Classroom Resource

Text Structures

Subject Area

English Language Arts

Grade(s)

2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

Overview

Text structures refer to the way authors organize information in a text. Recognizing the underlying structure of texts can help students focus attention on key concepts and relationships, anticipate what is to come, and monitor their comprehension as they read.

This informational material will provide students and teachers with background knowledge related to these structures:

Narrative
Chronological, process, or sequence
Cause and effect
Problem/solution
Compare and contrast
Definition or description

This document provides a definition, graphic organizer, transition words, and guiding questions for each type of text structure.

Content Standards

English Language Arts (2021) Grade(s): 2

ELA21.2.27
Identify the text structures within literary and informational texts, including cause and effect, problem and solution, and sequence of events.

Unpacked Content

Vocabulary

Text structures
Literary texts
Informational texts
Cause and effect
Problem and solution
Sequence of events

Knowledge

Students know:

Literary and informational texts follow predictable structures.
Cause and effect text structure describes an event (the cause) and the consequence or result of the event (the effect).
Problem and solution text structure describes a problem and how the problem was solved or could be solved.
Sequence of events is the order of events within a text.

Skills

Students are able to:

Identify the text structure of literary texts.
Identify the text structure of informational texts.

Understanding

Students understand that:

Identifying the text structure of literary and informational texts will set a purpose for their reading and improve their comprehension.

English Language Arts (2021) Grade(s): 3

ELA21.3.24
Identify the text structures within literary and informational texts.

Unpacked Content

Vocabulary

Identify
Text structures
Literary text
Informational text

Knowledge

Students know:

Literary and informational texts follow predictable structures.

Skills

Students are able to:

Identify the text structure of literary texts.
Identify the text structure of informational texts.

Understanding

Students understand that:

Identifying the text structure of literary and informational texts will set a purpose for their reading and improve their comprehension.

English Language Arts (2021) Grade(s): 4

ELA21.4.23
Evaluate how text features and structures contribute to the meaning of an informational text.

Unpacked Content

Vocabulary

Text features
Text structures
Informational texts

Knowledge

Students know:

Informational text often includes text features, such as graphs, charts, diagrams, photographs, etc., to help readers better understand the information in the text.
Informational text often follows a predictable text structure.

Skills

Students are able to:

Identify and describe how text features contribute to the meaning of informational text.
Identify and describe how text structure contributes to the meaning of informational text.

Understanding

Students understand that:

Text features are often included in informational text to help readers better understand the author's intended meaning and message.
Informational texts often follow a predictable text structure, and identifying the structure of a text can improve comprehension.

English Language Arts (2021) Grade(s): 5

ELA21.5.24
Determine and evaluate the effectiveness of digital and print text features and structures, including comparison and contrast, problem and solution, and cause and effect.

Unpacked Content

Vocabulary

Determine
Evaluate
Effectiveness
Digital text features
Print text features
Text structures
Comparison and contrast
Problem and solution
Cause and effect

Knowledge

Students know:

Text features are items like charts, graphs, diagrams, time lines, animations, or interactive elements on Web pages.
Text features can provide additional information or enhance understanding of the text.
Text can be structured in different ways, depending on the type of information that is being communicated.
A text that follows a comparison and contrast structure will describe how two or more things are alike or different.
Problem and solution text structure describes a problem and how the problem was solved or could be solved.
Cause and effect text structure describes an event (the cause) and the consequence or result of the event (the effect).

Skills

Students are able to:

Identify digital and print text features and structures.
Evaluate the effectiveness of digital and print text features and structures in communicating the intended meaning.

Understanding

Students understand that:

Text features can be found in printed and digital text materials.
Text features often provide important information about details in the text or can enhance understanding of details in the text.
Texts follow a predictable structure that contributes to the overall meaning of the text.
They can demonstrate comprehension of the text by evaluating on the purpose and effectiveness of the text features and structure the author chose to use.

English Language Arts (2021) Grade(s): 6

ELA21.6.2
Make inferences and draw logical conclusions from the content and structures of informational texts, including comparison and contrast, problem and solution, claims and evidence, cause and effect, description, and sequencing.

