Understanding an Existing Map

Terms/Anomalies/Questions: The TAQ Sheet

Complete Citation:

Terms and Phrases

To make its claim, the source uses important concepts. These organize the evidence and make sense out of it. Identify four key terms or phrases that are especially important to the source’s claim. Explain why each is important to the source’s claim.

Term 1:
Term 2:
Term 3:
Term 4:

Expectations

Surprising Elements	What You Expected to Read

Readers already have beliefs about a topic even more they start reading. It is important to recognize the difference between what we expected and what the document says. The difference between what we expect and we read can identify unexplained territories that are worth writing about. List four ideas, facts or other features from the source that surprised you. How was each different from what you expected?

Questions

After you have carefully reviewed the source, ask useful questions whose answer might become your claim. These questions should address the source’s assumptions, evidence, thesis, or issues that it ignores.