Text Structure
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What is Text Structure?
Narrative

How text is organized.

Text Structure is how a
writers organize their
information.
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Text Structure Research
 “Many
students experience problems
comprehending expository text….One
reason is that they can’t see the basic
structure of the text. Some students get
lost in the words and can’t see the big
picture.”

Dymock, 1998; Dymock & Nicholson, 1999
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What will the questions look like?
• The author uses compare and contrast (or
other text structure) as the main text structure
of the passage to…
 • How are ____ and ____ similar (or different)?
 • The second ___ was different from the first
___ because…
 • What was the cause of the ...?
 • How did ___ effect ____?
 • What would probably happen if….?

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What are the 5 main types of Text
Structures we are going to learn?
Description
Sequential Order
Problem-Solution
Cause and Effect
Compare-Contrast
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Description

Explains a topic,
often in considerable
detail. Often the text
is broken into
sections, each with a
main idea and details
that elaborate on it.
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Description
Examples
 Information on sheets
about products for sale,
such as a car, an appliance,
a house, etc.
 Articles of things to do at a
vacation destination
 Sections of a student’s
handbook that discuss the
behavior or uniform policy
Signal Words
 For example, in particular,
for instance, to illustrate,
such as, most important,
another
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Description Signal Questions

What specific topic,
person, idea, or thing
is being described?
How is it being
described (what does
it look like, how does
it look like, how odes
it work, what does it
do, etc.)?
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Descriptive Text
There are ___________ kinds of ____________________. The first kind of
____________________
is ________________________. It
____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
___________________.
The second one is ________________________. It
______________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
___________________.
The third kind is ________________________. It
________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
___________________.
Now you can recognize the ________________________ kinds of
___________
________________.
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Sequence/
Chronological Order

Steps described in the
order they occur.

Information or
arguments are
constructed in a chain,
so that the writer can
lay out steps in a
process, series of
events, or a hierarchy.
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Sequence/
Chronological Order
Examples
 Recipes
 Directions in a manual for
using an I-Pod.
 A timeline for product
development
 Student Schedule
Signal Words
 First, next, another, then,
finally, before, preceding,
following, additionally
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Sequence/Chronological Order
Signal Questions

What items events or
steps are listed? Do
they have to happen
in this order? Do they
always happen in this
order?
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Sequence Text
Here is how a
________________________ is made.
First, ________________________. Next,
______________________. Then,
______________________. Finally,
______________________.
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Compare and Contrast

Shows what’s in
common and what’s
different.

Describes
similiarities between
objects, places
events, and similar or
different qualities are
linked back and
forth.
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Compare and Contrast
Examples
 Sports pre-game stories
about two opposing teams
 New articles explaining
candidates’ position on
issues
 Description of difficult
electives students can take
Signal Words
 Like, similar to, unlike, in
contrast, whereas, while,
although , different from,
as opposed to, instead of,
however, as well as,
either/or
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Compare and Contrast Signal
Questions



What things are
being compared?
In what ways are
they alike?
In what ways are
they different
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Comparison/Contrast Text
________________________ and ________________________ are
similar in several ways. Both
________________________ and ____________________have
similar ______________________.
Finally, both ____________________ and ______________________
______________________.
________________________ and ________________________ are
different in several ways. First,
________________________ ________________________, while
________________________.
Secondly, ______________________, but ______________________
______________________.
In addition while ________________________,
________________________. Finally,
________________________, while ________________________.
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Problem and Solution
Author states a problem
and solution(s).

