Praxis 5038 cheat sheet

Sonnet forms: the Petrarchan sonnet splits 14 lines into an octave (abbaabba) and a sestet (cdecde or cdcdcd); the Shakespearean sonnet uses three quatrains plus a couplet (abab cdcd efef gg).

Meter: iamb = unstressed/stressed; trochee = stressed/unstressed; anapest = two unstressed plus stressed; dactyl = stressed plus two unstressed; pentameter means five feet per line, so iambic pentameter is ten syllables.

Irony types: verbal (speaker means the opposite of what is said), dramatic (audience knows more than the character), situational (the outcome reverses expectation).

Point of view: first person uses I/we; third-person limited stays inside one character's perceptions; omniscient enters many minds; objective or dramatic reports only observable speech and action.

Figurative language: simile compares using like or as; metaphor asserts one thing is another; personification grants human traits to nonhuman things; hyperbole exaggerates; understatement deliberately minimizes.

Metonymy substitutes something associated with the thing named (the crown for the monarchy); synecdoche substitutes a part for the whole or the whole for a part (wheels for a car).

Plot arc: exposition, inciting incident, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution or denouement; conflict types are person vs. person, self, nature, society, or fate.

Character terms: round characters show complexity, flat characters show one trait; static characters do not change, dynamic characters do; a foil contrasts with another character to highlight traits; hamartia is the tragic flaw.

Theme is the insight about life a work conveys, while subject is what the work is about; tone is the author's attitude toward the subject, while mood is the feeling created in the reader.

Rhetorical appeals: ethos rests on the speaker's credibility and character, pathos on the audience's emotions and values, and logos on logic, evidence, and reasoning.

Argument anatomy: claim (the assertion), evidence (the support), warrant (the assumption connecting evidence to claim), qualifier (limits on the claim), counterclaim, and rebuttal.

Text structures: chronological, sequential, cause-effect, compare-contrast, problem-solution, and description; signal words include because, however, first, as a result, similarly, and in contrast.

Common fallacies: ad hominem attacks the person; straw man distorts the opponent's claim; false dilemma offers only two options; slippery slope predicts an inevitable chain; hasty generalization overgeneralizes from a small sample; post hoc mistakes sequence for cause; circular reasoning assumes the conclusion.

Author's purpose is usually stated as a verb: inform, explain, persuade, argue, entertain, or describe; purpose governs tone, structure, and selection of detail.

Central idea is the main point of a text, stated or implied, while a theme belongs to literary works; an objective summary reports main points without opinion or added judgment.

Source evaluation (CRAAP): Currency, Relevance, Authority, Accuracy, and Purpose; authority depends on author credentials, publisher, and peer review, not on presentation quality.

Bias signals include loaded diction, one-sided evidence, omitted counterclaims, unnamed or self-interested sources, emotionally framed images, and statistics presented without context.

A primary source provides firsthand evidence or testimony (diary, law, data set, eyewitness account); a secondary source analyzes, interprets, or summarizes primary material.

A phoneme is the smallest sound unit that distinguishes meaning; a morpheme is the smallest unit of meaning; a grapheme is a written letter or letter group representing sound.

Morpheme types: free morphemes stand alone (dog, run); bound morphemes must attach (pre-, -s); inflectional affixes change grammar only (-ed, -s, -est); derivational affixes change meaning or part of speech (-ness, un-, -ly).

Consonant description uses place of articulation (bilabial p/b, labiodental f/v, alveolar t/d/s/z, velar k/g, glottal h) and manner (stop, fricative, affricate, nasal, liquid, glide).

History of English: Old English 450-1100 (Germanic, heavily inflected), Middle English 1100-1500 (Norman French vocabulary after 1066), Early Modern 1500-1700 (Great Vowel Shift, Shakespeare), Modern 1700-present.

Word formation processes: compounding, affixation, blending (smog from smoke and fog), clipping (phone from telephone), acronym (NASA), back-formation (edit from editor), borrowing, and coinage.

Semantics studies literal word and sentence meaning; pragmatics studies how context and speaker intent shape meaning; denotation is the dictionary meaning and connotation the associated feeling.

Register is the formality level chosen for an audience and setting; dialect is a regional or social variety; idiolect is an individual's speech; code-switching is shifting varieties within a conversation.

Sentence types by structure: simple (one independent clause), compound (two or more independent clauses), complex (independent plus dependent clause), compound-complex (both patterns).

Language acquisition theories: behaviorist (Skinner, imitation and reinforcement), nativist (Chomsky, language acquisition device and universal grammar), interactionist (social input), and Krashen's comprehensible input and affective filter.

Writing process stages are prewriting, drafting, revising, editing/proofreading, and publishing; the process is recursive, so writers return to earlier stages as ideas develop.

Six traits of writing: ideas, organization, voice, word choice, sentence fluency, and conventions; presentation is sometimes added as a seventh trait.

Essay architecture: introduction ending in a thesis that states the claim and previews reasons; body paragraphs with topic sentence, evidence, commentary, and a link; conclusion that restates and extends rather than repeats.

Punctuation rules: a semicolon joins two independent clauses without a conjunction; a colon follows a complete clause to introduce a list or explanation; commas set off introductory elements and nonessential clauses but never separate subject from verb.

Sentence errors: a fragment lacks a subject, verb, or complete thought; a run-on or fused sentence joins clauses with no punctuation; a comma splice joins independent clauses with only a comma.

Cohesion is sentence-level linkage through transitions, pronouns, and repetition; coherence is whole-text unity around one controlling idea with logical progression.

Argument writing sequence: claim, reasons, evidence, warrant, counterclaim, rebuttal, and call to action, supported by ethos, pathos, and logos as the audience requires.

Speech preparation: analyze audience demographics, prior knowledge, and attitude; state a clear thesis; signpost main points; rehearse aloud; control volume, pace, eye contact, and gesture; keep visual aids simple and readable.

Listening types are appreciative, empathic, comprehensive, and critical; active listening uses paraphrasing, questioning, and nonverbal feedback, and common barriers include noise, bias, and rehearsing a reply.