Use your skimming and scanning
skills, and your understanding of facts, opinions and information related to a specific theme, to answer
the following questions.
a) Give two facts about the king’s palace, according to the text.

b) Give two examples of things that you can do in Kirirom national park, according to the text.

c) Give two features of the national landscape in Kirirom national park according to the text.

Checklist for success

ü Quickly skim the text to remind yourself what it is about. I can locate a range of
information in a text.
ü Think about the type of information that the question is asking you to locate.
ü Use your scanning skills to help you select appropriate information.

I can locate the main

topic or idea in a text.

Literal and inferred meanings

In a comprehension task, you will be expected to identify both literal and inferred meanings
and to explain what these meanings suggest. When writing your explanation, it is important
to use your own words.

Explore the skills

Read the paragraph below about a journey by river.

We travelled down the river by canoe. This was

particularly exiting as the current was fierce,
forming many rapids that threatened to pitch us
into foaming waters. The river its self was very
wide and the safety of the grassy bank seemed far
away. If we capsized, all we would have to grab
onto would be the razor-sharp rocks that jutted
now and again from the river’s surface.
If you are asked to explain what the rocks are like, you would scan the paragraph and locate the phrase
‘razor-sharp rocks that jutted now and again from the river’s surface.’ The trick then is putting it in your
own words.

Start by thinking about the key words that you must avoid using:

Razor-sharp rocks that jutted now and again from the river’s surface.

Then you can start thinking about alternatives. For example:

Razor-sharp> jagged
Jutted> stuck out
Now and again> occasionally
River’s surface> the water

You can put these words together to form a sentence, such as:

Jagged rocks occasionally stuck out of the waters.

ACTIVITY

1. Put the following phrases into your own words.

a. the current was fierce

b. threatened to pitch us into the foaming waters

c. the safety of the grassy bank seemed far away