Name:______________________________________

th
7 Grade Date:__________________Period:_______________
Analyze Structure: Text
Features
The title is the name that is
attached to a piece of writing.
The title is sometimes called a
heading. The title is just one
type of text feature, or an
element that helps organize or
call attention to important
information.
Take a look at the photograph
that’s been given with the title.
This is a visual element that
both clarifies the tittle’s
meaning and draws your
attention to the text.

Analyze the Meaning of words

and Phrases.
The author begins the article
with an anecdote, or a brief
account of an event. The
authors use anecdotes to make
a point or to provide
information in an entertaining
and/or memorable way.

1. Reread lines 1-9 and identify

words and phrases that make
the anecdote especially vivid:
a. words: __________________
___________________________
___________________________
b. Phrases: _________________
___________________________
___________________________
c. Tell what effect the word
choices have on this opening
paragraph: _________________
___________________________
___________________________
___________________________
___________________________

Magic and the Brain P. 77

 Analyze Structure: Text
Features
Boldface type is the dark,
heavy print that is a text
feature. Boldface words call
attention to important words
or ideas.
2. Reread lines 21-25 Identify
words in boldface type as well as
the associated definitions in the
margins, and identify how they
impact the reading of the text:
Words: Definitions
__________/_______________
__________________________
__________/_______________
__________________________
__________/_______________
__________________________
__________/_______________
__________________________
__________/_______________
__________________________
Footnotes at the bottom of a
page provide definitions or
additional information.

3. Take a look at the bottom of

this page. Locate the word
intuitive on line 22 and use the
context or the words and phrases
surrounding that provide hints
about the word intuitive and try
to determine the word’s
meaning.
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
4. Use the footnote to confirm
the meaning and restate the ideas
in your own words:
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
P. 78 __________________________
 Analyze Structure: Text
Features
Annotate: Sidebars are boxes that
appear alongside or within an article
to provide additional information
related to the text. sidebars often
contain additional graphic aids such as
charts, graphs, or photographs.

5. Read this sidebar and focus on

the word illusion, then write a
note that briefly states what the
word means. Use context clues
and other words from the
paragraph: __________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________

6. Reread the sidebar and tell how

the text and graphic aide enhance
the information of the main text.
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________

Note: The authors, who are

neuroscientist, are actually
studying magic to learn about
how people’s brains work.
Magic and neuroscience are
both concerned with how the
brain works.
7. Explain how are magic and
neuroscience similar:
In magic, ___________________
__________________________;
In neuroscience, people ______
__________________________
__________________________

P. 79
 Summarize Text
When you summarize, you are
retelling a text’s central, or main, ideas
in your own words. When you
summarize, you should be objective,
or not include your own opinions or
judgment about the text.
Summarizing can help you remember
information you read.
8. Reread lines 85-94 and identify the
central idea:
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
Summarize the central idea in your
own words:
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________

Use your own paper to give the

definitions of the words on the
list:
Dictionary Vocabulary:
1. Luminous
2. Radiating
3. Dims
4. Reflaring
5. Devilishly
6. Indulge
7. Supernova
8. Lure
9. Stimulus
10. Cognitive
11. Scrutiny
12. Manipulate
13. Bewildering
14. Causal
15. inference

P. 80
 Analyze Meaning of words and
Phrases
9. Authors choose words
carefully to convey certain
meanings. Reread lines 110-116
and consider the word robust.
Read the first six lines of the
paragraph and identify context
clues that might help you
determine the meaning of the
word robust.
My inference of what robust
means (using context clues):
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________

Dictionary meaning of the word

robust:
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________

In-book Vocabulary
Use the book (pp 78-79) to find
the meaning of these words:
16. neural
17. neuroscientist
18. neuron
19. intuitive
20. spectators
21. retinal neurons
22. neuroscience

P. 81
 Summarize Text

10. When you stop to

summarize a paragraph as you
read, you can help yourself
clarify meaning and
comprehend better the central
idea.
Read this second paragraph
that starts on line 124 and
summarize it bellow in two to
three sentences:
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________

P. 82
 Analyze Structure: Text
Features

11. This second heading on this

article, information is organized
for your better comprehension.
Read this second heading and
use it to explain what this
section might be about:
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________

Summarize Text
In a longer article, it is
sometimes useful to summarize
a section instead of each
paragraph. Read at lines 166-71
and summarize this last section
of the article. Using the
heading of this section,
summarize this section:
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________

P. 83
 Summarize Text
Read this last paragraph, lines
191-199 and summarize it in two
to three sentences.
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________

P. 84