Remember: Helpful details are signal. Extra details are noise. Class words: Remove the noise.

The story

On Thursday afternoon it started to rain. Sarah put on her red raincoat and her yellow boots. She also packed a long shopping list in her bag: milk, bread, apples, cheese, and orange juice. She walked to the car and opened the door with her left hand. Then she put the shopping bags on the back seat. When she tried to start the car, she could not find her keys. She looked under the seat. She looked in her coat pockets. She looked in her bag next to the apples. Finally she saw the keys on the roof of the car. She had put them there for one second while she closed the door, and then she forgot them in the rain.

What is not important

These details are noise. You can delete them and still understand the story:

• It started to rain
• Red raincoat and yellow boots
• The long shopping list (milk, bread, apples, cheese, juice)
• She opened the door with her left hand
• She put bags on the back seat
• She looked under the seat and in her pockets

What is important

These details are signal. Keep them — they tell us what really happened:

• Sarah could not find her keys
• The keys were on the roof of the car
• She put them there for a second and forgot them

Remove the noise — what happened?

One sentence only: Sarah forgot her keys on the roof of the car after she put them there for a moment.

Talk about it

1. What happened? — say it in one sentence.
2. Noise or signal? — pick one detail from the story and explain your choice.
3. Why remove the noise? — so the listener hears the main point fast.