Chapter 9: Promoting Comprehension: Text Factors
Multiple Choice Items
1. Of the following, the best way to help students improve their ability to write expository texts
is:
a) discuss text factors that are present in the books the students are reading
b) focus instruction upon handwriting and mechanics
c) ask students to copy sentences from the chalkboard
d) read narrative texts aloud each day
2. Literature is often categorized according to:
a) schema
b) genres
c) miscues
d) phonemes
3. Brief narratives designed to teach a moral are referred to as:
a) fables
b) genres
c) fantasies
d) plots
4. Informational books are organized by:
a) glossaries
b) margin notes
c) narrative text structures
d) expository text structures
5. A teacher would like to help her students write mysteries. The best time to teach students to
write mysteries would be:
a) after the students have written related expository texts
b) after the students have learned to peer edit
c) when the students are able to use a word processing program independently
d) when the students are reading mystery novels
6. Six-year-old Julie is writing a short story about a little girl moving into a new house. This type
of literature is known as a(n):
a) expository text
b) narrative text
c) scaffold
d) schema
7. In the short story, Another Old Car, the central character, Mary Grady, is embarrassed to ride
in her father’s used car. This story could best be classified as:
a) expository text
b) informational text
c) realistic fiction
d) scaffold fiction
8. Fifth grade student Marie loves to gaze at the night sky and imagine planets filled with
interesting people. Because of this interest, her teacher believes that Marie would enjoy reading:
a) fables
b) folklore
c) science fiction
d) realistic fiction
9. Settings which are essential to the story’s effectiveness are known as:
a) backdrop settings
b) integral settings
c) omniscient settings
d) objective settings
10. Ancient peoples created stories to explain natural phenomena. These stories were known as:
a) expository texts
b) haiku
c) myths
d) biographies
11. Although ten-year-old Patty enjoys writing, her stories lack tension. When she is writing, the
teacher should help Patty develop the:
a) characters
b) plot
c) setting
d) appearance
12. Rosemary wrote a short story. She described the events vividly but she didn’t reveal the
characters’ thoughts. In this situation, Rosemary wrote with a(n):
a) first-person viewpoint
b) omniscient viewpoint
c) limited omniscient viewpoint
d) objective viewpoint
13. Of the following, the best way to help students identify the themes of the novels they are
reading is to:
a) provide time for discussion in literature circles
b) help students complete a miscue analysis
c) provide time for oral reading
d) assign roles during literature circles
14. A new teacher was introducing text structures. Veteran teachers correctly advised her that a
teacher’s most significant goal should be to help students:
a) identify cue words that signal text structures
b) use text structures to complete graphic organizers
c) use text structure to spark classroom discussions
d) use what they are learning about text structures when they are reading and writing
15. Stories usually have:
a) only one theme
b) more than one theme
c) decodable text
d) expository text structures
16. Ten-year-old Richard wrote a story about a little boy and his dog. The story seemed realistic
until the dog began to sing and dance. Consequently, the story could best be classified as a(n):
a) expository text
b) decodable text
c) fantasy
d) autobiography
17. When sixth grade teacher Wally Briggs considered using picture books with his class, the
school librarian correctly advised that:
a) picture books should only be used in Kindergarten to Grade 3
b) appropriate picture books are available for every grade level
c) picture books can make older students overly dependent on picture clues
d) picture books are inappropriate for fluent readers
18. Children in the town of Ridley Park enjoy hearing stories about Claude, the town’s first
postmaster. Stories which have been passed down from generation to generation are known as:
a) repetends
b) fantasies
c) folklore
d) genres
19. While teaching a social studies unit on the Revolutionary War, a fourth grade teacher sought
books which would accurately describe the clothing, recreation, and culture of the period. To
accomplish this goal, the school librarian wisely suggested that the teacher should select:
a) fantasies
b) fables
c) historical fiction
d) science fiction
20. Ten-year-old Belle wrote a story in which she described her characters’ thought processes so
vividly that the readers felt they were peeking inside the characters’ minds. In this story, Belle
wrote with a (n):
a) first-person viewpoint
b) omniscient viewpoint
c) objective viewpoint
d) fantasy viewpoint
21. The underlying meaning of a story is referred to as its:
a) conflict
b) plot
c) appearance
d) theme
22. After reading several autobiographies, eleven-year-old Shawn decided to write about her life.
Because she told the story through her own eyes and used the pronoun “I,” Shawn’s story was
told in the:
a) first-person viewpoint
b) omniscient viewpoint
c) limited omniscient viewpoint
d) objective viewpoint
23. Fifth grade teacher Kathy Smyth helps the young writers in her class develop an awareness
of expository text structures. Writers use expository text structures primarily because these
structures:
a) help readers comprehend the material
b) help readers apply decoding strategies
c) build students’ vocabulary
d) add graphics to the text
24. When she won a medal in a gymnastics competition, twelve-year-old Alicia decided to tell
her story in a poem. Poems that tell a story are:
a) haiku
b) free verse
c) concrete poems
d) narrative poems
25. While enjoying a book of poetry, a teacher reminded her students that:
a) poems have unique text factors
b) text factors do not apply to poetry
c) poems and prose share the same text factors
d) rhyme is essential to poetry
Essay Question
1. Sixth grade teacher Jack Crayder reminds his students to consider text factors as they read.
What should students think about when they consider text factors?
2. Fourth grade teacher Jim McCall has set a goal to increase his students’ awareness and use of
text factors. How could this teacher assess his students’ knowledge of text factors?
3. Poems for children and adolescents assume many forms. Name and describe three forms of
poetry that students often read and write.
Chapter 9 Answer Key for Multiple Choice Items
1. Sixth grade teacher Jack Crayder reminds his students to consider text factors as they
read. What should students think about when they consider text factors?
2. Fourth grade teacher Jim McCall has set a goal to increase his students’ awareness and
use of text factors. How could this teacher assess his students’ knowledge of text factors?
3. Poems for children and adolescents assume many forms. Name and describe three
forms of poetry that students often read and write.