Unpacked Content

Vocabulary

Inferences
Logical conclusions
Content
Structures
Informational text
Comparison and contrast
Problem and solution
Claims and evidence
Cause and effect
Description
Sequencing

Knowledge

Students know:

Explicit information in a text, like its content and structure, can be used to draw conclusions and support inferences.
Text can be structured in different ways, depending on the type of information that is being communicated.
A text that follows a comparison and contrast structure will describe how two or more things are alike or different.
Problem and solution text structure describes a problem and how the problem was solved or could be solved.
Claim and evidence structure proposes a particular claim, then provides evidence to support the claim.
Cause and effect text structure describes an event (the cause) and the consequence or result of the event (the effect).
A description text structure describes a topic by listing characteristics, features, attributes, and examples.
Sequencing text structure presents ideas or events in the order in which they happen.

Skills

Students are able to:

Identify the structure of informational texts, including comparison and contrast, problem and solution, claims and evidence, cause and effect, description, and sequencing.
Make inferences and draw conclusions from the content and structure of informational texts.

Understanding

Students understand that:

Informational text provides explicit information in its content and structure that can be used to draw conclusions and support inferences.
Informational text generally follows a particular structure, and identifying this structure can help them better comprehend and analyze the text.

English Language Arts (2021) Grade(s): 7

ELA21.7.2
Evaluate how effectively an author uses structures of informational texts, including comparison and contrast, problem and solution, cause and effect, and substantiated or unsubstantiated claims and evidence, to achieve a purpose.

Unpacked Content

Vocabulary

Informational text structures
Comparison and contrast
Problem and solution
Cause and effect
Substantiated claim
Unsubstantiated claim
Evidence
Author's purpose

Knowledge

Students know:

Authors use particular informational text structures to achieve an intended purpose.
A text that follows a comparison and contrast structure will describe how two or more things are alike or different.
Problem and solution text structure describes a problem and how the problem was solved or could be solved.
Cause and effect text structure describes an event (the cause) and the consequence or result of the event (the effect).
Claim and evidence structure proposes a particular claim, then provides evidence to support the claim.
Substantiated claims will have relevant, credible supporting evidence, while unsubstantiated claims will not.

Skills

Students are able to:

Identify the structure of informational text.
Evaluate the effectiveness of the text structure in achieving the author's intended purpose.

Understanding

Students understand that:

Authors choose to format their informational text in a particular structure to achieve a specific purpose.

Interdisciplinary Connection(s)

Link to Resource

https://dpi.wi.gov/sites/default/files/imce/ela/images/Text%20Structures.pdf

Content Type / Source

CR Resource Type

Informational Material

Resource Provider

Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction

Accessibility

Text Resources: Content is organized under headings and subheadings

License

License Type

Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives

Approved Date

2022-08-04

Curated by

Learning Resource Type

Text Structures

Subject Area

Grade(s)

Overview

ELA21.2.27 Identify the text structures within literary and informational texts, including cause and effect, problem and solution, and sequence of events.

Vocabulary

Knowledge

Skills

Understanding

ELA21.3.24 Identify the text structures within literary and informational texts.

Vocabulary

Knowledge

Skills

Understanding

ELA21.4.23 Evaluate how text features and structures contribute to the meaning of an informational text.

Vocabulary

Knowledge

Skills

Understanding

ELA21.5.24 Determine and evaluate the effectiveness of digital and print text features and structures, including comparison and contrast, problem and solution, and cause and effect.

Vocabulary

Knowledge

Skills

Understanding

ELA21.6.2 Make inferences and draw logical conclusions from the content and structures of informational texts, including comparison and contrast, problem and solution, claims and evidence, cause and effect, description, and sequencing.

Vocabulary

Knowledge

Skills

Understanding

ELA21.7.2 Evaluate how effectively an author uses structures of informational texts, including comparison and contrast, problem and solution, cause and effect, and substantiated or unsubstantiated claims and evidence, to achieve a purpose.

Vocabulary

Knowledge

Skills

Understanding

URL (web address)

CR Resource Type

Resource Provider

Accessibility

License Type

Approved Date

ELA21.2.27
Identify the text structures within literary and informational texts, including cause and effect, problem and solution, and sequence of events.

ELA21.3.24
Identify the text structures within literary and informational texts.

ELA21.4.23
Evaluate how text features and structures contribute to the meaning of an informational text.

ELA21.5.24
Determine and evaluate the effectiveness of digital and print text features and structures, including comparison and contrast, problem and solution, and cause and effect.

ELA21.6.2
Make inferences and draw logical conclusions from the content and structures of informational texts, including comparison and contrast, problem and solution, claims and evidence, cause and effect, description, and sequencing.

ELA21.7.2
Evaluate how effectively an author uses structures of informational texts, including comparison and contrast, problem and solution, cause and effect, and substantiated or unsubstantiated claims and evidence, to achieve a purpose.