STRATEGIES FOR TEACHING
TEXT FEATURES AND TEXT
STRUCTURE WITH
EXPOSITORY TEXT
Kim Hamer
Understanding Yourself, As a Reader
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How do you use text features to aid your
comprehension as you read?
What strategies do you use to help you understand
these text features?
Do you employ the same strategies when you read
different types of expository texts?
How does the organizational structure of the text
impact how you read it?
Please Reflect On The Following
Quotes
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“Expository text and strategic reading are
particularly important, given the current emphasis
on assessing reading achievement.”
- Paola Pilonieta (2011)
“Young children lack early exposure to exposition.”
- Barbara Moss (2004)
“Students have not been taught to read expository
text.”
- Barbara Moss (2004)
Classroom Connection
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Please take a minute to think about the
following questions:
- How much expository text do you implement in
your classroom?
- Do you have age appropriate examples of
authentic expository text for children?
- What are some ways that you explicitly teach
students to read and understand expository text?
Interesting Statistics
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“Between 2,500 and 5,000 new children’s nonfiction
books are published each year, more than any other
genre.”
- Barbara Moss (2004)
“It can be detrimental to students’ academic
achievement if they are not exposed to a variety of
reading material.”
- Paola Pilonieta (2011)
“In a study involving more than 100 hours of
observations in primary literacy classrooms, there was
not a single instance of teachers modeling reading
strategies for reading expository text.”
- Barbara Moss (2004)
What Can We, As Educators Do To
Change Things
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How can we change the way our students perceive,
read, comprehend, and interact with expository
text?
Text Features and Text Structure Can
Help!!
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“Text features include all the components of a story or article
that are not the main body of text. These include the table of
contents, index, glossary, headings, bold words, sidebars,
pictures, and captions, and labeled diagrams.”
-Kelley, Clausen-Grace (2010)
The structure or organization of the text is the arrangement of
ideas and the relationships among the ideas.” Text structures
include description, sequence, compare/contrast, cause/effect,
and problem/solution.
-Akhondi, Malayeri, and Samad (2011)
The Importance of Understanding Text
Features
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“Expository nonfiction also contains numerous text
features that supplement and present important
content that the student must read in order to fully
comprehend. Interestingly thought, students often
ignore these essential text features, even though
they have been taught their importance.”
-Kelley, Clausen-Grace (2010)
Strategies To Use When Teaching Text
Features
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The Text Feature Picture Walk (Kelley,
Clausen-Grace, 2010)
Understanding Text Features of
Different Genres (Bluestein, 2010)
We will explore these strategies in more
detail during a later session.
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The Text Feature Walk
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Why is the picture walk effective when teaching
young children how to preview text?
What strategies do you use when teaching your
students how to preview expository text?
Please take a moment and predict what a text
feature walk is. What do you think this strategy
looks like and sounds like?
The Text Feature Walk
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Students work to explore and become familiar with
the text features in a certain text, before actually
reading the text.
Students use these text features in helping them to
make predictions about the text, and in determining
the main idea.
In order for students to successfully implement this
strategy, the text feature walk must be taught using
the gradual release of responsibility.
Classroom Connection

What are your ideas for
incorporating a text feature walk into
your instruction? Think about what
this strategy will look like and sound
like in your classroom.
Text Features and Genres
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“We must begin to create a bridge to
expository text comprehension for our neediest
readers by scaffolding instruction of the most
common features of three genres of nonfiction.
-Bluestein (2010)
Text Features and Genres
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Please reflect on the following
questions.
 What
types of expository text do you use in
your classroom?
 Does your classroom library offer students a
variety of genres?
Text Features and Genres
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Biography
-table of contents, index, timelines, photographs,
captions
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Journalistic Text Genre
- pictures, captions, charts, maps, graphs
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Informational Text/Textbooks Genre
- table of contents, headings/subheadings, bold
words, summary statements
The Importance of Understanding Text
Structure
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“The ability to identify and analyze these
text structures in expository texts help
readers to comprehend the text more
easily and retain it longer.”
-Akhondi, Malayeri, and Abd Samad (2011)
Types of Text Structure
Description
 Sequence
 Compare/Contrast
 Cause/Effect
 Problem/Solution
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Strategies For Teaching Text Structure
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“Introduce text structure in order, beginning with
description, and finishing with compare/contrast.”
“Do not combine text structures.” Practice one text
structure until students are comfortable with it. (It
helps if the texts are short when students are
practicing.)
Highlight/Find signal words
Introduce students to graphic organizers
Scaffolding with blank graphic organizers
Have students practice writing with the designated text
structure.
- Akhondi, Malayeri,and Abd Samad (2011)
Expository Texts and Trade books
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According to Barbara Moss (2004),
information trade books and using them to
retell events from the text, will help students
begin to understand how different texts are
organized.
Expository Texts and Trade books
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When selecting expository trade books,
teachers should consider
- the age level and interests of students
- the readability of the book
- the text structure being taught
Classroom Connection
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What expository trade books do you currently use
in your classroom?
Which text structure could you use to teach with
these books?
How would you evaluate these books in terms of
being appropriate and capturing the interests of
your students?
Resources for Finding Authentic
Expository Texts and Trade books
http://www.ala.org/mgrps/divs/alsc/awardsgrants/
bookmedia/sibermedal/idex.cfm
Robert F. Siebert Award
http://www.reading.org/Resource/Booklists/TeacherC
hoices.aspx
Reading Teacher’s Teacher Choice Booklist
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alsc/awardsgra
nts/notalists/ncbindex.cfm
ALA’s Notable Children’s Books
Thank You For Coming!
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Next session, we will look at expository trade books
in more depth, as well as choosing authentic
expository texts.
I am looking forward to continue learning with you!
References
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Akhondi, M., Malayeri, F., & Samad, A. (2011). How to Teach
Expository Text Structure to Facilitate Reading Comprehension.
Reading Teacher, 64(5), 368-372. doi:10.1598/RT.64.5.9
Bluestein, N. (2010). Unlocking Text Features for Determining
Importance in Expository Text: A Strategy for Struggling Readers.
Reading Teacher, 63(7), 597-600.
Kelley, M. J., & Clausen-Grace, N. (2010). Guiding Students Through
Expository Text With Text Feature Walks. Reading Teacher, 64(3),
191-195. doi:10.1598/RT.64.3.4
Moss, B. (2004). Teaching expository text structures through
information trade book retellings. Reading Teacher, 57(8), 710-718.
Pilonieta, P. (2011). The expository text primer: A teacher's resource
guide for using expository text. New England Reading Association
Journal, 46(2), 45-51.