acronym: a word (such as NATO) formed from the initial letters of a phrase or from the letters of each major part of a word or phrase
alliteration: the repeated use of an initial consonant sound in a sentence or line of poetry
allusion: an indirect reference to something assumed to be familiar
analogy: a comparison based on similarity between things that are otherwise dissimilar
anchor: the person who narrates or co-ordinates a newscast
audience: the person or people who are listening to you speak or are reading and viewing the texts you create
audio-visual materials: items such as videos, DVDs, and CDs
ballad: a short, narrative folk song
biography: the written story of a person’s life
Blissymbols: simple pictorial symbols that can be read in all languages—without translation
brainstorming: a technique that helps a group generate as many ideas as possible in a short time period
byline: a line at the beginning of a news story that tells who wrote the story
camera trickery: a way of creating special effects by using a variety of lenses to distort the picture
carving: a process in which a solid material such as stone or wood is cut or chipped away to create a sculpture
casting: a process in which a melted-down metal or other liquid substance is poured into a mould to harden and create a sculpture
character web: a visual representation of a character’s traits
character web: a visual representation of a character’s traits
chat abbreviation: a set of letters and numerals that replace a word or phrase
chat lingo: a shorthand language used to communicate on the Internet
chronological order: time sequence; the order in which something happens
cliché: an expression that is overused, often to the point of being rendered meaningless
collage: a work of art that is assembled from various materials that are arranged in a pleasing composition and glued together
complete sentence: a group of words expressing a complete thought
computer-generated image (CGI): an image that is created on a computer and takes the place of real scenery, objects, or people in motion pictures
conflict: a problem or struggle that the main character has to solve or face
consensus: general agreement
cut to: a film-editing technique in which one shot or scene is changed immediately to another
dash: a punctuation mark used to indicate a break in thought
descriptive adjective: a word that describes a noun or pronoun
dialect: the language spoken by a particular group
dialogue: the conversation between two or more characters
electronic media: radio, television, and the Internet
emoticon: a set of punctuation marks and letters that act as visual cues to show emotion; also called emotion icon
entry: each word explained in a dictionary
essay: a non-fiction piece of writing several paragraphs long that offers a point of view on a subject
etymology: study of word origins
external conflict: conflict between individuals or between people and some outside force
fiction: a literary work whose content is produced by the imagination
figurative language: words that go beyond the basic meaning to add force or beauty to an image
first-person narrator: a literary technique in which a story is told by one of the characters in the story
five Ws: who, what, when, where, and why
flame war: a verbal dispute conducted on the Internet
flashback: a self-contained scene inserted into a story, revealing something that happened before the main story began
format: the form that a writer uses to express his or her ideas
found poem: words found in a prose context and broken into lines to create a poem
found-object sculpture: a sculpture created from common objects not normally considered to be artistic
free verse: poetry that does not follow any regular pattern or rhythm but instead focuses on ideas and images
free verse: poetry that does not follow any regular pattern or rhythm but instead focuses on ideas and images
genre: a category of artistic work marked by a distinctive style, form, or content
glossary: in a printed work, an alphabetical list of important words and their definitions
guide word: a word that appears at the top of each page or column in a reference book, such as a dictionary, to indicate the first or last entry on the page
happy talk: the banter between members of the news team
hard news: up-to-the-minute news and events that are reported immediately
home instructor: the person (parent or guardian) who is supervising the studies of a student studying at home
homographs: words that have the same spelling but different origins, meanings, and sometimes pronunciation
homonyms: words that are pronounced the same but have different spellings and different meanings
index: (plural: indices) in a printed work, an alphabetical list of topics with page references
internal conflict: conflict in one character’s mind
internal conflict: conflict in one character’s mind
ISO-speed number: a number, established by the International Standards Organization, that indicates a photographic film’s sensitivity to light
lead story: the news story that is presented first and in most detail
lead: the beginning of a news report
legend: a story from the past that has been passed down orally through the years and is widely accepted as true
literary sociogram: a graphic organizer that represents the relationships among characters in a literary text
lurk: monitor the messages in a discussion group without actually posting
