Ms. Crandell
Eng 9
Documentary Script Writing
Name________________
The five kinds of nonfiction text structures we will be using are:
Description, Chronological Order (Sequence), Compare/Contrast, Cause/Effect, and
Problem/Solution.
Read all the material for the five kinds of nonfiction text structures and then fill out this chart:
Text Structure Definition
Description:
Chronological Order
(Sequence):
Compare/Contrast:
Cause/Effect:
Problem/Solution:
Example (signal
words, etc.)
Why or how you would use it for your
documentary:
Description: This type of text structure features a detailed description of something to give the
reader a mental picture. The author explains a topic, idea, person, place, or thing by listing
characteristics, features, and examples. Focus is on one thing and its components.
Signal words: For example • Characteristics are • Such as • Looks like • Consists of • For instance
• Most important •
Look for topic word (or synonym) to be repeated throughout the text.
EXAMPLE: A documentary may describe the habitat of whales or describe what the geography is
like in a particular region.
Questions to ask: What specific person, place, thing, event, or concept is being described? How is
the topic described? (How does it work? What does it do? What does it look like? Etc.) What are
the most important attributes or characteristics? How can the topic be classified? (For example, a
robin can be classified as a type of bird.)
Sequence: This text structure gives readers a chronological of events or a list of steps in a
procedure. The author lists items or events in numerical or chronological order and describes the
order of events or how to do or make something.
Signal words: First, second, third • Next • Then, • after • Before, • prior to • Not long after • While, •
meanwhile • Simultaneously • At the same time • Following • Finally • At last • In the end • On
(date) • At (time) • Directions
EXAMPLE: A book about the American revolution might list the events leading to the war. In
another book, steps involved in harvesting blue crabs might be told.
The last three types of text structures come from an article in the New York Times:
http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/12/12/compare-contrast-cause-effect-problem-solutioncommon-text-types-in-the-times/?_r=0
We have ideas for helping students understand common expository “text structures” like cause
and effect, compare and contrast and problem-solution. These three, especially, are such
staples of journalism that you can find multiple examples in every day’s paper.
Below, we’ve pulled out recent, student-friendly Times examples — in both print and
multimedia — that illustrate each. We’ve also included a list of “signal words” commonly used
in each.
Cause and Effect
Much of journalism involves tracking the ripple effects of big news events or societal trends.
For instance, take a look at the paper any day and you’ll find stories in every section about the
continuing chain of effects of the dismal global economy. Earlier this year, The Times was full
of stories about the effects of the Japanese tsunami and nuclear crisis, and more recently
journalists have tracked the spread, and effects, ofOccupy Wall Street.
Signal Words and Phrases
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for this reason
thus
since
in order to
as a result
therefore
consequently
because
due to
on account of
Times Print Examples
After Lean Acorn Crop in Northeast, Even People May Feel the Effects
How does a dearth of acorns this year lead one scientist to predict both that traffic collisions
will rise and that 2012 will be “the worst year for Lyme disease risk ever”?
Time for a Vacation? Climate Change and the Human Clock
How climate change over the last thirty years has affected attendance at the national parks —
and how it could influence leisure activities, from ski trips to leaf-peeping to bird watching to
ice-cream-eating, in the future.
In Tough Times, a Boom in Cremations as a Way to Save Money
“All but taboo in the United States 50 years ago, cremation is now chosen over burial in 41
percent of American deaths, up from 15 percent in 1985, according to the Cremation
Association of North America. Economics is clearly one of the factors driving that change.”
A Message on Every Arm
Why the chic are carrying humble cloth tote bags this season.
Compare and Contrast
Articles and multimedia that compare two or more things can be found daily in The Times,
whether it’s via a chart comparing the new iPhone to its rivals, or an architecture review that
contrasts the two new baseball stadiums in New York City.
Signal Words and Phrases
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in comparison
by contrast
similarly
but
on the other hand
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on the contrary
yet
however
despite
similarly
as opposed to
Times Print Examples
Two New Baseball Palaces, One Stoic, One Scrappy
A 2009 architecture review comparing the two new baseball stadiums in New York City,
Yankee Stadium and Citi Field.
India Ink | Who Wants to Shop in a Big Box Store, Anyway?
“Let’s compare the American big-box shopping experience to shopping in urban India,” invites
this blog post, a particularly simple and clear example of this kind of writing.
Obsession, Reignited
An article comparing Stieg Larsson’s novel Girl With the Dragon Tattoo with the forthcoming
film version by David Fincher. (This is just one of many Times examples in which an original
literary piece is compared with the film or theatrical version. To find more, use Times search to
read about works of literature you’re teaching.)
Problem and Solution
Every day in The Times there are articles that identify a problem of some kind and report on an
innovative solution. In fact, one whole Times blog, called Fixes, is entirely devoted to reporting
on solutions to social problems and why they work.
Signal Words and Phrases
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problem
solution
because
cause
since
as a result
in order to
so that
Times Print Examples
Monks Embrace Web to Reach Recruits
“The Benedictine monks at the Portsmouth Abbey in Portsmouth, R.I., have a problem. They
are aging — five are octogenarians and the youngest will be 50 on his next birthday — and their
numbers have fallen to 12, from a peak of about 24 in 1969.” Read about how these monks have
taken to the Internet to solve it.
A Hard Turn: Better Health on the Highway
How can the trucking industry encourage drivers to exercise and eat right on the road?
Fixes | The Power of Positive Coaching
“…today’s youth coaches often struggle to provide sound, evidence-based, and age-appropriate
guidance to players.” Fixes describes one solution.
Fixes | An Electronic Eye on Hospital Hand-Washing
“Hospitals do impossible things like heart surgery on a fetus, but they are apparently stymied
by the task of getting health care workers to wash their hands.” What can they do to change
that culture?