How
do I identify cause and effect
relationships?
How do I identify cause and effect
in text structures?
How does cause and effect help us
understand text?
There is a reason for everything that happens. What
happens is called the effect. Why it happens is called
the cause. To find the cause, ask yourself, “What
happened first?” To find the effect, ask yourself, “What
happened second?”
Tim forgot his math book, so he was unable to
complete his homework.
What happened first?
Tim forgot his math book
What happened second?
he was unable to complete his homework
There can be more than one cause and
effect:
The girl studied and got help from a tutor, so she
did well on the test.
The girl studied (cause)
got help from a tutor (cause)
she did well on the test (effect)
The heat from the sun caused the snow to melt and
puddles to form on the ground.
The heat from the sun (cause)
snow to melt (effect)
puddles to form on the ground (effect)
In real life the cause always comes first. In writing,
the author may sometimes tell the cause first or the
effect first.
The boy was grounded (effect) because he did
not do his homework (cause).
Erin’s car had a flat tire (cause), so she called a tow
truck (effect).
Cause and Effect Relationships can be
directly stated (explicit) or you must
read between the lines (implied).
The discovery of life in other solar
systems (cause) would change the way
we see our place in the universe.
(effect).
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because
because of
cause
consequently
effect
effect of
for this reason
if…then…
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due
so
since
accordingly
nevertheless
therefore
thus
may be due to
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Since I dropped my fork, I had to get a new
one.
I shut my finger in the car door, so I had to go
to the doctor and get x-rays.
She had lots of free time, consequently she
spent the day reading a book.
Due to many stores being close together,
people choose to shop at a mall.
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When the light said “Walk”, the man crossed
the street.
The player was angry so he yelled at the
referee.
Hannah’s desire to visit Paris motivated her to
master French.
A person’s heart rate will accelerate during a
workout.
Because Sam’s sister was sad, he tried to cheer
her up.
Let’s “Kick It Up a Notch”
Bryan had just
finished painting a chair
for his grandmother.
He stepped back to
admire his work and
saw a few spots that he
missed. Bryan stepped
forward to touch up the
spots. But Bryan wasn’t
watching where he was
going. He stepped right
into the can of paint.
What was the effect of
Bryan stepping back to
admire his work?
What was the result of
Bryan stepping forward
to touch up his spots?
On August 6, 1944, an atomic
bomb was dropped on
Hiroshima, Japan. The
United States dropped this
bomb in order to end World
War II. It was a long war.
America entered the war on
December 7, 1941, when
Japan bombed Pearl Harbor,
Hawaii. The atomic bomb
immediately killed 100,000
people, and another 100,000
died from the aftereffects.
The dropping of second
atomic bomb on Nagasaki
three days later forced Japan
to surrender. Today, a large
number of Japanese citizens
suffer from cancer because of
the radiation from the bomb.
What caused the United
States do drop an atomic
bomb on Hiroshima, Japan?
What was the effect of the
United States dropping the
second atomic bomb?
What effects did the
dropping of the bombs have
on the citizens of Hiroshima
and Nagasaki?
Nitrogen is a gas that
makes up about 78
percent of Earth’s
atmosphere. Nitrogen
is very important for
our Earth. Bacteria
remove nitrogen from
the air and add it to the
soil. Plants use the
nitrogen. Then animals
take it in by eating the
plants. When plants
and animals die,
nitrogen is released and
returned to the air.
Then the cycle starts
over again when
bacteria remove the
nitrogen from the air.
What is the effect of
bacteria removing
nitrogen from the air
and adding it to the
soil?
What causes nitrogen to
be released into the air?
You now have the ability
to unlock Cause and
Effect Relationships.