matte painting: a background painting that takes the place of real scenery, objects, or people in motion pictures
metaphor: a comparison that connects two basically unlike things without using the words like or as
modelling: a process in which a soft, pliable material such as clay or papier-mâchè is built up and shaped to create a sculpture
narrative hook: a literary device that grabs the audience’s attention at the beginning of a story, novel, or play
narrative point of view: the angle from which a story is told
narrator: the person telling the story
non-fiction: a literary work whose content is based on fact
novel: a long, complex narrative that deals with human experience through a connected sequence of events
online: connected to a computer or computer network
onomatopoeia: words that make or sound similar to the sounds they represent
opening shot: a shot at the beginning of a scene that is intended to give the audience an overview of the action that follows
patent: a document that gives an inventor the exclusive right to make, use, or sell an invention for a certain number of years in that country
peer editing: a strategy in which students assist each other in the revising and editing stages of the writing process
periodicals: publications such as newspapers, magazines, and journals that the library receives on an ongoing basis
personal narrative: a true story about the narrator
personification: a literary device that gives human characteristics to something non-human
phobia: an exaggerated, usually inexplicable, and illogical fear
placeline: a line at the beginning of a news story that tells where the story originated
plot: the events and actions performed by the characters in a narrative
portfolio: samples of the texts a student creates in English language arts
prefix: the part on the front of a root word
print media: newspapers and magazines
profile: a concise description of a person’s abilities, character, or career
prologue: a short piece of writing that is presented at the beginning of a story, novel, or play
proper nouns: names of specific people, places, and organizations; for example, Paul Martin, Ottawa, and the United Nations
pull back: move back the camera from a scene to reveal a person or object that was previously out of the picture
pull quote: a sentence or part of a sentence that is taken from the text of a magazine article, enlarged, and treated as a graphic
purpose: the reason for writing
reading circle: a group that meets regularly to discuss a piece of literature
reference materials: publications such as almanacs, handbooks, encyclopedias, and dictionaries
refrain: a line or verse repeated regularly in a song or poem
response journal: a notebook in which students write about texts they have been studying
rhyme: the repetition of sound in different words, especially at the ends of words; for example, “April showers bring May flowers.”
rhythm: the arrangement of beats in a line of poetry
root: the basic part of a word
scanning: a reading technique used to locate a specific piece of information in a selection
science fiction: a literary fantasy involving the imagined impact of science on society; also called speculative fiction
sentence fragment: a group of words set off like a sentence but lacking either a subject or predicate
setting: the time and place in which the events occur
shutter speed: the length of time (in a fraction of a second) that a camera’s shutter remains open
sidebar: information printed next to an article, enlarging on some aspect of the article
simile: a comparison of two different things using the words like or as
skimming: a reading technique used to quickly identify the main ideas of a text
soft news: features, human-interest stories, or profiles that do not need to be reported immediately
special effects: film techniques used to produce scenes that cannot be achieved by normal techniques
stereotype: an oversimplified image, usually of a group of people, giving them all the same set of characteristics without consideration for individual differences
stop-motion photography: a technique in which real objects or live action are filmed by starting and stopping the camera
storyboard: a series of sketches with captions that are used to plan a video production
storyboard: a series of sketches with captions that are used to plan a video production
suffix: the part on the end of a root word
suspense: a feeling of excitement and uncertainty about what will happen next
table of contents: in a printed work, a list of divisions (chapters or articles) and the pages on which they start
tag phrase: a phrase that tells the reader who is speaking and how the words are said
teaser: an attention-getting opening presented before a text
tense: a category of verbs used to express distinction of time
text: print or non-print material that communicates a message
theme: the main idea of a story; the message an author wishes to convey
third-person narrator: a literary technique in which a story is told by someone who does not participate in the story
tone: the attitude of the writer toward the subject
urban legend: a story that involves a recent incident, spreads quickly through hearsay, and is popularly believed to be true but is not
vocabulary log: a record of new words a student has encountered
web: a graphic organizer that shows all of the possibilities related to a subject
writing style: the way a writer puts together words and sentences