MTEL cheat sheet

Main idea is the central point a passage conveys; supporting details explain, illustrate, or prove it.

An inference is a conclusion drawn from evidence in the text plus prior knowledge, not a directly stated fact.

A pronoun must agree with its antecedent in number and gender; singular antecedents take singular pronouns.

Subjects and verbs agree in number; intervening phrases do not change the subject's number.

Use a comma before a coordinating conjunction (FANBOYS) joining two independent clauses.

A semicolon joins two closely related independent clauses without a coordinating conjunction.

Transition words signal relationships: however contrasts, therefore shows cause/effect, for example illustrates.

In expository writing, a thesis states the central claim and is supported by organized paragraphs with topic sentences.

Denotation is a word's dictionary meaning; connotation is its emotional or cultural association.

Area of a rectangle = length × width; area of a triangle = ½ × base × height.

Percent change = (new value − old value) ÷ old value × 100%.

In a controlled experiment, the independent variable is manipulated and the dependent variable is measured.

The water cycle includes evaporation, condensation, precipitation, and collection/runoff.

A primary source is a firsthand account or artifact from the period studied; a secondary source interprets primary sources.

In U.S. history, the Constitution established three branches: legislative, executive, and judicial, with checks and balances.

A metaphor compares two unlike things without like/as; a simile uses like/as.

Mean = sum of values ÷ number of values; median is the middle value when data are ordered.

Map scale expresses the relationship between distance on a map and actual distance on Earth.