1. What can you tell me about the main character?
What are 2 or 3 traits you would use to describe him/her on the inside?
What did the character say or do in the story that shows or supports each trait?
2. What would be another good title for this book?
3. What was the main conflict (problem)?
How was the conflict resolved (solved)?
4. Why did the author write this book?
--to entertain the reader,
--to inform the reader about a topic,
--to persuade the reader to do something
5. Cause and effect:
--Tell me “What happened?” effect
--“Why did it happen?” cause
6. Character shift:
--How did one of the main characters change from the beginning of the story to the end?
--Did the character feel differently at the end of the story than he/she did at the beginning?
--What happened during the story that caused the character to change?
7. Theme: Is there a message or a lesson that can be learned from this story?
8. Informational (nonfiction) text: Show me some text features you found in this book. (headings, subheadings, bold words, photos, captions, labeled diagrams, charts, maps, index, glossary, table of contents, etc.) How does each text feature help you as a reader understand better?
9. Summary:
In your own words, can you tell me what your book is about so far? What is the gist?
Tell the main events, not every small detail.
Use the character’s name instead of just he or she.
