Understanding Non-fiction Text Structures

English I

Non-Fiction Text Structure cont’d

Non-fiction text structures provide a map to guide through text

The five most common non-fiction text structures include:1. Description2. Sequence3. Comparison and contrast4. Cause and effect5. Problem solution

Signal words or cue words alert readers to presence of patterns Often, however, signal words

are implied rather than stated

1. DescriptionPresents a topic and provides details

that help readers understand characteristics of a person, place, thing, topic, or idea.

No specific signal words are typically associated with description.

When authors delineate a topic they use description.

Semantic maps (a graphic organizer that resembles a spider web and groups information by categories) provide a visual representation for this structure

2. Sequence/ Chronological OrderThe sequence structure involves putting

facts, events, or concepts in their order of occurrence.

Signal words, like first, second, third, then, next, last, before, after, and finally indicate order of events.

Authors use sequence when giving directions for an experiment or explaining the stages in an animal’s life cycle.

Series of events chains are visual organizers that use boxes and arrows to illustrate a sequence of events and the steps in that sequence.

3. Comparison/Contrastinvolves identification of similarities and

differences between facts, concepts, people, and so forth

signal words: same as, alike, similar to, resembles, compared to, different from, unlike, but, and yet

use this structure to compare and contrast Venn diagrams use interlocking circles to

illustrate similarities and difference between two things.Individual characteristics appear in

the left and right sections, while common characteristics appear in the overlapping sections.

4. Cause and EffectThe cause and effect structure includes a

description of cause and the resulting effects.

Cause and effect is often signaled by if, so, so that, because of, as a result of, since, in order to, and the words cause and effect.

When authors explain the effects of an oil spill or the reasons for animal extinction they use this structure.

Cause and effect maps use circles or squares with connecting arrows to illustrate relationships between cause and their resulting effects.

5. Problem SolutionThe problem and solution structure shows

the development of a problem and its solution.

Signal words include problem, solution, because, cause, since, as a result, and so that.

Authors use this structure to explain why inventions are created, why money was invented, or why you should buy a particular product.

Problem solution outlines visually illustrate the problem-solving process by defining components of a problem and possible solutions.

Task 1

Identify the following 5 non-fiction article excerpts by structure type:1. Description2. Sequence3. Comparison and contrast4. Cause and effect5. Problem solution

I. Define the Structure Type Thirteen students marched into the

university president’s office with sleeping bags, food, and a video player. They played videos and covered the walls with homemade signs. Soon the group had grown from 13 to 30. Days passed, but the students refused to leave. Eventually their food ran out, and they hadn’t showered in more than a week. But they stayed put. Finally, after nine long days, they won! The president agreed to join an organization that supported better treatment of lab animals.

II. Define the Structure Type

The islands sit right at the equator, but their climate isn’t as hot as you would expect. That’s because they are in the path of many different ocean currents, some of which bring cold waters to the islands’ coasts. The combination of warm and cold currents helps create many different kinds of habitats, from deserts to forests. That’s one reason why so many kinds of unusual plants and animals can live in such a small area.

III. Define the Structure Type

While Spartan boys trained for war, Spartan girls trained to be strong and healthy women. Spartans believed that strong women produced healthy sons. The girls ran foot races, threw javelins, wrestled and did gymnastics. Like the boys, they competed in athletic games from childhood on. They also learned to read and write. However, the girls learned how to weave and sew. And they sang and danced in religious festivals. However, the boys did not sing or dance.

IV. Define the Structure TypeThe Ordovician

505 to 440 Million Years Ago

The Ordovician period began approximately510 million years ago, with the end of the Cambrian,and ended around 445 million years ago, with thebeginning of the Silurian. The Ordovician isclassified into three parts: late, middle, and early.There are two groups in each part. In the late part,Ashgillian and Caradocian. In the middle part thereare the Llandeilian and Llanvirnian. The early part ismade of the Arenigian and Tremadocian groups.

V. Define the Structure Type The growth of urban areas exacerbated many

problems, including the absence of clean drinking water, the lack of cheap public transportation, and most importantly, poor sanitation. Sanitation problems led to heavy urban mortality rates and frequent epidemics of typhoid, dysentery, typhus, cholera, and yellow fever. Government officials, recognizing the need for improvement, initiated the return to suburban and rural areas. The proposal involved several cost effective solutions. Local village water delivery systems were improved, and as villages were substantially smaller, almost everything was in walking distance, thereby eliminating the need for public transportation.

Task 2

Identify the following text

structure by its graphic organizer:1. Description2. Sequence3. Comparison and contrast4. Cause and effect5. Problem solution

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