Present a problem
and several possible
solutions. The author
may also describe the
pros and cons of each
solution
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Problem and Solution
Examples
 An newspaper editorial
outlining a current
difficulty, prosposing
some solutions and
advocating for one of
them.
 A parent letter stating why
a certain rule has been put
in place
 A speech proposing a
remedy for anti-bullying
Signal Words
 The problem is, the
difficulty is, it is possible
to , if-then, one challenge
is, therefore
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Problem and Solution Signal
Questions

What is the problem?
Why is this a
problem? Is anything
being done to try to
solve the problem?
What can be done to
solve the problem?
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Problem/Solution Text
Sentence 1—tells who had the problem and what the problem is
Sentence 2—tells what action was taken to try to solve the
problem
Sentence 3—tells what happened as a result of the action taken
_______________________ had a problem because
______________________________________
Therefore,
_________________________________________
_______________________________
As a result,
_________________________________________
_____________________________.
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Cause and Effect
A cause is a reason why an event
happens. The effect is what
happens. A cause may have more
than one effect. An effect may
happen because of more than one
cause.
Focused on an event or occurrence,
the writer names the
event/occurrence and then tells
the effects it has (on other events,
on people, etc.) or the writer
names the event/occurrence and
then tells what caused it to
happen
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Cause and Effect
Example
 Warning labels naming
possible side effects of
using a product
Signal Words
 Therefore, as a result,
leads to, because of, in
order to, for these reasons,
thus, if-then, may be due
to
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Cause and Effect Signal
Questions



What happened?
Why did it happen?
What caused it to
happen?
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Cause/Effect Text
Because of ______________________,
______________________.
_______________________
caused ________________________.
Therefore ________________________.
Finally, due to
______________________,
_____________________. This explains why
____________________.
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PRACTICE
Starts easy but gets hard
1.
2.
3.
Read the paragraph
Identify the text structure
Write it down.
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Deviled Eggs
Pop out (remove) the egg yolks to a
small bowl and mash with a fork. Add mayonnaise,
mustard powder, vinegar, salt and pepper and mix
thoroughly. Fill the empty egg white shells with the
mixture and sprinkle lightly with paprika. Cover
lightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to
one day before serving.
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Sports at Ericson
There are two popular sports played at
Ericson, basketball and volleyball. Both
take place inside of the gym at Ericson.
Also, each sport has two teams of people.
In basketball, however, the ball can be
played off of the floor, and in volleyball,
the ball cannot touch the floor or it is out
of play. Basketball and volleyball are
popular sports at Ericson.
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The Lazy Student
When Tim woke up, he didn’t want to
go to school. His mom took him anyway.
So, he went to school, but he didn’t do any
work. The days passed, and Tim still
didn’t do any work. Mr. Morton called
Tim’s house, but Tim still wouldn’t do any
work. Finally the report cards came out,
and Tim failed his classes. Tim was sad.
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Failing Classes
Lots of students fail classes. Some
students fail because the work is too hard
for them. Other times they may fail
because they are lazy, and don’t do any
work. Another reason why students may
fail is if they don’t go to school. If you’re
not in class you may miss a lot. Many
students fail classes every quarter.
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Passing Classes
A lot of students have been failing
classes. These students wouldn’t be failing
classes if they studied more, asked
questions, tried harder, and came in for
extra help. Even though a lot of students
fail classes, they have many options if they
want to pass.
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Gail Denvers
Devers experienced the highlight of any
sprinter’s career, as she stood on the huge
platform in the giant stadium and received an
Olympic gold medal.
Eighteen months earlier she wasn’t thinking
about running. She was hoping that she would
be able to walk again.
Just four years earlier, in the summer of
1988, as Devers was training for the Olympic
Games, to be held in Seoul, South Korea, she
began to feel very tired all the time and failed
to make the Olympic finals.
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Three Types of Circus Clowns
Generally, there are three categories of circus clowns—whiteface, august
and character. Each has a specific makeup style and costume. Each has a
typical act as well.
•
The neat whiteface is usually a strict, in-charge character who sets up
the punch line for the joke with a partner His facial features are neatly
detailed in red or black.
Circus legend has it that the august clown got his name from a
German nickname for someone who is clumsy. The august wears lightcolored makeup, but white is used around the mouth and eyes, and there’s a
big red nose. This clown performs a great deal of slapstick humor.
Character clowns perform as different personalities—cowboys,
scarecrows, grandmothers or symphony conductors. The most famous
character clown, however, is the tramp. Tramps wear different styles of
makeup and costumes that are torn or shabby. Some tramp clowns are
happy-go-lucky. Others are extremely sad. Still others act like gentlemen
who just happen to be out of money.
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HOW TO USE THE MICROSCOPE
1. Plug in the lamp.
2. Place a sample of what you wish to observe on a
slide.
3. Adjust the mirror so it reflects light from the
room up into the objective lens.
4. Place your slide with the specimen directly over
the center of the glass circle on the stage.
5. With the LOW POWER objective lens placed
over the slide, use the coarse focus knob.
6. Look through the eyepiece with one eye while
closing the other eye.
7. Use the fine focus knob to fine
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Fewer Toads
Though toads are still around, they no
longer are as common in some areas as
they were a few decades ago. The growing
use of insecticides has reduced their
numbers. The chemical sprays usually do
not harm toads, but cut down the animals’
food supply. Thereby, the toads do not
have enough food to survive. There are
fewer toads in many areas populated by
humans.
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Restoring the Toad
Dr. Knapp doesn’t want people to sit back and let
the toad vanish. He believes that everyone is
responsible for restoring the toad species. Dr.
Knapp thinks we could help restore the toad
population if we stop mowing parts of our lawns and
let the grass grow wild to reserve space for the toad.
He also believes we need to stop using pesticides
and fertilizers. The chemicals kill the insects that
toads eat. If we preserve some spaces in our lawns
and stop using fertilizers, Dr. Knapp believes we can
save the toads.
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What is a descriptive essay?


