Author's Purpose — Answer Key
Part A: Fill in the Blank
Write the missing word or number on each line.
1. A nature documentary that uses dramatic music and stunning footage both informs and entertains the viewer.
Nature documentaries teach viewers factual information while also using dramatic music and stunning visuals to keep them entertained and engaged.
2. A health blog that shares nutrition facts while urging readers to eat more vegetables has a dual purpose.
The blog serves two purposes at once: it informs with nutrition facts and persuades readers to change their eating habits, making it a dual-purpose text.
3. "The giant squid can grow up to 43 feet long!" The exclamation point adds excitement, but the main purpose is to inform.
The exclamation point adds excitement to grab the reader's attention, but the sentence itself shares a factual measurement, so the main purpose remains to inform.
4. A historical fiction novel entertains with a story while also informing readers about a real time period.
Historical fiction weaves factual details about a real time period into an engaging story, so it entertains while also informing readers about history.
5. A movie review that gives a summary and then says "You have to see this film!" both informs and persuades.
The review first informs by summarizing the movie, then shifts to persuasion with "You have to see this film!" — a direct push for the reader to watch it.
6. When a text has more than one purpose, readers should identify the primary purpose — the most important reason the author wrote it.
Many texts serve more than one purpose, so readers need to figure out which one is primary — the most important reason the author wrote the piece.
7. A children's song about the planets teaches facts while keeping young listeners engaged.
A children's song about the planets blends catchy music with real facts, keeping young listeners engaged so they absorb the information while having fun.
8. An advice column in a newspaper informs readers about a problem and then persuades them to try a solution.
An advice column first describes a problem to inform, then recommends a specific solution to persuade readers to try it.
9. A comic book about recycling uses funny characters to entertain while also persuading readers to recycle.
Funny characters make the comic book enjoyable to read, so they entertain the audience while the recycling message works to persuade at the same time.
Part B: Matching
Match each item on the left to the correct answer on the right.
1. Match each item to its correct answer.
A funny cartoon about saving water
→ Entertain and Persuade — uses humor to encourage conservation
Inform and Entertain — teaches cooking with humor
A museum exhibit label about dinosaur bones
→ Inform — shares factual details about a topic
Persuade — motivates students to take an action
A celebrity chef's cookbook with jokes and recipes
→ Inform and Entertain — teaches cooking with humor
Entertain and Persuade — uses humor to encourage conservation
A poster urging students to join the reading club
→ Persuade — motivates students to take an action
Inform — shares factual details about a topic
Correct matches: A funny cartoon about saving water → Entertain and Persuade — uses humor to encourage conservation; A museum exhibit label about dinosaur bones → Inform — shares factual details about a topic; A celebrity chef's cookbook with jokes and recipes → Inform and Entertain — teaches cooking with humor; A poster urging students to join the reading club → Persuade — motivates students to take an action.