Sensory images are
used to describe what
the writer sees, hears,
smells, touches, and
tastes.
It paints a clear
description of people,
places, objects, or
events.
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Answers
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Sequence
Compare and Contrast
Chronological
Cause and Effect
Problem and Solution
Chronological
Compare and Contrast
Sequence
Cause and Effect
Problem and Solution
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PRACTICE WRITING YOUR OWN
PARAGRAPHS


Paragraph Frames
provide the structure to
helps students write
summaries of their learning
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First Paragraph
Intro d uce yo ur to p ic
G ive 3 de ta ils, re a sons, fa c ts or ste ps in a proc e ss
You w ill ta lk a bout in y our pa pe r.
Second Paragraph
Third
Fourth
K E Y ID E A
D e s c rip tiv e (d e ta ils )
P e rs u a s iv e (re a s o n s )
E x p o s ito ry (fa c ts /s te p s )
K E Y ID E A
D e sc rip tive (d e ta ils)
Pe rsu a sive (re a so n s)
E x p o sito ry (fa c ts/ste p s)
K E Y ID E A
D e sc rip tive (d e ta ils)
Pe rsu a sive (re a so n s)
E x p o sito ry (fa c ts/ste p s)
e xp la n a tio n
exp lan ation
exp lan ation
e la b o ra tio n
elab oration
elab oration
e xa m p le s
exam p les
exam p les
K E Y ID E A
K E Y ID E A
K E Y ID E A
exp lan ation
exp lan ation
exp lan ation
e la b o ra tio n
elab oration
elab oration
e xa m p le s
exam p les
exam p les
Fifth Paragraph
C o n clu sio n
S um m a rize the points
you m a de in the e s s a y
go ba c k to the introduc tion
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Let’s prepare to write an essay!
Here’s the prompt.
There are many good and bad
things about being in the six
grade. Explain what these things
are.
What kind of prompt do we have?
Did you say expository? You’re
right!
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This is an important step!
Don’t try to write your paper
without doing an outline first.
Why?!
•You will be graded on organization.
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Put it all together and write!
Does this give you an overall review of
what we’ve studied for writing?
 There are many things that fit together to
help us become excellent writers.

Text
Tex
t
Text
Text
Text
Text
Text
Tex
t
Text
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